Today’s Officer Online
Technology section
http://www.moaa.org/TodaysOfficer/Technology/podcast.asp
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Coming to You Live (Kind of)
By John V. Wood
September 2007 Online
Internet broadcasting offers the opportunity to reach a large
audience using relatively inexpensive and simple technology —
and the U.S. military is taking full advantage.
Picture our society in the early 20th century: Most people received news and information
via newspapers or word-of-mouth. The first radio news program was delivered in 1920,
and the commercial availability of television in the 1930s added images to the sounds. For
decades, these news avenues have kept people informed about what’s going on around
them. However, as the old Latin proverb says, “Times change, and we change with them.”
The Internet has fueled new and creative ways of disseminating information around the
globe. Since the late 1960s and the development of ARPANET, people have been trying to
figure out how to get the most information to the widest possible audience. Two techniques
have changed the way people receive news these days: podcasting and vodcasting. And
the military has been using both to deliver information to its personnel and their family and
friends back home.
Pod what?
Podcasting is simply the Web-based distribution of an audio file. It works with software that
automatically detects new files and — is accessed by subscription. Now you can download
and enjoy these tidbits right at your computer, but the word podcast is derived from the
way these files originally were accessed — via an iPod (iPod + broadcasting = podcasting).
Vodcasting fuses the words video and podcasting. In the late 1990s, Internet bandwidth
increased, allowing people to “stream” audio and video across the Web, so that viewers
could receive content as a provider sent it — they no longer have to see it exactly when it
is fed. Users can go online, browse through video archives, and download them at their
leisure.
Technology pioneers
The U.S. military has a history of being at the forefront of the technological landscape —
and such was the case with podcasting, too. The Army and Air Force Hometown News was
established to produce and distribute information about Army and Air Force
servicemembers to their hometown media by the most economical means possible.
It provides thousands of local newspapers, radio stations, and television stations
throughout the U.S. with releases about their local airmen and soldiers. Hometown News
has been broadcasting combined Army and Air Force television and radio programs since
1980, and it entered the Internet broadcasting field in 2000.
Kris Grogan, chief of broadcast, says Hometown News added podcasting and vodcasting
to its offerings because its news programs are not just internal communication tools but
also an external information source.
“All of our stories are intended for hometowns and for family members of [servicemembers]
around the world. We said, ‘What is another way that we can reach out to those families so
they don’t have to wait for a phone call from the local ABC affiliate [saying] when they’re
going to show the story about their son or daughter…?’” says Grogan. “ ‘What’s another
way we can put it out there so that the families can get the information directly from us and
not have to wait for it to be delivered to them?’ That gave us a [reason] to start doing
podcasts [and] vodcasts — so that we can tell a soldier or airman that the story we did on
them will be on the Internet in a week, and they can go tell their parents.”
The Army was the first branch to enter the podcasting field, helping the Air Force along the
way. The Navy and Marine Corps were not far behind, becoming Internet broadcasters in
late 2006. Navy Capt. Gordon Hume, CO at the Naval Media Center, says the Navy wanted
to try out the medium before committing to it completely. “We made our two-minute radio
newscast, then called ‘Navy/Marine Corps Radio News’ [now called ‘All Hands Radio
News’], available on the Internet at first,” says Hume. “We were already producing this file,
and it was a relatively simple audio file to convert to a podcast and make available. That
process was to kind of test the water, … see how much time it took, and [find out] the type
of investment overall we’d have to make in terms of people and products.”
The audience is listening
The focus of the podcasts for both the Naval Media Center and Hometown News is to tell
the stories of servicemembers around the world. “Hometown News likes to cover stories
that are national news and something we know could air on the local 5 [or] 6 o’clock
evening news in a big market,” says Grogan. “It’s not just going to be a regular story about
something opening up at Ellsworth AFB. … It’s gonna be [about] Airman Snuffy, [who] is
preparing for war by going through some unbelievable training that’s so realistic that it
looks like war. Those are the kinds of stories we want to go out and get. … Our listeners
and viewers … want to see the stories and … images that are compelling.”
