Comments on: Adding Value: Providing Transcripts for Podcasts

By: Playing with Podcasting | Universally Designed

Playing with Podcasting | Universally Designed — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 22:28:28 +0000

[…] transcriptions, but they cost money. In my opinion, it is such a simple thing and it adds to the number of people you can reach out to, benefiting both the podcaster and listener/reader. Podcast transcriptions should not simply be a […]

By: Sharon

Sharon — Wed, 25 Apr 2007 11:06:17 +0000

Paul, I agree with your statement about working to maximise the advantages of an audio podcast. A podcast can be a lot more portable than a sheet of paper – and for lifelong learners, who have to juggle work, family and study, it’s an anytime, anywhere means of learning whilst doing something else.

Of course, podcasts are also beneficial from an accessibility point of view and can be useful for many students with disabilities (except for students with hearing impairments).

However, it’s not easy to navigate through a podcast, and may only be something a student would only listen to once or twice. If the podcast provides essential information to the student, then a transcript will allow the student to highlight, annote, and revisit the most relevant information. It is also vital for students with hearing impairments.

Perhaps, the value of a transcript depends on the reason for providing a podcast in the first place. An educational institution would probably cover the vast majority of student accessibility needs and learning styles by providing a podcast and transcript. A commercial company providing a podcasted interview with their CEO in order to appear “cutting-edge” may only have a limited audience and so may feel that a transcript is not necessary (but maybe that depends on whether they feel the CEO is saying anything of value!).

Perhaps people first need to think about why they are producing a podcast (and record it in an appropriate way to maximise its benefits) rather than some other format. However, if they do end up going down the podcasting route, then, for educational resources, I think they should include a transcript too.

By: Paul Doncaster

Paul Doncaster — Mon, 23 Apr 2007 18:22:57 +0000

I couldn’t agree with your premise more — unfortunately, in the minds of many content providers, providing a transcript defeats the legitimacy of producing a podcast in the first place, and for many of the reasons you cite.

If a printed version offers quick view access, portability, flexibility and can be formatted/designed to increase comprehension/usability, then why go to the trouble and expense of recording a podcast? (For many, it’s solely to appear to be “cutting-edge.”)

The challenge is to determine the value that an audio podcast provides over (or at least on par with) a printed document, then working to maximize that advantage.

http://pwdoncaster.blogspot.com

By: patrick h. lauke

patrick h. lauke — Sat, 21 Apr 2007 21:57:38 +0000

i’ve used the castingwords http://castingwords.com/ service on a few occasions. reasonably cheap, and the quality of transcripts is not too bad (though, depending on the topic, use of jargon, etc, it will require a good round of proofing and re-marking up before being publishable).