What occurred at Stitcher

I instructed you I used to be gonna sob over that new MUNA music. I didn’t lie.

Now, extra non-lies! Aka information!

But first, right here’s Jake with one thing to flag for you all:

What occurred at Stitcher

Hi everybody, I’m excited to share with you yet another story from Ashley Carman — a bit she spent months reporting out and wrapped up proper earlier than she left.

The story is a deep dive into SiriusXM’s acquisition of Stitcher — the way it went, the place it went awry, and the way it speaks to the broader podcasting panorama’s transfer towards consolidation and scale.

Former workers at Stitcher say SiriusXM lacked a podcast technique once they have been introduced onboard, felt like the corporate didn’t empower them to behave on their experience, and clashed over staple items like cross-promotion and… even mentioning the identify “Spotify.” The technique shift has been significantly evident on the comedy community Earwolf, the place followers have seen a trickle of departing reveals and hosts in current months. Many of the smaller titles that made Earwolf referred to as a vibrant house for comedy have since left the community, whereas the studio has prioritized titles with mainstream hit potential, like Office Ladies and Storytime with Seth Rogen.

More than 1 / 4 of Stitcher’s workers on the time of the acquisition have since left, together with its CEO, CTO, and others from the C-suite, The Verge discovered. As Ashley writes, “Combined with the x-factors of a pandemic, a new corporate environment, and growing ways for shows to make it on their own without network support, the moment was right for a talent reckoning.”

There’s much more within the piece itself, together with particulars on how a few of this pressure began earlier than the acquisition. You can learn the total story proper right here.

OK, again to Aria!

Radiolab’s large dedication to accessibility

Earlier this month, I clued Insiders in on a new Radiolab episode — a narrative instructed by the author Elsa Sjunneson about how her life pertains to Helen Keller’s — which was being produced in a manner that Deaf-blind audiences may entry in its entirety.

Radiolab has now put out an accompanying ASL video for the episode, and it’s additionally revealed a transcript specially formatted to load into digital Braille readers. I talked to the workforce about how and why this got here collectively.

Creating these property occurred in levels and concerned lots of people from each inside and past WNYC, however as soon as shared, the method turns into replicable. To make a appropriate transcript, for instance, they employed an exterior Braille coordinator, Sharon von See, to transform the copy into an official “Braille Ready File” utilizing a pc program. The ASL video, produced by WNYC social media producer Kim Nowacki, took many extra steps, together with two rounds of translation with outdoors interpreters April Jackson-Woodard and Eboni Gaytan.

Here’s that course of, as defined to me by Radiolab sound designer Jeremy Bloom: he and Gaytan, who shouldn’t be Deaf, listened by to the episode in 10-minute chunks; as she listened, Gaytan created a signed interpretation of what she heard, passing it alongside to Jackson-Woodard, who’s Deaf; Jackson-Woodard then re-interpreted what she’d acquired from Gaytan, and it’s Jackson-Woodard and her translation that you just see within the closing video.

As Bloom says, Jackson-Woodard “can interpret the work in a way that is more linguistically and culturally fluent than if we were to use a single hearing interpreter alone.” A 3rd interpreter, Annie Dieckman, was additionally current to translate between Jackson-Woodard and himself since Bloom doesn’t know ASL. The ensuing video was then adjusted to deliver the signing into time with the audio, and to convey the true essence of Radiolab, it was additionally outfitted with particular written descriptions of the music and sound design, courtesy of the artist Shannon Finnegan (whose descriptions can be learn within the transcript).

These elements are an enormous enchancment from the present supply of this present’s content material, however that supply was really fairly sturdy already. Uploading visible counterparts to audio, for instance, has been an active practice for the workforce, who’ve revealed each closed-captioned videos of episodes and extra experimental content material, like a recording of a cassette (for an episode about cassettes) that reveals you the spools spinning in case you select to observe it (however is okay to attenuate into the background in case you select to not).

Taking inspiration from current creators is one a part of Radiolab’s new strategy, which I’m instructed is broadly a results of suggestions from the present’s viewers; many followers depend on accessibility lodging, and their expertise of the present shouldn’t come on the expense of that. More lately, the workforce has collaborated instantly with numerous individuals with disabilities as each paid contributors and skilled sources. Looking forward, I’m instructed that extra ASL movies are on the best way and that transcripts will all the time be obtainable — sure, even when the bigger audio business hasn’t yet caught up.

