4 ms·
I hate podcasts too. Or to put it more lightly, at the very least they are completely alien to me. In my opinion the elephant in the room when talking about in
by Darkstryder 7y ago
I hate podcasts too. Or to put it more lightly, at the very least they are completely alien to me.
In my opinion the elephant in the room when talking about informational podcasts or video is... text.
As a medium, text is just so much more efficient (at least for me) that I can't begin to imagine why one would want to listen to a piece of content instead of reading it. I scan-read 20 articles faster than I could hear (or watch) a single one of them if they were presented in audio or video. And doing so I still have my ears available (for coworkers at work, for example).
Video can be interesting in a few specific cases : music production is a hobby of mine, and video can be interesting (but not always) as you can simultaneously watch somebody doing something while hearing how it affects the sound.
But most podcasts (and youtube videos) do not exploit the unique properties of audio or video enough to justify the tremendous requirements they ask on my attention span.
In my opinion audio and video emphasize entertainment over information, but most of them are not that entertaining (compared to an actual entertainment media), and not that much informational (compared to a text article).
I think newspapers made a tremendous mistake with the pivot to video and the pivot to podcasts. Vive le texte !
- wlesieutre 7y agoCan you read 20 articles while driving a car or walking to the store or cleaning your house? I find they're a great way to double-up with activities where I'd otherwise be bored out of my mind, and I can take the opportunity to learn about something, or at the very least not be bored. TV might be more entertaining, but I've never heard anyone argue "Why would you sit down and watch the new Game of Thrones episode, you should listen to a podcast instead!" Being an audio-only medium makes them a lot more amenable to consuming while you do something else. They're only competing with music and audiobooks in that respect. It's not like I get home from work and think "You know what I want to do this evening? Sit in a chair and listen to podcasts for an hour."
- Darkstryder 7y agoI do these kind of activities, but mostly divided in 5 to 15mn chunks. (Notably, my commute to work is a mere 10mn walk and I have a toddler child at home requiring frequent attention) I would have trouble dividing a 40mn podcast into five listens divided over 3 days. For those kind of double-up, I find listening music vastly more enjoyable, but that's just my opinion. Lately I actually prefer not doubling-up and just listen to the silence and letting my mind wander. It feels good too !
- wlesieutre 7y agoThere's short form podcasts that work in 10-20 minute segments too, The Memory Palace is one that I'm subscribed to. But I totally agree it's nice to not multitask and just let your mind wander sometimes.
- artimaeis 7y agoI adore podcasts, they're some of my favorite bits of media in my life. I also love text, and whole-heartedly agree that for an exchange of information there's nothing that comes close to well-written text. My RSS feed is a cornerstone of my general knowledge of the subjects I'm interested in. I find the advantage of podcasts is in finding personalities I enjoy discussing those subjects I'm interested in. When I listen to something like ATP I probably already know the facts that the hosts discuss, but I'm interested in hearing their thoughts on the matter, and just as importantly I'm interested in hearing their interchange. The way someone unexpectedly feels about something which can spark a whole new branch of discussion. The side advantage of the format is that I can do it without letting it distract me too much (such as while commuting) -- so I have this span of time where I cannot read, and maybe I'm not in the mood for music (which I actually get too distracted by).
- Symmetry 7y agoDo you spend parts of you day where you're able to listen to audio but not read text? For instance while commuting to work, while exercising, while using your hands in a project that requires only a bit of concentration? I'm a big fan of podcasts in those cases but I would never listen to one when I'm able to read text from a book or screen.
- Darkstryder 7y agoI mostly answered your question while answering the sibiling comment : https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=19738724 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=19738724
- JaimeThompson 7y agoI really can't read text when walking by myself or doing exercises which makes audio much more productive than text for my use case.