Podcasts Reflection Essay

When people host a podcast, it is their goal to properly mix, narrate, and provide the best content for their audience. After having listened to Season 3 of Slow Burn and Missing Richard Simmons, both executed their series well, despite the two having different elements from one another. Similarly, the techniques in their interviews can be seen in certain moments of their show. The delivery of their storyline, the sound transitions and the production overall, made them enjoyable to reflect on as a listener. 

In Season 3 of Slow Burn, the tales of Tupac Shakur and Biggie Smalls open with the downfalls of Tupac’s life told by close sources in his career. Throughout the season, the guests spoke on moments that potentially led up to the feud and how it unfolded into a lost investigative file for both sides. Overall, the guests on the show and the topic sequences, tied the story cohesively. Missing Richard Simmons on the other hand, tells the story as it’s developing and the missing parts that Dan Taberski explores. In Taberski’s podcast, it’s evident that he handpicked the people he interviewed and why they meant a great deal to the story’s adaptation. In comparison, both had sources that led to a compelling presentation of the shows.

In contrast, the audio’s format was notably different when listening to them side-by-side. In Slow Burn, the fades and pauses were incorporated smoothly with the dialogue. When music was played, it served its purpose and was not just simple background noise. The transitions of fading in and out mixed in well. Contrarily, in Missing Richard Simmons, they muffled the guests voices when the narrator was giving context to who they were. In some instances, this choppiness made the listening experience feel like too many things overlapped. Both had different priorities in sound that ultimately come down to personal preference. 

In the two podcasts, the production was done effectively and allowed me to analyze even further. While Slow Burn focused on events that have been retold numerous times, the intensive research of the two rap moguls felt refreshing and insightful to past narratives. From the violent displays in Tupac’s career to the investigations mentioned, addressing facts as accurately as possible was a valuable asset to the storyline. As for Missing Richard Simmons, the ability for a host to tell about his encounters as they occur, was the most intriguing part of the entire series. Dan Taberski allowed me to empathize with Simmons and see his emotions kept behind closed doors. 

In conclusion, both podcasts were composed efficiently and kept me tuned in the entire time. Whether the story was told uniformly, improvised, or the sounds created different effects, the understanding I gained afterwards was the most important part of it all.