On the dramatic day The Wall came down—November 9, 1989— I got a call from my boss at ABC News Radio. “Get on tonight’s flight to Berlin.” For a young network news reporter, it was a dream assignment. Over the next two weeks, armed with a portable cassette recorder, notepad and microphone, I covered many … Continue reading What Happens When the World Changes in a Single Day
“Beyond $1 Billion” podcast panel at 2019 Advertising Week. Not so long ago podcasting was barely noticed by the powers that be at Advertising Week, the annual mega-conference in New York for advertising and marketing executives. Our medium was just a little outhouse in the backyard of a mighty media mansion that was dominated by … Continue reading Why the growth of podcasting is part of a much bigger trend: The microphoning of America.
Welcome to the presidential debate season. This evening, tomorrow, and then over 16 long months, several dozen proposed debates will occupy much of the news media’s fevered attention. Millions of us will tune in, but we may well be disappointed. Instead of informed, insightful coverage of complex issues and character of the candidates, the debates … Continue reading 2020 Democrats Debates Will Disappoint. Here’s Why Podcasts Are So Much Better.
Podcasting is now mainstream and has just moved into a new phase. Let’s call it the 2nd Wave. While most media content producers no longer need convincing that they should be doing podcasts, they’re also starting to realize that this medium is unique and that they don’t know how to make them. Unique how? - … Continue reading Why we listen to podcasts and what makes them different from radio and other forms of communication.
Despite many recent efforts to debunk Malcolm Gladwell’s famous “10,000 hour rule”, there is a good deal of truth to what he says. The New Yorker writer, author and podcaster claimed that the key to success in any field, is simply a matter of practicing a specific task for 20 hours a week for 10 … Continue reading Prep, preview, pivot: How almost anyone can ask great questions and do a great podcast interview.
I’m listening to Michelle Obama read her audio book to me. I’m on my own with my headphones and so is she. I picture the former First Lady sitting upright and calm, with good posture, in a small sound-proofed recording booth with a cool glass of water by her side, alone with her thoughts and … Continue reading The Michelle Obama Example: Why Book Publishers Should Make Podcasts With Their Best-Selling Authors
In an increasingly crowded field of Monday-to-Friday podcasts, “The Daily” from The New York Times is still the most popular news show, with about 1.75 million downloads per episode. According to one estimate, the number of daily podcasts has more than tripled in less than two years. The competition now includes news shows by NPR, … Continue reading Daily podcasts are booming. But here’s why some will fail…
For more than three decades I spent my working life in network radio news, reading scripts and speaking to the clock. As a journalist covering politics, wars and the financial markets, I had to master the art of the precis — telling compact, compelling stories using a minimum number of carefully chosen words. As a radio news-talk … Continue reading Throw away the seatbelts. What I had to un-learn after a long career in network radio.
Finally it's happening. Advertisers and marketers are waking up to the great potential of podcasting. At this week's Advertising Week conference in New York, there's interest, even excitement, about audio-- both music and speech. Unlike previous years, when our industry was virtually ignored at this annual event, an entire morning of panel sessions has been … Continue reading Marketers are listening. At last, podcasting is a thing at Advertising Week.
I hate to dump on "The Daily". Apart from editing and producing our own shows, this brilliant New York Times podcast takes up more of my listening time than any other. For news junkies, "The Daily" is part of our weekday morning routine. The show's genial and ever curious host, Michael Barbaro, is like a … Continue reading Simple storytelling and the Radiolabification of podcasting.
Here Hear! 