The Naval Media Center looks for similar stories. “Our podcasts [and] vodcasts provide
information to our audience, and it stretches from that seaman who’s been in the Navy for
two days, all the way to that admiral who’s been in the Navy for 40 years. It also includes
families, retirees, as well as Department of the Navy civilians, and [they all] have different
ways they have come to expect their news to be delivered to them,” says Hume. “This is
just trying to provide our audience as many ways of getting their news as possible. A
majority of the information we provide is of interest to people involved in the Navy and
Marine Corps, and we hope that our shadow audience finds it interesting as well.”
… And responding
As with any information that touches people, feedback from military podcast and vodcast
subscribers has reinforced why they are made available in their current format. For
Grogan, having a way for families to see and hear their loved ones, especially those who
are in a war zone, is important.
“To know that they’re OK … gives families a huge relief,” says Grogan. “We do positive
stories about the people themselves and what they’re doing to help. Families appreciate
that.”
Hume agrees: “We have gotten e-mails from people — from parents, for example, [who]
have just heard a story about their family member or loved one. The e-mails usually say,
‘Thanks for bringing this story to us. It was great to see our son or hear our daughter.’ ”
What does the future hold?
Will Internet broadcasting replace other forms of newsgathering, such as television and
radio? Some experts think everything is funneling its way online. Although they take
advantage of new media techniques, Grogan and Hume think there is room in the
communication world for the old-fashioned methods as well.
“We will find a happy medium between both the broadcast side and the new media forms
on the Internet,” says Grogan. “It’s another tool for the military to show the civilian sector
exactly what the military is like and break things down so that people can understand
things [even] if they’ve never [served].”
Hume agrees: “People expect their news in different ways, they gather it different ways,
they want it presented in different ways,” he says. “The more [media] vehicles we provide
them, then the greater opportunity for them [to get] the news they want in the way they
want it. You can’t lose if you’re providing them the information that they need.”
Technology section
http://www.moaa.org/TodaysOfficer/Technology/podcast.asp
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Coming to You Live (Kind of)
By John V. Wood
September 2007 Online
Internet broadcasting offers the opportunity to reach a large
audience using relatively inexpensive and simple technology —
and the U.S. military is taking full advantage.
Picture our society in the early 20th century: Most people received news and information
via newspapers or word-of-mouth. The first radio news program was delivered in 1920,
and the commercial availability of television in the 1930s added images to the sounds. For
decades, these news avenues have kept people informed about what’s going on around
them. However, as the old Latin proverb says, “Times change, and we change with them.”
The Internet has fueled new and creative ways of disseminating information around the
globe. Since the late 1960s and the development of ARPANET, people have been trying to
figure out how to get the most information to the widest possible audience. Two techniques
have changed the way people receive news these days: podcasting and vodcasting. And
the military has been using both to deliver information to its personnel and their family and
friends back home.
Pod what?
Podcasting is simply the Web-based distribution of an audio file. It works with software that
automatically detects new files and — is accessed by subscription. Now you can download
and enjoy these tidbits right at your computer, but the word podcast is derived from the
way these files originally were accessed — via an iPod (iPod + broadcasting = podcasting).
Vodcasting fuses the words video and podcasting. In the late 1990s, Internet bandwidth
increased, allowing people to “stream” audio and video across the Web, so that viewers
could receive content as a provider sent it — they no longer have to see it exactly when it
is fed. Users can go online, browse through video archives, and download them at their
leisure.
Technology pioneers
The U.S. military has a history of being at the forefront of the technological landscape —
and such was the case with podcasting, too. The Army and Air Force Hometown News was
established to produce and distribute information about Army and Air Force
servicemembers to their hometown media by the most economical means possible.
It provides thousands of local newspapers, radio stations, and television stations
throughout the U.S. with releases about their local airmen and soldiers. Hometown News
has been broadcasting combined Army and Air Force television and radio programs since
1980, and it entered the Internet broadcasting field in 2000.
