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15. Launching a podcast

Podcasts have been around for a long time but have only become a real success in recent years and are now a media genre in their own right. Halfway between radio and the internet, podcasts owe their success to the inventiveness of the creators that produce them.

The different types of podcasts

There are two main categories of podcasts that can be found online. Firstly, there is everything that the big radio stations produce. Virtually all of them now allow users to listen or re-listen to their programmes online, using dedicated applications. It is those listening figures that greatly boost the success of this format.

At the same time, several dedicated studios have started producing so-called “native” podcasts. Simply put, these podcasts only exist online. In the UK, these studios include Agora Podcast Network, Stakhanov Productions and Parcast Network.

Talk and intimacy

With the plethora of native podcasts available, you can find everything. That said, discussion-based or “talk” podcasts are the ones that get the highest listener figures, whether they are talking about cinema, rap, African culture or even feminism. These formats have generally been in existence for several years and operate as a programme that is released weekly or monthly, with seasons and seasons with on-air rituals.

The podcast format is also conducive to creating trust. Many podcasts prominently feature the narrator’s intimacy and introspection. They usually take the form of a story accompanied by a soundtrack specially composed for the occasion. Joseph Fink and Jeffrey Cranor’s “Welcome to Night Vale” is an example of this format.