Your Thoughts on Podcasting

As covered in Wired more and more each day (their latest magazine has a large section on new radio phenomena if this is interesting to you), podcasting is gaining in popularity, which means that now next to no one listens to them.

This push-button radioing seems to do for sound what blogs are doing for words...which makes me interested in them right off the bat. If you have never heard of podcasting, it's where you record yourself, then make the recording available as a download for people to put on their ipods and listen to instead of NPR on their way to work.

Also, you may remember that I have more than a passing interest in radio as a medium for communication, fomented by my exposure to Northeast Public Radio, WAMC while living in Massachusetts. WAMC is so many things that contemporary radio is not, most importantly, part of the community. They spend inordinate amounts of time and energy producing amazing local shows that are broadcast throughout upstate New York and western Massachusetts, and licensed out to other public radio stations.

While working at Jacob's Pillow, my long commute allowed me to get to know their on-air personalities and find out about all sorts of random things I never knew I had an interest in, like local politics, or unheard-of books. My friend Jocelyn and I often talked about how we should start an advise show, where people could call in and we would tell them what to do. Obviously, we are naturally bossy, but more importantly, we're always right. Even when we disagree with each other. All of this adds up to great radio. After all, that's what great radio is all about! Conflict!

Of course, we didn't start a show, but we did get some great advise from my very dear friend, the radio and arts guru Philip Szporer, and we formulated much of what would go into making our show a huge success, at least in the middle of nowhere (hey, you've gotta start somewhere).

Which brings me back to podcasting: I have an interest in the medium, it's technologically interesting, and I am thinking of trying my hand at it. But, will anyone listen?! This is where you come in. Please post your comments at the end of this post, and let me know if you think I should go ahead and give podcasting a shot. Thanks for your advise.