What are you doing, anyway? Are you doing a radio show or a podcast? Or is it a streaming video show? Or maybe a social media account?
This comes to mind as practically every podcast is now a video production on YouTube, too. That’s not new, but it’s gotten to the point that if you don’t have cameras in the studio for your podcast or radio show, you might as well shut it all down. It’s a case of going where the audience is expecting you. Nothing wrong with that. Necessary, in fact.
But…
One of the charms of podcasting was how anyone could start a podcast for practically nothing. Got a laptop and a couple of USB mics? That’s all you needed, and it spawned countless “two comedians talking about random stuff with a guest” podcasts, and it had that “hey, kids, let’s put on a show” feel to it. Video was a separate thing, with the exception of a few crossovers. The visual aspect was too much trouble to do right.
Radio, however, never learned that lesson; to this day, radio shows stick cameras in their studios and stream the excitement of hosts in bulky headphones talking into mics for a few hours. This creates content that — let’s face it — nobody wants to see unless they’re truly bored. Or you can do things that require visual elements and thus blow off the audio-only audience you have. It’s not enough to have static shots of a studio. The video version should be a show, not surveillance footage.
Or maybe not, because most of the video podcasts are pretty much the same thing. It got worse with Zoom, and I could explain why, but you’ve all experienced the split-screen, low-res, latency-riddled Zoom video, not just on podcasts but in interminable work “meetings.” It might work for now, but it’s really annoying for your audience. If you’re going to do video, you should be doing it right.
What’s “right”? Simple: Give the audience something to look at. A plain studio isn’t enough. It’s never been easier (or cheaper) to do things that make a show look like a show, from chyrons to green screens. You can do broadcast-quality graphics, or something approaching that level, on your laptop. You can insert video clips (brush up on those copyright laws) and do things that have to be seen to be understood. In short, you can do a TV show.
Wait, didn’t I say you can’t do that without abandoning your audio listeners? Yeah, and that’s an important reminder: Video isn’t radio with pictures. Video is another medium. Radio and podcasting are separate media as well. You can’t get away with doing a half-assed job on any of them. A lousy video version does nothing for your radio show or podcast.
Broadcasting history is riddled with the bones of radio shows that thought just running cameras in the studio with no compelling visual material would be enough. Podcasts are consumed in an entirely different way in audio form than they are in video form, and the material needs to take that into account. You should be on every platform, but you have to approach them as individual entities. Doing what most shows do – static shots of the hosts and mics, or grainy split-screen Zoom calls – isn’t good video. Everything you produce should be tailored to the medium, not an afterthought.
That, of course, costs more and takes up more time, and if that’s a problem, pick one platform and stick to it. Don’t do things because you “have to.” Do them right.
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Perry Michael Simon is a weekly news media columnist for Barrett Media. He previously served as VP and Editor/News-Talk-Sports/Podcast for AllAccess.com. Prior to joining the industry trade publication, Perry spent years in radio working as a Program Director and Operations Manager for KLSX and KLYY in Los Angeles and New Jersey 101.5 in Trenton. He can be found on X (formerly Twitter) @PMSimon.