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I have produced a weekly podcast about amateur radio since 2011. It was hosted on S3 since I started because it became immediately clear that any other option w

I have produced a weekly podcast about amateur radio since 2011. It was hosted on S3 since I started because it became immediately clear that any other option would put my content under the control of someone who did not have my best interest at heart. Today it's mirrored across dozens of aggregators, converted to eBooks, converted to Morse Code, uploaded to YouTube, posted on social media, emailed to listeners and included in magazine articles and news broadcasts across the globe. All the content is still under my direct control. As for making money, not so much. I'd have to check my accounts for an exact number, but $500 over that time is about right. It highlights to me that someone is making money from podcasting, but that someone is not me and I doubt it's any different for the vast majority of podcast producers. I think as a society we need to figure out how content creators can be remunerated for their efforts and not perpetuate the current model where "facilitators" in all their varied guises make all the money.

oehpr 4y ago
I've thought a lot about this, and I still scratch my head over what might work. The system I think kinda fits is bug bounties. Someone registers a problem, a need, and submits a reward for filling it. Others who have that problem can add to the pot, and eventually someone can claim the pot by filling the request, with the fruits of that labor available to all. But, there are obvious holes here. Like what constitutes "filling that request". In the context of actual bug bounties, at the minimum the bug goes away. For something like a painting? A podcast? I need a beautiful sunset" - "Here's this photo of the sun setting that I took outside the safeway" - - "nah." - "Here's this hand crafted lovingly painted canvas I made over the course of 3 weeks" - - "nah. (but I'll just save a copy of that thanks)" Honestly I don't know! I want endeavors like yours to be fairly compensated for the value it adds to society, but the core of our society and how we transact is rooted in scarcity. Data isn't scarce. Novelty is. Attention is. But not data.

oehpr 4y ago

I've thought a lot about this, and I still scratch my head over what might work. The system I think kinda fits is bug bounties. Someone registers a problem, a need, and submits a reward for filling it. Others who have that problem can add to the pot, and eventually someone can claim the pot by filling the request, with the fruits of that labor available to all. But, there are obvious holes here. Like what constitutes "filling that request". In the context of actual bug bounties, at the minimum the bug goes away. For something like a painting? A podcast? I need a beautiful sunset" - "Here's this photo of the sun setting that I took outside the safeway" - - "nah." - "Here's this hand crafted lovingly painted canvas I made over the course of 3 weeks" - - "nah. (but I'll just save a copy of that thanks)" Honestly I don't know! I want endeavors like yours to be fairly compensated for the value it adds to society, but the core of our society and how we transact is rooted in scarcity. Data isn't scarce. Novelty is. Attention is. But not data.