To get started with your thinking for your podcast, consider these things:

• You need a focused question (or two) about your topic, which you engage with interesting research (e.g., observations, interviews, other texts of various kinds). Remember, this kind of research requires you to make interesting connections between your research question and the sources you’re working with. Those connections don’t just exist and need to be dusted off; good researchers make connections for their audience.
   
• Even though podcasting might not look like “writing” to you, you still need to implement good writing practices, audience awareness, evolving an idea, anticipating listener objection, cohesion strategies, and so forth. Again, you’ll need to determine who your audience is and what your angle is. Who do you want to reach with your podcast and how will you make purposeful composing decisions for this audience?

Some Important things to consider:

1. The “someone” might be you, the podcast creator.
2. It sounds like the way “plot” is structured because most good research has a kind of plot or makes a compelling story.
3. The “but,” or the conflict, isn’t necessarily dramatic; rather, it can be nuanced and interesting.

Interview & Resource Finding Plan (IRFP)

Do your best to tell your story, based on the script you prepare. Our Multimedia Services team is available to assist on what you plan to do and why. Of course, things do change during the interview or presentation, but planning early will help you along the way.

• Explain the people you plan to interview and why. Name names! For example, if you plan to interview dining hall employees, what are their names and what dining halls do they work in? If you want to talk to other students, which ones? How are they connected to your project?

Send the Podcast Request form to Multimedia Services

• When you have your podcast idea and script intact, let your professor from one of your classes know so that Multimedia Services will have the professor permission and the request form to schedule your podcast.

What is permissible and what is not permissible for podcast:

• Podcasts are a very good way to express your thoughts and opinions across network platforms. With this freedom also comes responsibility. Keep in mind that your thoughts and expressions are not everyone else’s. We also expect to keep it clean and thought provoking not a way to create disruption.

How Is a Video Podcast Different Than an Audio Podcast?

Podcasts are an “audio first” medium, meaning that the quality of the audio is of utmost importance. This audio is pushed to an online uploading program and is available to social media networks by way of RSS feeds and then distributed to the devices of podcast show subscribers through listening platforms like Apple Podcast, Spotify, and other online broadcast services. Today, many podcasters are video recording their audio recording sessions and posting them to YouTube. This is how we do it from our Multimedia Services department. Podcast and video podcast can also be added to a website or D2L by way of YuJa in D2L.

To better understand the differences, Video podcasts are actually videos of audio conversations that are captured as video and distributed primarily through YouTube or websites as videocasts or vodcasts.  They are “video first” and have more considerations for capturing good video as well as good audio.

Having video of the session is a bonus. If you want to also produce a video series or create podcast video, you can then create video content as well from your podcast sessions. Keep in mind, depending on the level of quality and video style, this can be an entirely separate project from the podcast itself.

You will want to edit the video for the best presentation on video platforms.

Video requires more attention; therefore, engagement times are much shorter. For this reason, most podcasts don’t perform well as videos unless they are produced as full-on video shows.

Because of the popularity of YouTube videos showing podcast interviews, the use of the term ‘video podcast’ is becoming common – whether it is correct or not.

To make podcast video more effective on YouTube:

1. Use video captured with HD webcams, DSLR cameras, or better
2. Be purposeful to create good lighting
3. Show faces and expressions to engage viewers
4. Fill the screen with people and decor, not text and graphic frames
5. Explain value of the video in the first few seconds
6. Edit out slow parts and low value conversation
7. Avoid conference call video captured through Zoom or Skype – the compressed video will degrade even more when uploaded to YouTube

For better quality of both video and audio we recommend that you use our Multimedia Services to create your video and/or audio podcast.