Learning Resources Division: Digital Projects Guide: Podcasts

Podcast Basics

Podcasts are audio programs that you can create and share online, offering a flexible and engaging way to tell stories, share ideas, and connect with audiences around the world. Whether you’re looking to present your research, showcase interviews, or explore creative topics, podcasting allows you to communicate your scholarship in a dynamic, accessible format.

This page will help you get started with the basics of podcast creation. Dive in and discover how podcasts can amplify your voice and bring your academic projects to life!

Many podcasts now include a visual component, blurring the line between podcast and video. Explore the Videos page for more tips and resources.

What is a podcast?
Discover the world of podcasts with examples of what they sound like, what's popular, and how to listen.
Start a Podcast: Step-by-Step Guide
Follow these steps for making your own podcast, from developing a concept to recording and publishing.

Online Tools and Software

Tool/Software	Description	Compatibility	Cost	More Information
Audacity	Open-source audio recording software Download required	Windows, macOS	Free	Audacity Basics Complete Audacity Reference Manual Audacity Video Tutorials
Audition (Adobe)	Create dynamic sound for your audio, radio, music, and video projects Download required	Windows, macOS	Sign into Adobe Creative Cloud with your UDC email and password to download this software for free	Audition User Guide Audition Video Tutorials
Deepgram	Convert your audio or video files into text transcriptions (supports over 30 languages and dialects)	Windows, macOS, iOS, iPadOS, Android	Free	Deepgram - How it Works
GarageBand (Apple)	Record, edit, and mix audio tracks, including vocals, instruments, and virtual instruments Download required	macOS, iOS, iPadOS	Free	GarageBand Support and User Guides
Zoom	Video teleconference software with recording capabilities Download required to record and save audio/video files	Windows, macOS, iOS, iPadOS, Android	Sign into Zoom with your UDC email and password to download this software for free	Zoom - Computer and Cloud Recording

Equipment and Spaces

One-Button Studios at UDC allow you to seamlessly create, edit, and upload audio/video presentations to cloud storage or a flash drive.

UDC One-Button Studios
Learn more about One-Button Studios, sign up for training, and reserve a space.

Planning a Podcast

Podcast Structure
An engaging podcast episode starts with a strong outline. Learn how experts organize their episodes with examples and templates.
Podcast Brainstorming Worksheet
Use this step-by-step worksheet from the University of Michigan's Shapiro Design Lab to plan and record a successful first podcast or audio essay.

Recording and Editing a Podcast

Recording Help

Hunting for Sound
Short video guide (3 minutes) from NPR with tips for gathering great sound and making your podcast sound awesome.
Three Tips for Training Your Voice
Watch this video (9 minutes) to learn a few vocal exercises that will help you sound more natural in front of a mic!

Software and Editing Help

Record and Edit a Podcast Using Audacity
Guide to recording and editing your podcast using Audacity.
How to Record and Edit a Podcast in Audacity
Video tutorial (21 minutes) on recording, editing, and exporting audio in Audacity.
Creating Podcasts Using Audition
Learn how to record, mix, edit, and publish podcasts using templates and presets in Adobe Audition.
Record a Podcast in GarageBand
Practice creating engaging podcasts in Apple's GarageBand.

Add Multimedia Content

Use the Find Multimedia Resources page to discover sound effects, music, and other multimedia content to include in your podcast.

Podcast Accesibility

Accessibility for Audio Content and Video Content
Follow these recommendations to make your video and audio accessible to all users.
Add Subtitles and Captions in YouTube
Subtitles and captions allow you to share video and audio with a larger audience, including deaf or hard-of-hearing users and users who speak another language.

Podcasts about Podcasting

Podcasting Step by Step
Helpful advice and tips for creating a podcast of your own.
Podcasters' Roundtable
Explore the issues facing the podcasting industry today, and improve your own podcast through the shared experiences of other podcasters.

Books about Podcasting

The Power of Podcasting: Telling Stories through Sound by Siobhán McHugh
ISBN: 9780231557603

Publication Date: 2022

Siobhán McHugh dissects what makes a good podcast and outlines how you can create one yourself. She blends practical insights into and critical analysis of the art of audio storytelling. Packed with case studies, history, tips, and techniques, this book introduces readers to the possibilities of the world of sound.
Podcast Journalism: The Promise and Perils of Audio Reporting by David Dowling
ISBN: 9780231559829

Publication Date: 2024

David O. Dowling critically examines how podcasting and its evolving conventions are transforming reporting—and even reshaping journalism's core functions and identity.
Narrative Podcasting in an Age of Obsession by Neil Verma
ISBN: 9780472055210

Publication Date: 2024

Focusing on more than 350 podcasts and other audio works, this book explores why so many of these podcasts seem “obsessed with obsession” and why they focus not only on informing listeners but also dramatizing the labor that goes into it. This work also examines the industry's reckoning with its own implication in systemic racism, misogyny, and other forms of discrimination. Employing innovative new critical techniques for close listening—including pitch tracking software and spectrograms—Narrative Podcasting in an Age of Obsession makes a major contribution to podcast studies and media studies more broadly.

Digital Projects Guide