Future Podcast Power
To say that the arrival of AI is shaking up the digital media landscape would be a massive understatement; in fact, AI is redefining entire industries. In this volatile climate, how can a small business owner or new content creator hope to keep up? Itââ?¬â?¢s a complex situation, but as with most things, having the advice of experts on your side can be a big help. In ââ?¬Å"100 Livestreaming & Digital Media Predictionsââ?¬Â? (Volume 4), digital media masters from multiple creative realmsââ?¬"livestreaming, podcasting, video podcasting, and short-form video creation, among othersââ?¬"are here to help. No one ever said this would be easy, but with all the wisdom on offer, the newbies may be able to hit the ground running.
This series is helmed by Ross Brand, an experienced live-streaming consultant. Brand has put together a team of digital media experts that have awards to their names and as many podcasts as the day is long. As in the previous volumes of this series, each of the 100 experts (actually 113) offers a ââ?¬Å"predictionââ?¬Â? for 2024, some of which consist of only a few lines of text and some that are more substantial. Many predictions deal with the world of digital media in a more general sense, but the topic of AI keeps popping up, over and over again.
Most of the experts espouse a balanced view: use AI for the things it�s good at but don�t let an artificial tone take over the soul of your work. According to the experts, the creators of the future will be honest, vulnerable, and accessible, not artificially perfect drones. This is likely very good advice, but the fact that so many of the experts go this route makes for a somewhat repetitive reading experience.
Even though so much of the book is about leveraging AI, due to this common approach to the topic, the book is often more interesting when it ventures into other realms. There is quite a bit of talk about networking events, small and large, digital and not, and how that experience has changed since the pandemic. Some of the podcast information, like how the shuttering of Google Podcasts may affect YouTube, will be very useful for anyone looking to get their feet wet with podcasting. Also interesting is speculation on the future of both social media services, and user attitudes toward these ever-evolving platforms: Is the age of X (formerly known as Twitter, which everyone still calls Twitter) truly over? What will social media look like in five years, or ten?
Many of the experts here were digital media pioneers and consultants who work with clients in all sorts of industries, so there aren�t very many specifics on offer: the advice is meant to apply to content creators in any and all industries. Occasionally an expert in a more specific field like elder care or the wine industry will pop up, and those are some of the more engaging predictions. Many of the digital media specialists are brand-building experts, which makes it a bit frustrating that the book doesn�t delve more into the details of brand-building, but that may have been too far beyond the book�s basic concept.
What the book does offer in droves is inspiration. Anyone who has thought of starting their own podcast or YouTube talk show someday will be inspired to grab a USB microphone and jump into the fray. It�s in this area where the book really shines; the latter part of the volume, which details resources from Ross Brand�s personal toolkit like websites, software, and specific items of tech to use for digital content creation will take a lot of the guesswork out of getting started with your project. And if you need some more specific inspiration, you can always look up the numerous productions created by the bevy of experts on tap.
AI is something weââ?¬â?¢ll all have to grapple with eventually, one way or another. But AI doesnââ?¬â?¢t need to take away from the creativity of the individual artist, and this book is a joyful celebration of that act of creation. Every individual prediction may not sparkle with wit and energy, but there is enough that do to make Ross Brandââ?¬â?¢s ââ?¬Å"100 Livestreaming and Digital Media Predictionsââ?¬Â? a worthwhile read.
