Podcasts. Four Tips On Finding, Listening And Subscribing.
By Erica and Karen
We have been jubilant about our new podcasts. We have interviewed fascinating and successful women who talk about their careers and their post-career lives. But to listen, of course, you need to know what a podcast is and how to access one. We were pretty new to the medium, and needed some guidance. Here is what we were told.
First, what is a podcast? It is a little like a radio broadcast, but it is recorded, not live, and you can listen whenever you want. Lustre’s are about thirty minutes long; others may be longer or shorter. Like ours, many come in a series, and some actually tell a long story.
Second, how do you find what you want to hear? Ask a friend who has similar tastes. Do some research about a topic you like--retirement, cooking, space travel--or a person you follow, because many writers and journalists do podcasts. So do many mainstream publications, like newspapers and magazines. Most of these podcasts have websites that will tell you how to find them. Others are made by people like you and us--on their cellphones or using a home recording system.
Once you find podcasts you like, subscribe, and then you will get a notice whenever a new one is issued by one of the sites you like. And whoever is making them will be forever in your debt.
Third, podcasts are broadcast on certain platforms. Apple Podcasts; CastBox; Simplecast; Spotify; iTunes and Stitcher are some of them. They have websites, and you can access podcasts on their sites directly from those websites. Once you find a podcast on one of their sites, you will usually see a play button.
Fourth, how can you listen? Lots of ways. You can listen on your cellphone--you will not be surprised to hear that your iPhone has an icon that links to Apple podcasts. On Android phones, you may need to download a podcast app. You can also listen on your iPad, your computer, even on Alexa. Probably lots of other ways as well.
Here in New York City, lots of people listen while they walk, or ride the subway. Where people drive, they often listen in their cars--just as they listen to the radio. Just set up a Bluetooth connection.
For more information, here are a few useful sites:
https://www.wired.com/story/podcasts-beginners-guide/
https://www.thepodcasthost.com/listeners-guide/how-do-i-listen-to-a-podcast/
https://www.howtogeek.com/345845/how-to-get-started-listening-to-podcasts/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FfgW99Q3PmE