contentious.com

NOTE: I originally posted this item on March 16. Later that same day, Chris Winn of the One America Committee did create a valid feed for this podcast. (Subscribe.) Consequently I’ve re-edited and re-posted this article. Hence the strikethru text in some places below.

According to the Democratic site and weblog One America Committee, next week former US Senator and VP candidate John Edwards will launch his very own podcast.

Well, sort of. It’s painfully obvious from the site that Edwards and his online staff need to learn a bit more about podcasting.

Here’s a quick lesson for you, Sen. Edwards…

I’m happy about this development. I think podcasting could definitely benefit political discourse at all levels, complementing traditional media and political journalism/commentary. And I’m glad they realized that, in order to podcast, you need a feed…

When I first posted this article yesterday, I was rather frustrated. I was pleased by Edwards’ announcement about his podcast, and stunned that although his One America blog encouraged people to subscribe to the show using the popular podcatcher software iPodder, there was (at the time) no feed anywhere on the site.

I saw a disaster looming, so I spoke up – probably too harshly, I’ll admit. Sorry about that.

However, the larger point here is that as the buzz about podcasting begins to filter into the mainstream, there’s a lot of misunderstanding about what podcasting is and what’s needed to offer and listen to podcasts.

I wish listening to a podcast was as easy as turning on a radio, but it’s not. Therefore, mainstream audiences need significant education, encouragement, and hand-holding in order to embrace this medium. Forgetting to offer and explain feeds is an understandable mistake for an organization eager to capitalize on the podcast buzz – but it’s exactly that kind of mistake which can turn people off from this medium entirely.

NEWBIE PODCASTERS: WHAT TO KEEP IN MIND

If you didn’t already realize this, now is the time to learn: Podcasting involves a bit more than posting audio files online. You need a feed to deliver those files. The feed is the key – it’s what allows people to subscribe to your show using podcatcher software.

For now, a podcast feed must follow the RSS 2.0 specification. This flavor of feed allows enclosures (attached files). An enclosure can be any kind of file, but for podcasts it’s almost always an MP3 audio file. The enclosure is the actual content of the show.

A podcatcher is simply a modified feed reader. Audience members subscribe to the shows feed in the podcatcher. Then, when the podcatcher checks a list of subscribed feeds, it automatically downloads any enclosures it finds.

This is basically like getting a box of CDs delivered to your door – the content comes directly to the audience, people don’t have to manually find and retrieve it. That does make life easier for podcast fans, but they do need to understand what feeds are and how feed subscriptions work in order to realize that benefit.

So far, Edwards’ One America Committee site and blog offer no feeds whatsoever. (I checked using the auto-discover function of three feed readers: Bloglines, Sage, and Lektora. Result: Nada.) That’s a big problem, especially when promoting a “podcast.”

The original announcement in Edwards’ blog did a dangerously halfway job of audience education. It explained that you can subscribe to a podcast, and it even recommended that interested listeners should download and install the popular podcatcher program iPodder. However, without a feed there was nothing for people to subscribe to.

When I saw that, I predicted that One America would end up with a lot of confused and frustrated would-be listeners who might hesitate to support a politician who makes promises he apparently doesn’t even understand.

Not good.

Fortunately, Chris Winn of One America quickly responded by creating this feed for Edwards’ podcast. (It really isn’t hard, after all.)

So here’s what you can do, Sen. Edwards. And you should do it fast:

Here’s the advice I offered yesterday:

1. Set up your feed. In order to attach (enclose) audio files in a way that podcatcher software will be able to see and download them, the feed needs to be in the RSS 2.0 format. To make things easy, use the same feed for the blog and the podcast. Each time you post a podcast, post a corresponding blog item (which offers show notes) and link to the MP3 file as an enclosure. If your in-house people don’t know how to set up a feed, you can do it easily through the (currently free) popular service Feedburner.
2. Install and learn how to use a podcatcher. You’ve recommended iPodder, so you might as well try that one. (Just know that there are many others, such as Doppler Radio.) Subscribe to a few podcast feeds and download some shows, so you can learn how the process works. You can find podcasts to subscribe to via any of the podcast directories, such as Podcast Alley.
3. Test your feed. Create a short MP3 file (a brief promo for the upcoming show or series would be a good idea). Post it via your blog. Then check your feed in several feed readers to make sure it’s transmitting correctly.
4. Announce your feed. Publicize your podcast again, and this time clearly specify the feed info. Realize that most people won’t have a clue what a podcast is, how to listen to it, or what a feed or a feed reader is. You’ll have to teach them.

It looks like One America did just that, more or less. I’d hope that any individual or organization that intends to podcast does exactly the same.

On the “educate your audience” front, I’ve made things easy for you. Sen. Edwards. If you’re planning to podcast, please feel free to link to these nontechnical tutorials I’ve written:

• What is podcasting and why should you care?
• How to receive and listen to podcasts
• What are feeds (RSS) and why should you care?

Good luck! I hope all would-be podcasters follow this advice and manage to stay out of my feedless hall of shame.