JIM WILSON CO-HOSTS TALK RADIO SHOW WITH CHARLIE BASS
LVICC FOUNDER AND VEGAS PODCAST PIONEER LAUNCH WEB TALK RADIO SHOWS AND PODCASTS ABOUT TALK RADIO
Show #1 – Podcasting
In this inaugural series of “Talk Radio About Talk Radio,” Las Vegas entrepreneur and founder of the Las Vegas Internet Chamber of Commerce (www.lvicc.com) Charlie Bass, and indie news/radio/podcast pioneer Jim Wilson combine forces to discuss the esoteric world of Podcasting.
Podcasting, a sexy little word that just about everybody knows but knows little about, is all the rage on the ‘Net.
Initially ignored and downplayed, much like the web, particularly by ‘Big Media,” blogging and podcasting are turning conventional media on its ear.
Unlike the radio most of us grew up with, podcasting has become a social phenomenon and is driving some really big things, such as Apple’s stock upward. 10 million podcast subscribers and 500,000,000 iTunes downloaders can’t be wrong.
In the bigger scheme of things, podcasting has its place along with blogging or “citizen journalism,” in the inexorable and long-over-due democratization of the media. Blogging, podcasting and RSS feeds are the Dynamic Trio that’s got a whole lot of folks worried, Big Media and Talk Radio show hosts in particular. All are scrambling to catch-up with the ‘first movers.’
Most importantly, downloadable radio to go (podcasts), have not only introduced a vast richness of new content on every conceivable subject, it has freed web media from the PC. Like the TiVo did for video, podcasts enable listeners to free themselves of time constraints, and take both their radio shows and music with them everywhere they go. Podcasting takes the once-upon-a-time WalkMan phenomenon to such lofty levels WalkMan’s™ maker SONY® still struggles to make a dent in the market it created in the 80’s.
The iPod is not only a cultural icon, it’s a breathtaking example of Yankee Ingenuity of which we can all be proud.
“Talk Radio Talk Radio” is a series of shows aimed at helping listeners – including current Radio Talk Show Hosts – on or off the ‘Net – understand the powerful forces represented by podcasting, blogging and RSS newsfeeds.
More importantly the show aims to teach listeners how to get their podcasts found in podcast catching software such as iPodder, and the Holy Grail of Podcasts, Apple iTunes’ Podcast Directory.
In this show, Jim and Charlie share insights into what a podcast really is.
(Hint: “It’s not just an archived .mp3 file.”)
Many believe an audio file on a website is a ‘podcast,’ but nothing could be further from the truth. In reality, a ‘podcast’ is a subscribable radio program located by means of podcast receiving software with one or more references to the actual audio file containing the podcast, usually an .mp3.
However, here’s the rub: “An .mp3 alone doth not a podcast make.”
In essence, podcast receiving software enables a user to find and subscribe to podcasts from as many as a hundred or more different sources. The programs are discovered by means of specially-coded XML newsfeeds commonly known as RSS, or “Real Simple Syndication.” To subscribe to a newsfeed, one merely enters the URL of the newsfeed into a newsfeed reader such as Pluck (available at www.pluck.com) which integrates a full-featured newsfeed reader into Internet Explorer. Newsfeed readers like Pluck are generally capable of subscribing to newsfeeds containing .mp3 files or ‘podcasts.’ In essence, the XML newsfeed is a ‘carrier’ or ‘container’ for the links to .mp3 or other audio – and lately video files – much like a suitcase for a set of clothes.
Since most websites are coded in HTML, the basic programming language for websites, .mp3 files located on these sites, although called ‘podcasts’ are never found (without visiting the exact website where they reside), and can’t be subscribed to. Neither can they be read by newsfeed readers. There is no distribution.
This is why millions of audio programs on websites are never found. They aren’t podcasts, pure and simple. They’re just plain old .mp3 files.
To be incorporated into a podcast directory or the iTunes Directory, a podcast must conform to specific criteria beyond the scope of this article. This is why out of 80,000 plus podcasts out there now, only 15,000 are in the Apple iTunes Directory. A rarefied atmosphere, indeed.
Wilson – concurrently programming a 24-hour streaming web radio site and producing 15 podcasts weekly – knows whereof he speaks with six podcasts currently in iTunes.
“Anyone can get their podcast into iTunes if they follow the proper procedures and methodology,” Wilson says.
The potential rewards are great: Greater and more effective personal and corporate branding, and higher visibility on the Internet, without the high costs of traditional Internet advertising: banner ads, paid links, paid search engine inclusion, and the treacherous and often costly world of Pay-Per-Click (PPC) advertising on the major search engines.
TalkRadioTalkRadio.com will present progressively detailed information on podcasting news, podcasting trends, and nitty-gritty details on converting existing radio talk shows to the proper formats for distribution as podcasts, how listeners can become guests on Talk Radio shows on and off the ‘Net, and much more. Stay tuned, and be sure to subscribe to the listener newsletter at the TalkRadioTalkRadio.com site.
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