PodMov Daily: Wednesday, December 16

Episode 338: Your Midweek Update

How to Balance Your Relationships and Your Podcast

Should you care what people think about your podcasting habit? What about family and friends? “Your family isn't just ‘people,” writes Lindsay Harris Friel of The Podcast Host. “Your family’s views on how you spend a significant portion of your time and energy is important.” However, managing that input can be tricky.

However your loved ones perceive podcasting, misunderstandings likely abound. Most are harmless. The “I don’t get it” family member, for example, “probably calls your podcast ‘your podthing’ or your ‘radio show.’” (In the Before Times, your editor and colleagues had this very conversation in our office. It was hilarious.)

Friel’s strategy manual covers a range of outside perspectives. The “Reckless Cheerleader” will require a different game plan than the “Unintentional Underminer,” she explains, but both will involve boundaries and respect. “Treasure and nurture your family relationships, and work on your podcast like the treasure it is.”

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Hot Pod: The Podcast Industry’s Year in Review

If any one part encapsulates Nicholas Quah’s assessment of the year 2020, it’s this: “I vividly recall an executive telling me in late March: ‘Yeah, we’re all living out of our closets for a while, but I imagine we’ll be back in the studio within six months or so.’ A voice in the back of my head continues to laugh bitterly to this day.”

As far as Big Podcasting and financial desperation are concerned, Quah sees a potential causal relationship, “with the effects of the pandemic directly contributing to the severity of these consolidatory outcomes.” Exhibit A: “(‘The pandemic is seriously hurting my bottom line, time to work with or sell to Corporate Player X’).”

Still, set aside the battle of the ever-benefiting billionaires. Audio labor unions, diversity initiatives like the Equality in Audio Pact, and the “crucial conversation” of IP ownership are just a few of many meaningful counterweights. In 2021, podcasters will continue to be resourceful, generous, and endlessly creative.

Adobe Audition: Superior Software, World-Class Resources

For podcasters, Adobe Audition is the gold standard software for recording, editing, and mixing audio. Whether you’re just getting started or celebrating your 100th episode, Adobe has top-tier resources to help navigate the world of audio content production. Enter the Podcaster Survival Guide.

From Mark Edward Lewis of Cinema Sound, the comprehensive 50-video YouTube series covers four workflow chapters: Record, Fix, Edit, and Mix. With short, topical episodes, current and aspiring podcasters will learn every macro and micro detail for a polished mix with pristine sound.

Adobe Audition isn’t just a powerful audio workstation. It also has world-class educational resources that set podcasters up for success with world-class education. Ready to learn from the best? Check out the Podcaster Survival Guide and stay tuned for more resources in the next few weeks! #AdobeAudition

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Here's what else is going on:

• Fresh start: New year, new podcast. In January, the 28-Day Launch Your Podcast Challenge returns. Register by January 3 to take that idea from zero to launch. Check out this week’s community update for details, as well as PM21 ticket specials and recaps of excellent PM Daily guest articles.

• Career goals: In its first white paper, the Podcast Taxonomy Consortium proposes a standard for job descriptions in podcasting. According to Podnews, “It enables all of us to know the difference between a Technical Director and an Audio Engineer, for example.” Further participation is welcome.

• Dream team: Blue Wire has raised $5 million in funding. The sports podcast company now hosts more than 140 podcasts, with over 20 million downloads for the year. Founder and CEO Kevin Jones tells Axios about podcasts, “We are going to lean into that unlike anyone else in sports right now.”

• House rules: Spotify won’t succeed in imitating The Archers, writes Charlotte Runcie of The Telegraph. The wildly popular audio soap opera, on for 70 years, is a jewel of the BBC. In planning a similar daily serial, Spotify “overlooks the Radio 4 drama’s essential secret: a devoted, long-term fanbase.”