Podcasting is already on the rise, it is exploding now, and newsrooms all over Europe and the US are investing in and launching new audio strategies.
The panel consisted of Mukul Devichand (executive editor Voice and AI BBC), Nic Newman (senior research fellow RISJ), Olle Zachrison (head of news and current affairs Swedish Radio) and moderated by Renée Kaplan (head of new content strategies Financial Times). It discussed what’s really in it for publishers when talking about audio in the newsroom? How will this help inform and engage audiences? How will audio help build membership and subscribers? Is it a smart investment of resources in an ecosystem where resources and revenue are scarce?
Nic thinks audio is perfect for multitasking. Mobile phones & headphones make audio more reachable. Over half of the consumption comes from the young generation; the reasons are authenticity, convivence & engagement with the audience.
Mukul says podcast is different from the radio. The podcast is not a radio in the same way online video is not a TV. Podcasts are informal & have free time (unlike radio shows). He thinks audio & AI (together) is the next thing in the podcast industry.
Olle shared an approach to building audio in News by categorizing it into (i) Live Streams (ii) News Podcasts (iii) Stand-alone clips. He thinks podcasts are shaping radio formats. They have podcast-first perspective at Swedish Radio.
Mukul says with a podcast you can choose an audience and give them exactly what they want. It didn’t happen on the radio. With digital content, journalists should take into account not only the audience interests but where & how the material is going to be consumed.
More information about the panel discussion & recording is available at
https://www.journalismfestival.com/programme/2019/everyone-is-talking-about-audio-but-whats-in-it-for-your-newsroom
By Pratik Ghumade – volunteer press office IJF19
