Podcasting
Compared to blogs, YouTube, and Facebook, podcasts as a new medium have not caught on nearly as well. Yet, they pack the power of radio into a package with all the flexibility of digital media, including distribution via RSS, and anybody with a computer and/or iPod can enjoy the wealth of available professional and amateur content. Do not mistake this relative lack of reach for weakness: podcasts reach millions of people around the world across thousands of highly targeted and influential listener communities. Understanding the pros and cons and ins and outs of this medium is the first step to joining a powerful media transformation taking place behind millions of white earbuds.
objective
Create a podcast episode and syndicate it online
requirements
Able to subscribe to your podcast in iTunes from your blog
Able to listen to your podcast from your blog via an embedded mp3 player
Use of tags and/or categories to organize your podcast within your blog
Use Feedburner.com to add iTunes tags to the feed
Tag the mp3 file with artist, year, and genre information
first steps
Record some audio: (get creative, this could be anything)
Export the audio as an mp3 file
Tag the audio (most audio players allow you to do this within the application)
Upload the mp3 file to your blog or a podcasting service
Integrate the podcast with your blog
Burn the feed using Feedburner and insert the iTunes tags (make sure to click "I'm a Podcaster" when burning the feed)
Watch out for some blogs not letting you use external protocol links like itpc:// or pcast:// this will break your links to iTunes, so watch out. Setup a dummy blog for this assignment if necessary to meet the requirements.
grading
50 points possible
Up to 10 points for each requirement (make sure to test all requirements out on your computer and a friend's to make sure everything functions properly)
Points off for cutting corners or other evidence of a lackluster effort
Creativity is welcome and encouraged
deliverable(s)
- Submit your assignment using the submission form below
- Post a comment to this page with a link to your blog post with the embedded podcast.
- Respond to at least one of your class colleague's submissions by replying to their comment on this assignment page.
- Rate this exercise and explain your rating with comments about specific strengths/ improvement ideas. Anonymous posts are perfectly acceptable, just log out of the site first.
- UIUC Students: Tag the link “ADV400E2” on delicious.com
- SU Students: Tag the link "IST400E2" on delicious.com
resources & examples
Podcasting with Blogger and video | using blogger to podcast
WordPress.com and audio files | how to embed audio in your wordpress posts (i.e. podcasting)
Podcasts – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia | check out the external resources section
Audacity | free audio editing software
Internet Archive Audio | free file storage for your podcast mp3 files (good for wordpress free accounts)
How to Start Your Own Podcast: 11 steps – wikiHow | a gentle intro to starting a podcast
Adding an iTunes subscribe button | a search index of different links depending on which blog you are using
Feedburner.com and podcasting documentation | adding your feed to Feedburner creates an iTunes subscribe link for you and a bunch of other features
stats
