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I'm Against Podcasts

washingtonpost.com

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Re: I'm Against Podcasts

#81

Post by learc83 »

frosted-flakes wrote: post #45
learc83 wrote: post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I always hated it when listeners called in on talk radio. They very rarely had anything insightful to day, and even if they did, they general weren't able to convey it clearly.

I always inwardly cringe when they start going off topic and the host keeps trying to rein them in. But when it's someone who knows how to present themselves on radio, it's good. There's this one show on CBC where listeners call in to a plant expert about their gardening problems, and he identifies them and suggests solutions on the spot. You get a wide variety of people who call in, but since the roles are reversed—…

There is a similar show in the Atlanta area where a professor from The University of Georgia answers gardening questions. I also find the callers on that show are a lot easier to listen to. I think you're right about them asking questions instead of just making comments.

Re: I'm Against Podcasts

#82

Post by ilikehurdles »

ianai wrote: post #75
bunderbunder wrote: post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I, too, dislike the "eavesdropping on other people's tipsy pub conversation" genre of podcasts. I generally don't love the professionalized "least common denominator of an NPR listening audience's tastes, delivered in carefully rehearsed NPR voice" podcasts, either. My solution is to not bother with those podcasts. There are so many others that I find to be more worthy of my time. Admittedly, it's probably a small fr…

When do people take in their podcasts? I’m thinking it’s during he work commute or at work?

That’s what I’m thinking. I lightly listened to podcasts before becoming a remote worker, but now that I’m remote I never remember to start one up.

Re: I'm Against Podcasts

#83

Post by bovermyer »

I don't like podcasts. The reason I don't like podcasts, though, is the same reason I don't like talk radio or television. If I want to listen to people, I will talk to people myself.

This is not an indictment of podcasts. Rather, it is a personal opinion. And I think the author of this article is confusing his opinion for a general truth.

Re: I'm Against Podcasts

#84

Post by ghaff »

ianai wrote: post #75
bunderbunder wrote: post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I, too, dislike the "eavesdropping on other people's tipsy pub conversation" genre of podcasts. I generally don't love the professionalized "least common denominator of an NPR listening audience's tastes, delivered in carefully rehearsed NPR voice" podcasts, either. My solution is to not bother with those podcasts. There are so many others that I find to be more worthy of my time. Admittedly, it's probably a small fr…

When do people take in their podcasts? I’m thinking it’s during he work commute or at work?

I'm sure people vary but driving/plane/etc. for me. I mostly don't listen at home unless I'm doing something fairly mindless that requires me to be using my hands.

ADDED: When I commuted regularly, I would often listen to audiobooks but they're less amenable to dipping in and out of than podcasts are.

Re: I'm Against Podcasts

#85

Post by joombaga »

ianai wrote: post #75
bunderbunder wrote: post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I, too, dislike the "eavesdropping on other people's tipsy pub conversation" genre of podcasts. I generally don't love the professionalized "least common denominator of an NPR listening audience's tastes, delivered in carefully rehearsed NPR voice" podcasts, either. My solution is to not bother with those podcasts. There are so many others that I find to be more worthy of my time. Admittedly, it's probably a small fr…

When do people take in their podcasts? I’m thinking it’s during he work commute or at work?

During the morning routine, during commute, at work, after work, with a friend on road trips. Any time really.

I usually start something in the morning and lose focus as I'm working (which is kinda the goal).

Re: I'm Against Podcasts

#86

Post by PhasmaFelis »

smacktoward wrote: post #5

> Podcasts are bad because podcasts sound bad — and podcasts sound bad because podcasters aren’t thinking hard enough about what their talk sounds like. But this is exactly why we should cherish podcasts! They're one of the last vestiges of the old, weird, free Internet that we have left. Podcasts (mostly) sound bad because the people making them are (mostly) amateurs, which means they don't know the ins and outs of…

God, I miss the old weird internet.

Re: I'm Against Podcasts

#87

Post by ghaff »

sureaboutthis wrote: post #59
fivre wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Hell, I can deal with shitty microphones, I just wish people would figure out that you need to record all speakers' audio independently and not rely on Skype or Discord or whatever relaying it to a single location. Robovoice is the worst.

Having worked in broadcast and film, I sometimes laugh when I see these people using high end microphones as if they knew what they were doing by buying them.

The snark isn't really necessary but it's probably fair that there are a lot of people who obsess about pro-level gear and studio setups when that last 1-2% of hardware is pretty much indistinguishable in the final product unless everything else is REALLY nailed down.

Re: I'm Against Podcasts

#88

Post by bunderbunder »

ianai wrote: post #75
bunderbunder wrote: post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I, too, dislike the "eavesdropping on other people's tipsy pub conversation" genre of podcasts. I generally don't love the professionalized "least common denominator of an NPR listening audience's tastes, delivered in carefully rehearsed NPR voice" podcasts, either. My solution is to not bother with those podcasts. There are so many others that I find to be more worthy of my time. Admittedly, it's probably a small fr…

When do people take in their podcasts? I’m thinking it’s during he work commute or at work?

For my part, I wonder something similar about how most other people seem to entertain themselves.

Podcasts and audiobooks are easy to consume alongside activities that occupy my hands or my hands and eyes. TV isn't compatible with other activities that need to occupy my eyes, and video games aren't compatible with anything that needs my eyes or my hands.

Re: I'm Against Podcasts

#90

Post by smt88 »

bovermyer wrote: post #83

I don't like podcasts. The reason I don't like podcasts, though, is the same reason I don't like talk radio or television. If I want to listen to people, I will talk to people myself. This is not an indictment of podcasts. Rather, it is a personal opinion. And I think the author of this article is confusing his opinion for a general truth.

I agree about unedited podcasts where people just talk to each other, but there are excellent podcasts that are closer to documentaries or audio books (Hardcore History, for example). They're pre-written, heavily edited, and performed well.
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