As regular readers of this blog will know, I started a podcast called The Account a year ago. After five editions, it faded away because I was not sure what it was going to achieve or what the benefits of producing it were.
More recently, readers will know that I asked whether those reading this blog would prefer that I produce video or audio material. Opinion was heavily in favour of an audio-only format.
Since then, I've given this subject much thought. I have also been in discussion with my youngest son, who is working his way through a gap year between university and starting a full-time career. As part of that he has been learning about how to use social media, and I have tapped that enthusiasm to get him to produce both trial videos and podcasts for me. These are now becoming more slick than my original productions. As a result we have agreed to work together on these for a while.
There are two ways to manage a podcast. One is to host a show, invite a guest, and have a discussion. These tend to be 30 minutes long, at least.
The other approach is to do something much shorter, with a single talking head (me, in this case) talking about a particular issue that might be of interest. These have to be much shorter if interest is to be maintained. Eight minutes is probably the maximum that can be sustained, and five minutes might be better. They can be even shorter, if appropriate.
Our plan is to opt for this short form approach for the time being with each podcast addressing a tightly defined issue. The aim will be to produce materials that will help people understand other discussion on this blog and in the world at large.
I have produced a first list of seventy topics to address. There could easily be many more, and suggestions are welcome.
The aim will be to produce several of these a week. They might even be daily. That depends a bit on how much I have to pay Thomas (who is Tom to everyone else in the world, excepting his parents).
These will be available on many podcast platforms.
The plan is to also an indexed page to access them on this site, and to link them into the glossary, when appropriate, although the detail of that has not been worked out as yet.
Thoughts and suggestions are welcome.
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This is very timely.
A general election is coming and providing your take on common economic talking points will be an exceptionally useful resource for anti-neoliberalism/pro MMT candidates.
I am looking forward to your podcasts Richard. Maybe you could occasionally do a slightly longer one with an invited guest?
Possible Topic: Why GDP is a Useless Metric
Possible Topic: Cryptocurrencies – Real Digital Currencies for the Future or High Risk Speculation?
Your unending levels of enthusiasm are inspiring!
I will look at guests
cryptocurrencies is one I had not thought of
For the Scots here, how about one on GERS and why we shouldn’t the figures?
Ok….
Just to second the suggestion re crypto – and several forms: traditional Bitcoin etc (limited supply built in? Issues re mining and power consumption?); other technologies; ‘stablecoins’ with pegs (?!); and then CBDCs…
Not so relevant to Election issues perhaps, although I have various libertarian or anti-state acquaintances who like the ‘privacy from the state’ aspects. They probably hold the ‘tax is theft’ position as well, even if they don’t admit it in polite circles!
Thanks
Noted
From a purely personal point of view I prefer videos. But evidently I’m in the minority. I once did a public speaking course and the lecturer said that the maximum time people can concentrate is 11 minutes, and he suggested inserting a joke at that interval to wake the audience up. I’ve never proved that’s true, though.
These will appear on YouTube, we think. But as audio.
I was going to suggest to you that one way to MASSIVELY increase the ‘reach’ of your podcast is to use some (preferably automated) method to have a copy hosted on youtube, with one of those dynamically generated soundwave or waveform style moving graphics so that the visuals are actual moving video not just a totally static graphic.
Your work will potentially be exposed to the whole worldwide youtube audience and will have the possibility to benefit from the possibility of ‘going viral’ via the vagaries of youtubes algorithmic promotion,
especially if you link to it directly from X.
HTH 😉
That is exactly what we plan…..
As a fan of podcasts, who has also been directly involved in producing recent podcasts, some (subjective) thoughts.
I like the idea of pithy pods, narrowly focused on a single topic. Explainers if you like. 5-8 mins max.
For me, longer form ones are most engaging when they are a bit like a conversation you are listening in on. Ones that work like that for me – Pitchfork Economics, De-Bunking Economics, Campbell and Stewart and a new one with Beth Rigby – Electoral Disfunction. Ones with a bit of argument and banter.
Another option is interviews where you talk to people in roughly the same political and economic space. Makes the point that you are far from a lone voice. Which it can seem at times.
Go for it!
We are starting pithy
Then we’ll see where it goes
Thanks
Short Form sounds perfect. Bring it on.
Are there any MPs or candidates that even mention MMT?
Not really
Great news!
From 1st April 2024 the minimum wage will rise to £11.44 an hour. Adding employment taxes of 13.8% then you need to be able to pay £13.02 an hour for someone’s labour in order to hire them.
Admittedly, the thresholds for under 25s are lower than that, but it would not look good to exploit someone on account of their age in my opinion.