“Last year, I saw Christine Sun Kim’s incredible Pop-Up Magazine video, and it helped me understand how much lusher sound descriptions in transcripts could be,” says ​​Lulu Miller, one in all Radiolab’s co-hosts. In this video, Sun Kim reimagines the best way closed captions could possibly be learn by writing them herself, combining literal descriptions of ft “slapping” in opposition to ground tiles with extra summary descriptions, like “the sound of shampoo scent floating among the fog.”

“Ever since then,” Miller says, “we’ve all been hungry to find a way to step up our game in that area.”

EXCLUSIVE: PRX and Google’s new coaching program for less-than-new podcasters

Last convening in 2021, the Google Podcasts creator program is starting its third iteration, with some notable adjustments.

This worldwide coaching, co-facilitated by Google and PRX, has beforehand targeted on new podcast producers, at instances providing funding to as much as 20 recipients directly. This time, solely six small groups or people might be chosen for this system, which is concentrated on producers who’re at the very least three years into their audio-making journey and whom this system can assist monetize and develop what they’ve began.

With this objective in thoughts, which means one other large change for this system: the funding that every may doubtlessly obtain has elevated by over 60 % because the final time it was up for grabs. Stephanie Kuo, director of coaching at PRX, says a rise in funding was in response to suggestions from program alumni.

“The program this year is intended for those looking to take a current podcast and transform it from what may have been a passion project or side hustle into a business with revenue potential, while also continuing to refine creative development skills,” says Kuo. “With a goal to see more successful independent shows in the ecosystem, we want to help both podcasts and podcasters evolve in this way.”

You can discover particulars about submission and eligibility on the program website, or tune into the informational webinar that PRX is internet hosting at present at 2PM ET.

More toys for Apple podcasters

Today, Apple Podcasts introduced new capabilities for creators who provide subscription channels whereas additionally teasing forthcoming listener metrics for normal ol’ podcasters.

Those who run premium channels can now do issues like customise banners from present to point out to promote completely different paywalled perks. And beginning in April, all podcasters’ listening metrics will begin to differentiate between the exercise of followers and non-followers, which means those that decide in to be notified about new episodes versus those that don’t. With the latter, the objective is to assist determine what number of listeners are actually invested in a present (and may then be taken with turning into paying subscribers down the road).

Apple Podcasts Connect, the dashboard during which podcasters can see all these metrics, was revamped final spring; this spring, it appears to be blooming once more.

Twitter Spaces rising shareability (and asynchronous-ity)

Some Apple customers now have the flexibility to share audio snippets from Twitter Spaces, a function much like what Clubhouse customers gained this past September. With Clubhouse’s model, if clips are captured and posted rapidly sufficient, they will spur individuals to becoming a member of a dialog because it’s occurring; Twitter, then again, is limiting the clipping function to Spaces which have already been recorded, based on the official “Twitter Spaces” Twitter account (why). In that manner, this newer function appeals to individuals with waning curiosity in dwell audio.

The Verge has extra particulars on the announcement, although I’m a fan of this News9 write-up since there’s a typo that swaps “clip” for “clop,” and now I can’t cease serious about horses.

Anna Sorokin joins podcast from jail

Last week, Anna Sorokin (the swindler and topic of the current Netflix sequence Inventing Anna who’s at the moment in ICE custody) appeared as a guest on the podcast Call Her Daddy, which I’m mentioning for 2 causes, along with that simply being a fully unhinged sentence.

First, it’s intentionally produced and marketed as a video episode, talking to Spotify’s ongoing efforts to make video occur for its podcasts. The spectacle of getting Sorokin beam in from a holding cell can’t precisely be ignored.

And second, that is now at the very least the second time that Call Her Daddy has produced sound-byte-friendly audio — final month, a quote from Julia Fox’s appearance on the present turned viral TikTook audio. I don’t have equally excessive expectations for the potential of Sorokin’s look, largely as a result of the audio high quality isn’t nice, however host Alex Cooper did have at the very least one good line. In response to her visitor disagreeing with the concept that, in being a con artist, she’s like a performer, Cooper interjects, “You are. You’re very confusing.” The silence that follows will get me each. single. time.

Hope anybody who’s getting into individual to Podcast Movement enjoys it! I’m on the East Coast, and I’m freezing.