A Comparative Study of Independent Podcast Design Methods (Private Sector) and Radio Program Podcasts
Subject Areas : Special
منصوره قنبرآبادی
1
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محمد اخگری
2
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زهرا صفاییان
3
1 -
2 -
3 -
Keywords:
Abstract :
Podcasting, as an emerging medium, has transformed the auditory landscape with an independent and creative approach. Independent podcast producers, unconstrained by the organizational and structural limitations that radio producers face, engage in content creation and distribution freely. Despite the higher technical quality of radio program podcasts, independent podcasts on platforms such as Castbox have significantly higher rates of sharing and listenership.
This situation raises critical questions: how have podcasts with more limited technical resources managed to attract larger audiences? And what are the key differences in production methods between independent podcasts and those based on radio programming?
This study adopts a qualitative approach using content analysis and semi-structured interviews to explore these differences. The research population includes podcasts published on Castbox, a platform with a significant share of podcast listeners in Iran. A purposive sampling strategy was used, and data were collected through interviews with 22 producers of both types of podcasts.
The findings reveal that independent podcasts perform more creatively in topic selection, writing style, narrative form, and establishing a close relationship with the audience. On the other hand, radio-based podcasts demonstrate relatively higher technical quality and more professional use of audio elements