What Do Boy Scouts and Podcasting Have in Common?

Have you ever wondered why Boy Scouts often include podcasts during their meetings? Now you can get to the bottom of this mystery.

Podcasting is a way for people to share audio, music, or messages on the world wide web. It began in August 2005 when Ian Anderson, a software engineer and programmer at Feedburner, recorded and uploaded his first podcast about Bitcoin. In spite of its humble beginning in 2005, podcasting has become an enormous industry with an estimated 2 million episodes produced per month by more than 350 different podcasts to date. Podcasts now have evolved into a multi-billion dollar industry as listeners consume radio shows and content on their mobile devices through their smartphones or tablets.

There are three major ways that people listen to podcasts: through the Internet, through a smartphone or tablet, or using an audio player on their computer.

The thousands of third-party applications available for smartphones and tablets that allow users to easily and quickly download audio and video content such as podcasts make it easier than ever for people to consume media content without cable or satellite television subscriptions. A user's wallet can include RSS feeds, podcast subscriptions, and audio video downloads from third-party websites.

Although Apple Inc.'s iPod was the first mp3 player introduced in 2001, it did not play podcasts until 2007. Since then Apple's mobile devices have come into their own when it comes to accessing podcasts. The popularity of podcasts have also led to a booming industry for producers. Numerous entrepreneurs have started their own podcasting companies with the aim of making it easier for people to listen to their favorite shows on any device.

One of these podcasts is that of the Boy Scouts. In 2011, it was announced by the Boy Scouts of America that they would be playing more than 100 hours of educational programs, including experts, documentaries and interviews. Part of this initiative is to give parents and children alike a comfortable way to enjoy audio content with their children while camping or at home. A second initiative to allow parents and their children to listen to podcasts while traveling is being considered by the Boy Scouts.

As you can see, podcasting is a growing industry with great potential in the future. It is important for us all to understand these origins and how podcasting has changed over time in order that we can better appreciate this growing force in media for the future.

Do you have any questions about podcasting or Boy Scouts? The more information the better! Leave them in the comments section below! For more information about this month's topic, head on over to [SAME SOURCE].

-Dan Lewis, Assistant Professor of Media Technology and Culture, Austin Peay State University

1. What is podcasting? [ SAME SOURCE ] 2. [SAME SOURCE] 3. How does podcasting fit into this month's schedule? 4. For those who are interested: WHAT DO BOY SCOUTS AND PODCASTING HAVE IN COMMON??? 5. As a child, what other media did you regularly listen to? 6. What was it about this media that kept you coming back for more? 7. Could you imagine yourself listening to that media today? Why or why not? 8.

Conclusion:

While my students were not familiar with podcasting, they immediately became excited when I began to share some of the podcasts I listen to on a regular basis. They were also surprised that there are children's podcasts available for them to listen to. In many cases, my students have not listened to any type of audio content outside of what is played in their classrooms. This activity was a great way for me to introduce them to a media type they weren't aware existed but that they are now excited about checking out.

On a personal note, I use podcasts as another way for me to connect with my nephews in Pennsylvania while we keep in touch over the phone or Skype.