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Now two decades old, podcasting is an exuberant medium where new voices can be found every day. As a powerful communications tool that is largely unregulated and unusually accessible, this influential medium is attracting scholarly scrutiny across a range of fields, from media and communications to history, criminology, and gender studies. Hailed for intimacy and authenticity in an age of mistrust and disinformation, podcasts have developed fresh models for storytelling, entertainment, and the casual imparting of knowledge. Podcast hosts have forged strong parasocial relationships that attract advertisers, brands, and major platforms, but can also be leveraged for community, niche, and public-interest purposes.
In
The Power of Podcasting, award-winning narrative podcast producer and leading international audio scholar Siobhán McHugh dissects the aesthetics and appeal of podcasts and reveals the remarkable power of the audio medium to build empathy and connection via voice and sound. Drawing on internationally acclaimed podcasts she helped produce (
The Greatest Menace,
The Last Voyage of the Pong Su,
Phoebe's Fall), she blends practical insights into making complex narrative podcasts and chatcasts or conversational shows with critical analysis of the art and history of audio storytelling. She also surveys the emerging canon of podcast formats. Grounded in concepts from the affective power of voice to the choreography of sound and packed with case studies and insider tips from McHugh's decades of experience, this richly storied book immerses readers in the enthralling possibilities of the world of sound.
List of contents
Prologue: The Seductive Power of Sound
1. Podcasting: Why, Who, What
2. Appreciating Audio Storytelling: The Backstory
3. Radio, Podcasting and Intimacy
4. The Aerobic Art of Interviewing
5. Milestones in the Podsphere: From
Serial to
The Daily6
. Podcasting as Literary Journalism:
S-Town7
. Creating a Hit Narrative Podcast, Part 1: Finding the Story
8. Creating a Hit Narrative Podcast, Part 2: Under the Hood of
The Last Voyage of the Pong Su9
. Inclusion, Diversity and Equality: Pushing the Boundaries of Podcasting
10. Podcasting: What Next?
Appendix: Podcast Recommendations and Reviews
Notes
Acknowledgments
Index
About the author
Siobhán McHugh
Summary
Siobhán McHugh dissects what makes a good podcast and outlines how you can create one yourself. She blends practical insights into and critical analysis of the art of audio storytelling. Packed with case studies, history, tips, and techniques, this book introduces readers to the possibilities of the world of sound.