I will not
The agreed rate is above that
£11.44 from 1 April 2024 applies to everyone aged 21 and over. The 25 age limit was reduced to 23 some years ago!
As a speed reader I would find an audio podcast very slow so this would not interest me. But I must admit I have not met a fellow speed reader.
Well, I am one, and I agree with you on this, Ben.
But you are a minority
And transcripts will be provided
Me too, and I agree absolutely.
I’d argue that people are different. It’s sound/pods for some, video for others, and written word for others again. So if you can cover all bases, even better.
As for topics, who is the audience? If there is anyway to get beyond the usual suspects (ie most of us here), that will have way more impact. So how will this be marketed, shared, promoted? That might need as much work as the podcasts themselves.
As for topics, my start point would be that most people are startlingly uninformed – or misinformed. So maybe start with pretty basic stuff?
– what do we mean by taxes? Who pays roughly what on what? And why tax?
– what do we mean by borrowing – and who is borrowing from whom.
– money creation for dummies!
– who gets to spend the money? The central/local debate
– common assumptions and misconceptions
Maybe the answer is that you float a list for us to comment on or add to? But then we may not be the target audience!
The initial list has a lot of that basic stuff on it
Part of what I will be working on with Thomas is a social media plan to promote these
You can play audio podcasts at a faster speed … but it can sound a bit odd sometimes
Thank you Richard, this is very exciting news. For an economics illiterate like me, I am very keen to learn.
Savings. Might be a useful podcast item.
I think you have said that money saved is dead to the economy.
What does Nationwide do with the money put into its savings schemes? They pay interest. Do they really not get any return from their “holdings”?
They loaned me some money for “a car” some years ago, and I paid them with real money – but that is different and the other way round.
This will be covered
For me an audio podcast is perfect. It makes the chore of driving the car more productive.
I would welcome a mixture of subject formats – Short explainers (for non economic experts like myself), Q&As, commentary on current events and perhaps the occasional longer interview. The key would be to pitch at the right level. Dumb it down too much and you lose the interest of those who already understand economic principles. Make it too highbrow and you lose the average citizen n the street.
If you can catch the ear of some journalists and educate some of them, it’d be an amazing achievement. Imagine a TV interview where a politician is handed out well informed questions
Thank you
How to handle all those styles in one podcast is a problem
I / we are thinking about it
I’d like to see a serious hatchet job on fiscal rules plus guidance as to where the actual limits to spending are.
Ok….
Definitely not a suggestion for an early podcast, but perhaps one for the future:
Kick-starting the hydrogen economy?
I found some figures, a few weeks ago, that I found a bit depressing: Global hydrogen production stands at around 96 megatonnes (Mt), but almost all of it, 96%, uses fossil fuels as feedstock (47% gas; 27% oil; 22% coal). The other 4% is produced by electoysis, with anyone’s guess where and how the electricity was produced. Extrapolating from global electricity production sources at around 35% renewables, a very rough estimate would be ~ 1.4% of global hydrogen production being green at present.
We have to replace fossil fuels as hydrogen feedstock, because any justification for extracting them will, inevitably, delay cessation of extraction for fuel use. We have to produce hydrogen at scale anyway, so once production is established, part of the output could offer a part solution to renewable energy backup. Along with other applications, like Mike Parr’s reference on another thread, to DRI (Direct Reduction Ironmaking) at Port Talbot.
There’s plenty of talk about green hydrogen, but little action it would appear.
Not my thing I am afraid
I will only do things I really know enough about
Hydrogen is only valuable as a replacement fuel if it’s produced by electrolysis using green energy. That requires us to have lots of spare green energy, ie energy not needed to replace energy from fossil fuels. That won’t be soon even on the most ambitious green plans (those of the Green Party of course).
Thinking on the need for hydrogen as a transport fuel has changed in the last few years with growing confidence that even HGVs can be battery powered. It will be needed for some industrial processes and as an energy store.
I could also imagine a series of conversations between yourself and others who share similar or overlapping if not identical views, exploring the areas of agreement and difference, and shared ways forward. For instance:
Wellbeing vs GDP – Beth Wallace at Carnegie
Doughnut – Kate Raworth
Macroeconomics- Simon Wren Lewis
Green Deal – Caroline Lucas
MMT – Steve Keen
The City – Colonel Smithers..?!
Energy – Mike Parr..?!!
And yes, each episode needs a catchy title.
Time for left-centre economists to stop kicking holes in each other whilst the orthodox, mainstream, Tufton St gang have their destructive act together and are trashing the place. Find a core that can be the basis of the alternative narrative we desperately need, that multiple voices can then promote.
Not sure I include Reeves as centre-left!
All added to my planning file
But we will walk before we run…