What's on the (mp3) radio?
Public radio is starting to publish shows in
downloadable MP3 format. Mix this with Podcasting and the next radio revolution
will begin. We have all the bits we need for time-shifted, pulled media that
automatically moves to our iPods.
Two great public radio shows can now be downloaded
in MP3 format: In Our Time from BBC Radio 4 and On The Media from
NPR.
In Our Time is a BBC radio show which covers a broad gamut of technology, history and philosophy issues. The host, Melvyn Bragg, interviews three leading scholars each week. The topics vary from Carl Jung to the search for the Higg's Boson. A while ago, In Our Time began to test MP3 formated downloadable shows. Now, it appears that they have added a Podcast for In Our Time .
On The Media in news coverage about the news. Brooke Gladstone and Bob Garfield cover what was and wasn't covered by the major news organizations each week. On The Media now has an MP3 downloadable show.
The last piece to fit into this puzzle is Podcasting . Podcasting is pulling online media down for viewing at your own leisure. Podcasting allows you to time-shift radio broadcasts that are archived on-line. If you move the archive to an iPod, you can also take the broadcast with you. The true cool power of podcasting comes in when a podcast (downloadable media file) is mixed with RSS (Really Simple Syndication). The combination of RSS and Podcasting allows you to subscribe to the downloadable audio media. When the media is update, the MP3 (or other file) is automatically downloaded and moved to your iPod. There are several applications for MacOS X that will handle podcast feeds.
So take a short leap into the future, imagine that your favorite radio shows are now available in MP3 podcasts. You could build a commute news program with world news from the BBC, national news from NPR, local news from your favorite local station, add in science and technology from MIT and movie reviews from Reel Reviews. You sync it all to your iPod and hop on the train to work.
We are not far from this as a reality. What will this mean to society it large? The good parts are (I think) - you will have the opportunity to get more diverse coverage of events. Ena and I listen to the BBC regularly via streaming audio. As more sources come on-line, you will be able to broaden your listening choices. You won't have rely on a local affiliate to carry the news you want to hear (or other shows for that matter). This could lead to a better informed public. On the downside, people tend to listen to news (or talk shows or read books) that affirm their beliefs. The ability to listen to only the stuff you like could lead to further polarization of the nation.
I'm looking forward to this next step in internet radio though. I've got my iPod and and iPodderX ready and waiting for media to flow my way.
- JJP
In Our Time is a BBC radio show which covers a broad gamut of technology, history and philosophy issues. The host, Melvyn Bragg, interviews three leading scholars each week. The topics vary from Carl Jung to the search for the Higg's Boson. A while ago, In Our Time began to test MP3 formated downloadable shows. Now, it appears that they have added a Podcast for In Our Time .
On The Media in news coverage about the news. Brooke Gladstone and Bob Garfield cover what was and wasn't covered by the major news organizations each week. On The Media now has an MP3 downloadable show.
The last piece to fit into this puzzle is Podcasting . Podcasting is pulling online media down for viewing at your own leisure. Podcasting allows you to time-shift radio broadcasts that are archived on-line. If you move the archive to an iPod, you can also take the broadcast with you. The true cool power of podcasting comes in when a podcast (downloadable media file) is mixed with RSS (Really Simple Syndication). The combination of RSS and Podcasting allows you to subscribe to the downloadable audio media. When the media is update, the MP3 (or other file) is automatically downloaded and moved to your iPod. There are several applications for MacOS X that will handle podcast feeds.
So take a short leap into the future, imagine that your favorite radio shows are now available in MP3 podcasts. You could build a commute news program with world news from the BBC, national news from NPR, local news from your favorite local station, add in science and technology from MIT and movie reviews from Reel Reviews. You sync it all to your iPod and hop on the train to work.
We are not far from this as a reality. What will this mean to society it large? The good parts are (I think) - you will have the opportunity to get more diverse coverage of events. Ena and I listen to the BBC regularly via streaming audio. As more sources come on-line, you will be able to broaden your listening choices. You won't have rely on a local affiliate to carry the news you want to hear (or other shows for that matter). This could lead to a better informed public. On the downside, people tend to listen to news (or talk shows or read books) that affirm their beliefs. The ability to listen to only the stuff you like could lead to further polarization of the nation.
I'm looking forward to this next step in internet radio though. I've got my iPod and and iPodderX ready and waiting for media to flow my way.
- JJP
Posted: Tue - December 28, 2004 at 01:10 PM
