The podcast boom 播客又火了

陈小将

蓬勃发展的播客行业现已成为一门赚钱的大买卖。当然，它也是一种收听精彩音频内容的流行方式。如今的播客不仅仅是由著名的广播公司制作的——任何有话要说的人，花很少的钱，买些设备，就可以参与进播客行业了。“随身英语” 探讨是什么让播客又火了。
Vocabulary: media 词汇：媒介
Do you prefer to watch TV or listen to the radio? There was a time when some people thought moving pictures beamed live into our houses would spell the end of tuning in to the radio for entertainment and information. But radio survived and flourished. And now, despite the growth in sophisticated smartphones offering high-definition pictures, the popularity of podcasts is booming.
Perhaps the growth in podcasting is not surprising – it offers a digital audio file that can be downloaded and stored for listening at any time. It can also be streamed from the internet and played on a computer or MP3 player. And it’s not just broadcasters, like the BBC, who are producing podcasts: now commercial broadcasters, individuals and companies with no connection to broadcasting are making them. In fact, anyone with something to say, and a few pounds to spend on the equipment, can get involved.
But where did this trend for making portable audio programmes begin? Journalist Ben Hammersley told the BBC that “two changes transformed the market – one cultural and one technical.” Apple launched the iPhone podcast app, recording and editing equipment became cheaper, and 4G mobile phone connections and Wi-Fi became widespread.
Technological development has driven many changes in our media consumption habits. But however good the tech may be, there still needs to be something worth watching or listening to. The BBC’s Jamie Robertson writes that for podcasts, Serial - a piece of non-fiction investigative journalism – captured people’s imagination. It was a piece of high-quality audio with a gripping story. To date, the first and second seasons of the show have had more than 340 million downloads. Advertisers soon realised the money-making potential of this and other successful podcasts.
Now there are podcasts about anything and everything - even the educational content that BBC Learning English offers! And these aural treats are available on a wide range of platforms. Audiences are very specific, which can help advertisers target what they want to promote. And if there isn’t a podcast to suit your interests, you can now easily make and distribute them - and become your very own broadcaster.

陈小将