The type of journalism that involves saying "This person makes an incredible claim" and then goes on to allow the person to present said claims uncritically is called "tabloid journalism[1]." Yes, I would expect a podcast hosted by a NYT Journalist and University of Chicago Economist to have higher standards, particularly in the field of academic research.
That's a fun tangent, but doesn't answer the question. What in particular about this podcast has indicated that it is not "tabloid journalism"? You clearly recognize that tabloid journalism exists, so you know that this podcast could theoretically intend to be. But what, specifically, has indicated that it normally isn't?
The background of the people involved is irrelevant to the nature of the product. Someone who works on developing a cure for cancer by day can very well go home and build a fart app at night. There is no reason why you have to constrain yourself to just one thing.
1: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabloid_journalism