More On Podcasts- Changing of the Guard
Yes, two posts in a row about podcasts. I think they are an important shift in personal entertainment. Also, I didn’t think hard enough before that last post.
There are always new podcasts coming and going. Just look at the podcast category in iTunes. It’s filled with detritus that were abandoned after two shows. But in the past 12 months I have seen a significant shift in the quality and staying power of podcasts. So much so that I now have a backlog of things I really want to listen to but just don’t have time for. Conveniently, I’ve also seen a strange shift in my tried-and-true podcasts.1. This is opening up time for some very impressive work.
The Old Guard
Almost all of the Revision3 shows I loved have become so uninteresting that I’ve deleted them from iTunes and Instacast. They just aren’t compelling. Maybe they are made for someone with more generic interests than me.
The Twit network has started to feel desperate. Leo has become the Glenn Beck of podcasting. He whines about disenfranchisement on almost every show. He revels in wild and ridiculous claims. He leans toward faux outrage rather than intellectual discourse. Even MacBreak weekly is regularly uninteresting to a Mac nerd like me. Tech News Today is one of the few still in my regular rotation.
The New Guard
Luckily, there has been a palpable shift in the quality of new podcasts from small “studios” to more than fill the void. I like to think 5by5 has blazed a new trail with a high standard for production quality but with a willingness to go full geek on any topic. Now we have shows from 70Decibels, Merlin Mann, Mule Radio, Shawn Blanc, The Nerdist,2 and many others3.
Here’s a more lengthy list of my Instacast queue:
I Listen To Every New Episode
You Look Nice Today(It’s Back. Razzledazzle!)
I Listen Occasionally or Based on the Topic
Newly Added But Not Listened
<li id="fn:sorry">If you work for these companies, I'm really sorry if I offend you. This is my opinion. I try to tell it how I see it. But let me just say "get over it". I work in an industry that is regularly villified. I don't take it personally. Instead, I work for a company <strong><em>I</em></strong> respect that does work <strong><em>I</em></strong> respect. <a title="Jump back to footnote 1 in the text" href="#fnref:sorry" rev="footnote">↩</a></li>
<li id="fn:nerd">I know it's not new, but damn has it gotten good. <a title="Jump back to footnote 2 in the text" href="#fnref:nerd" rev="footnote">↩</a></li>
<li id="fn:others">There are way too many to list. My Instacast is bursting at the seems. <a title="Jump back to footnote 3 in the text" href="#fnref:others" rev="footnote">↩</a></li>
<li id="fn:russia">I'm told <a href="https://twitter.com/#!/ismh/status/179754945938079746">it's big in Russia</a>. <a title="Jump back to footnote 4 in the text" href="#fnref:russia" rev="footnote">↩</a></li>