Podcast: A Behind-the-Scenes Look at a Popular PR Show

By: Gini Dietrich | May 5, 2015 |

By Gini Dietrich

On Sunday, I spent a little more than an hour recording a podcast with Shel Holtz on Skype.

Because his regular For Immediate Release co-host, Neville Hobson, was in Boston with clients, he needed someone to fill his spot.

And I was more than happy to help. FIR, after all, is probably the most popular and well-done podcast in the PR industry.

It was a really great experience, both because it’s Shel and he’s wickedly smart (and cynical and has a dry sense of humor, both traits I love), and because the show is extremely well organized.

I thought I’d share a look behind-the scenes at the popular PR podcast.

The FIR Format

About 10 days in advance, I received an email from Shel that described how the run of show would work.

I was to choose two news items that I could talk about for two minutes each and two others that would prompt discussion between the two of us.

Then, he invited me to Rizzoma, the Google Wave reiteration. (I had never used it, but it’s a really good collaboration tool.)

In there, he had the following:

Ident – Gini
Welcome (recorded)
Intro – Shel
Steve Rubel is hosting a new podcast
Quick News (2-minute reports; include URLs)
- Gini
- Shel
- Gini
- Shel
Media Monitoring Minute from CustomScoop
News That Fits (longer reports—four to five minutes—with discussion; include URLs) (Shel to intro)
- Gini
Michael Netzley’s Asia Report
News That Fits
- Shel
Listener comments
News That Fits
- Gini
Igloo Software
Dan York’s Tech Report
The last week on the FIR Podcast Network – Shel
News That Fits
- Shel
Outro
Music – Gini

The Technical Podcast Needs

Of course, I listen to FIR so I knew the lay of the podcast land, but having it outlined like this made it extremely easy to co-host the show.

From a technical standpoint, we were on Skype and both recorded our tracks.

I use a Zoom H4N recorder and I wear my Bose noise canceling headphones so I’m not distracted by noises (such as Jack Bauer barking at the neighbors walking by our house).

We shared a Dropbox folder and I just dropped my recorded files in there.

Shel did all of the post-production and FIR 806 magically appeared less than 24 hours later.

FIR 806

The show, itself, covers a lot of ground.

We discussed:

How Converse worked with brand loyalists to support a young woman with stomach cancer
The Rockets social media manager who was fired for tweeting an emoji of a horse with a gun to its head (they were playing the Mavericks)
No more “chikin” at Johns Hopkins University
The FTC, disclosure, and native advertising
The Bud Light #UpForWhatever campaign and crisis communications (and Melissa Agnes’s response)
What virtual reality means for journalism (this is super cool!)
The health and wellness advice Walmart provided its employees after they were laid off
PR needs more SEO, which is what I blogged about yesterday with content marketing and answering questions

There also were tips from Dan York on Soundcloud and Internet (which I don’t recommend you looking at unless you’re ready to be frustrated).

And I love what Rachel Miller is doing around the birth of Princess Charlotte Elizabeth Diana.

Behind-the-Scenes

So there you have it!

The behind-the-scenes look at how a podcast comes together.

I may recommend we follow a similar organized format for Inside PR (though we record only 15 minutes, not an hour, every week) to Joe Thornley and Martin Waxman.

I hope you’ll take a listen and let us know what you think.

About Gini Dietrich

Gini Dietrich is the founder, CEO, and author of Spin Sucks, host of the Spin Sucks podcast, and author of Spin Sucks (the book). She also has run, built, and grown an agency for the past 14 years. She is co-author of Marketing in the Round, co-host of Inside PR, and co-host of The Agency Leadership podcast.