Robert Terrell, associate pastor of youth ministries at Parkview Baptist Church, knows the value of modernization. For the past few months, Terrell and the student ministry have been using a rapidly emerging technology to bring their message to a much wider audience — on the Internet. The technology is called podcasting, and it’s picking up speed.
Alex Nesbitt, president of DigitalPodcast.com, said a podcast is a streaming audio file that is downloaded directly to an MP3 player through a special program.
The term “podcasting” can be misleading, since one does not necessarily need an iPod. Podcasts can be played on any MP3 player or even just a computer equipped with the proper software.
Anyone can make a podcast, Nesbitt said. In fact, several Web sites, including www.apple.com/podcasting, have been created to introduce beginners to podcasting.
Podcasts are often associated with radio shows, but they also can be recordings of speeches, class notes or any other type of recorded audio. While many podcasts are professional publications, many are amateur as well, Nesbitt said.
Podcasts are free and can be accessed whenever you like, Nesbitt said. Many Web sites, such as DigitalPodcast.com, are directories that publish links to podcasts, much like a search engine publishes links to Web sites.
In June, Apple unveiled its own version of a podcast directory through the iTunes Podcast Directory. In a press release on Apple’s Web site, the company announced that in the first two days, there were more than one million subscriptions to podcasts through their program, iTunes 4.9. While Apple was not the creator of the technology, it introduced podcasting to those unfamiliar with it through its notoriety in the digital music world and trademark user-friendly format, according to the press release.
Back in Baton Rouge, Terrell and his student ministry felt the effects from the launch of the iTunes Podcast Directory.
“Literally overnight, our subscription numbers doubled,” Terrell said. “It was amazing how quickly it happened since we got on iTunes.”
Terrell said the most shocking thing about podcasting is how easy it is.
“I couldn’t believe it,” he said. “It costs us virtually nothing because we already had the equipment and it is just so easy.”
Terrell said many of the subscribers are from different parts of the country and around the world.
“For people who can’t hear our message because of geographical limitations, this is a really great thing,” he said.
Kaye Trammell, assistant professor of mass communication, said podcasts have the ability to be very effective marketing tools.
“Much like blogs, podcasting really gives advertisers a chance to grab on to specific segments for a more effective, personalized message,” she said.
Many organizations and businesses are using the new technology to improve the way they communicate with their members.
Terrell said he and the student ministry originally planned to use podcasting as a convenient way to keep the congregation informed of church events.
“Members can listen to previous sermons online, or we can even communicate other happenings at Parkview,” Terrell said. “If for whatever reason someone couldn’t make it, through the podcast they still have access to the music and message,” he said.
Steve Orlando, Associate Director for News and Public Affairs at the University of Florida, said UFL saw the opportunity to keep their faculty and staff informed through the technology.
“iPods and MP3 players are everywhere,” he said. “You can’t walk two feet on campus without seeing earbuds of some kind.”
Orlando said UFL saw podcasting as an opportunity to become involved in an expanding movement.
“It’s a new medium and you don’t always get a chance to get on board like that,” he said.
UFL posts news releases, research by professors, speeches and other various audio recordings through its podcast, Orlando said.
“So far it has been very successful,” he said. “We started up about six weeks ago and we’ve already got over 1,000 subscriptions. And that is just during the summer semester. We expect much more throughout the fall.”
Some in the industry, such as Nesbitt, believe podcasting has the potential to change the face of communications.
“The implications of podcasts are huge, especially for students,” Nesbitt said. “[The technology] is opening up a whole new set of opportunities to grab on to, which is always a good thing.”
Contact Meghan Legaux at [email protected]
Casting Call
August 21, 2005