Kris Grogan, chief of broadcast, says Hometown News added podcasting and vodcasting
to its offerings because its news programs are not just internal communication tools but
also an external information source.
“All of our stories are intended for hometowns and for family members of [servicemembers]
around the world. We said, ‘What is another way that we can reach out to those families so
they don’t have to wait for a phone call from the local ABC affiliate [saying] when they’re
going to show the story about their son or daughter…?’” says Grogan. “ ‘What’s another
way we can put it out there so that the families can get the information directly from us and
not have to wait for it to be delivered to them?’ That gave us a [reason] to start doing
podcasts [and] vodcasts — so that we can tell a soldier or airman that the story we did on
them will be on the Internet in a week, and they can go tell their parents.”
The Army was the first branch to enter the podcasting field, helping the Air Force along the
way. The Navy and Marine Corps were not far behind, becoming Internet broadcasters in
late 2006. Navy Capt. Gordon Hume, CO at the Naval Media Center, says the Navy wanted
to try out the medium before committing to it completely. “We made our two-minute radio
newscast, then called ‘Navy/Marine Corps Radio News’ [now called ‘All Hands Radio
News’], available on the Internet at first,” says Hume. “We were already producing this file,
and it was a relatively simple audio file to convert to a podcast and make available. That
process was to kind of test the water, … see how much time it took, and [find out] the type
of investment overall we’d have to make in terms of people and products.”
The audience is listening
The focus of the podcasts for both the Naval Media Center and Hometown News is to tell
the stories of servicemembers around the world. “Hometown News likes to cover stories
that are national news and something we know could air on the local 5 [or] 6 o’clock
evening news in a big market,” says Grogan. “It’s not just going to be a regular story about
something opening up at Ellsworth AFB. … It’s gonna be [about] Airman Snuffy, [who] is
preparing for war by going through some unbelievable training that’s so realistic that it
looks like war. Those are the kinds of stories we want to go out and get. … Our listeners
and viewers … want to see the stories and … images that are compelling.”
The Naval Media Center looks for similar stories. “Our podcasts [and] vodcasts provide
information to our audience, and it stretches from that seaman who’s been in the Navy for
two days, all the way to that admiral who’s been in the Navy for 40 years. It also includes
families, retirees, as well as Department of the Navy civilians, and [they all] have different
ways they have come to expect their news to be delivered to them,” says Hume. “This is
just trying to provide our audience as many ways of getting their news as possible. A
majority of the information we provide is of interest to people involved in the Navy and
Marine Corps, and we hope that our shadow audience finds it interesting as well.”
… And responding
As with any information that touches people, feedback from military podcast and vodcast
subscribers has reinforced why they are made available in their current format. For
Grogan, having a way for families to see and hear their loved ones, especially those who
are in a war zone, is important.
“To know that they’re OK … gives families a huge relief,” says Grogan. “We do positive
stories about the people themselves and what they’re doing to help. Families appreciate
that.”
Hume agrees: “We have gotten e-mails from people — from parents, for example, [who]
have just heard a story about their family member or loved one. The e-mails usually say,
‘Thanks for bringing this story to us. It was great to see our son or hear our daughter.’ ”
What does the future hold?
Will Internet broadcasting replace other forms of newsgathering, such as television and
radio? Some experts think everything is funneling its way online. Although they take
advantage of new media techniques, Grogan and Hume think there is room in the
communication world for the old-fashioned methods as well.
“We will find a happy medium between both the broadcast side and the new media forms
on the Internet,” says Grogan. “It’s another tool for the military to show the civilian sector
exactly what the military is like and break things down so that people can understand
things [even] if they’ve never [served].”
Hume agrees: “People expect their news in different ways, they gather it different ways,
they want it presented in different ways,” he says. “The more [media] vehicles we provide
them, then the greater opportunity for them [to get] the news they want in the way they
want it. You can’t lose if you’re providing them the information that they need.”
