PodMov Daily: Monday, January 27

Episode 129: Your Monday Mix

How Fast is Too Fast? An Experiment in Podfasting

How fast is too fast when it comes to podcast listening speed? For Medium’s OneZero, Steve Rousseau ventured to find out. In an experiment that “broke [his] brain,” Rousseau explores the phenomenon of ‘podfasters,’ who listen to their favorite shows at 1.5x and even 2x speed.

The article’s play-by-play descriptions of adapting to rapid-fire speech are entertaining, informative, and just might save you a headache. Uri Hasson, the director of a neuroscience lab at Princeton, had “found that word recognition drops about 40% when audio is played back twice as fast.”

Hasson informs Rousseau’s podcast acceleration trials, explaining the effects of speed listening up to 3x. “If you train yourself, you can really become really fast,” he acknowledges. “But you lose something in the depth of comprehension.”

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The NYT on Novelist Marlon James' Dead Authors Podcast

National Book Award finalist Marlon James is a co-host of a podcast, out today, called Marlon and Jake Read Dead People. Peter Libbey of The New York Times spoke to James about how he “conjures lost and forgotten voices” in writing and now with the spoken word.

“In the audio series from Riverhead Books, James and Jake Morrissey, his editor, strive to breathe life into the literature of the past,” writes Libbey. “The podcast is an outgrowth, both hosts said, of discussions that they’ve been having for years.” James has said that he “write[s] to be read aloud.”

It’s a debate between friends and colleagues on works from authors as different Charles Dickens and as romance novelist Jackie Collins. “Too often the canon means ‘these books are untouchable and let’s talk about them in that way,’” James said in an interview. “People fought about ‘Moby-Dick’ in the 1800s. Why can’t we fight about it now?”

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A Music-Inspired Podcaster of Local History

When reporter and podcaster Hunter Ingram begins a new season of Cape Fear Unearthed, one special piece of music takes center stage. The local history podcast is produced for StarNews, a Wilmington, NC publication in which Ingram shares the impact of a single waltz on his creative process.

“Ashokan Farewell” is part of the expansive soundtrack of Ken Burns’ 1990 documentary series “The Civil War.” The track evokes the power of the series in a way that inspires Ingram like no other. “It felt like I was drawing creative fuel from the spirit of the series and the intention behind it,” he writes.

“With that music in my ears, I wanted to create a storytelling vehicle for local history that could maybe, just maybe, capture someone’s attention like that docuseries captured mine,” Ingram explains. “I want to tell the Cape Fear’s history in a way that resonates, educates and thrills, so that people will take with them an excitement to seek out more history beyond the airwaves.”

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Patreon: Community-Powered Creative Freedom for Podcasters

Your podcast’s most passionate listeners love what you create. What if you could give back to your fans, connect more deeply with your audience, and earn consistent income all at once? Patreon is the ultimate platform to expand relationships and revenue.

Patreon puts creators in control, providing tools to create and share exclusive content with your superfans. In return, members support your work with a monthly subscription. It’s a direct, transparent way to increase your earnings while also strengthening your community.

Reward members with exclusive live touring discounts, or offering sneak-peeks of new projects. With Patreon’s private RSS feed feature, podcasters can securely share bonus and advance content. As a creator, you’ll find resources that empower your work every step of the way.

Active, engaged fans are supporting thousands of podcasts on Patreon. Ready to find out why?

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Here's what else is going on:

• Good neighbors: Josh Sherrick, the arts and events superintendent of Greensboro, North Carolina, tells Next City about a 2017 deal to open a Cultural Center production studio “that has enabled Greensboro to carve out its own space in the podcasting world.”

• Picking teams: Assessing the value The Ringer may bring to Spotify in the event of an acquisition deal, Sports Illustrated cites the independent podcast producer’s large and loyal audience, low production costs, and back catalog of shows that can be monetized.

• Ah, reality: MTV has become the latest network to break into original podcasting. In what parent company ViacomCBS calls “a natural move,” 5 audio series will be produced to accompany shows including “Celebrity Ex on the Beach” and “Geordie Shore.”

• Wrath path: English actor, comedian and writer Stephen Fry’s new show 7 Deadly Sins “offers a fresh perspective on both podcasting (which he relies on to power him through his daily walks) and the concept of sin,” recommends The Guardian‘s Hannah Verdier.