Benjamin Luke, 25 January 2015


Ben Luke, Kate O' Connor, Jen Lunn, Mary Halton, Dean Rodgers, Annepret Martin,

Eleanor Buchau, Catherine Lare, Tom Brocklehurst, Verena Gonadini

American model vs. British model

The reason so many of the podcasts that we have are from America is NPR, whereas

in the UK the BBC takes up the majority of radio programming. NPR tends to offer a

freer hand to experimentation in form and content.

What do you need?

Relatively cheap to make: You need a good microphone for storytelling and it can be

made in your house. Radio drama is more complicated: You're going to need access

to a Studio.

Good voice actors! And an interesting format.

Integrating into a live experience

We discussed several options for different ways that the podcast experience could be

integrated into a wider theatrical experience:

-As part of a ‘behind the scenes’ insight into the production process: Not drama or

storytelling but extra access to the creative process of the production. Could act as a

marketing tool.

-Using it as an extra part of the performance: maybe as a prologue to what you are

about to see live, or additional content to lure you in. Again, could act as a marketing

device, or just part of the way that you tell the story.

-Watching people make a podcast/radio play live - see people making sound effects,

interacting and producing a radio play as it is being made.

-A live event that is then recorded and used as a podcast (a la Bookslam)

As a storytelling format in itself

We talked a lot about the special conditions that a listener experiences a podcast in.

- You can choose your own environment to listen to it in.

-The length of a podcast can vary as it's not subject to a radio programming slot.

-Largely weekly installments that (with the notable exception of Serial and Welcome to

the Night Vale) are non-episiodic.

Some of the best radio plays that we've listened to have been essential to that format -

they would loose something in translation if they were staged. It would be interesting

to think of something essential to the format of a podcast that we could make.

I was interested in creating specific podcasts for specific environments - I think Fuel

did this a few years back? There's something quite exciting about walking down a

street full of people and knowing that you have a ‘purpose’ or a ‘misson’ which is

something that it would be interesting to explore. Rotozaza did this sort of thing with

Wondermart, where you had to go into a supermarket and turn on an MP3 player: you

had to follow around different shoppers and contemplate stealing an item.

Financial stuff

You can't monetise podcasts: there is so much free content online that people wont

pay for content. There are options that are ‘freemium’ services: where you get certain

content for free and then pay for more.

Sponsorship is one source of income (mailchimp? Mail kimp? I use mail Chimp!) as

well as crowdfunding.

A change in audio culture

Whilst audio is doing well as a format and expanding and experimenting, radio is not.

It will be interesting to see over the next few years how access to content changes,

and where podcasting will fit into this.

So why make them?

For the love of the format! And, as Matt Hill tweeted us:

“because none of the stories I wanted to tell were happening on radio”

Support networks

Helen Zaltzman (of The Aullsionist podcast) has a facebook page, the roundhouse,

Exeunt, Beeb.

A few podcasts we all love

Welcome to Nightvale, Thrilling Adventure Hour, This American Life, 99% Invisible,

Radiolab, The Bugle, The Spark, Love & Radio, Invisibillia, The Allusionist, Bookslam


Marketing, digital, experiment, Digital, podcast, podcasting, audio, marketing