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In my podcast On the Media, I discuss whether online media slandering the Sochi 2014 Olympic Games by circulating negative coverage on Russia’s inner political and business affairs. I present online articles I have found on online newspapers, magazines and new sites which cover topics of the LGBT law established in Russia last June and the criticism of Russian Olympic investors. One article calls for the boycott of the 2014 Olympics rooted in the LGBT matter while another simply libels the Russian investors. I analyse the timing of these articles’ publishing, consider their spread across cyber space and their influence on online media readers. I question the ethics of online journalists and bloggers of spreading libel on Russian political and business controversies and linking these irrelevant controversies to the Olympic Games. I answer whether these controversies affect the Olympics or is it immoral to link these issues to the games and are they tainting of the Olympic integrity? 

https://soundcloud.com/user751014367/podcast-complete

Software

I have a built-in Sound Recorder program on my laptop which I will be using to record my podcast. It is very easy to manage. The sound quality is not too clear as I would like so I am planning to buy a mic for better sound clearance. At first, I was planning on downloading a free recording program like Audacity but after watching Youtube's "How to Create a Podcast for Dummies" I took their advice and checked if I already had an installed recording program - which I did.

Using Sound Recorder is as easy as pressing Record, Stop, Save in Files - Very simple

For editing my podcast, I will use  Audacity because it allows editing beyond Sound Recorder which is very basic. Sound Recorder being very basic is still very useful because it is easy to manage but this means I need another software for editing. 

I watched a Youtube video called "How to Edit a Podcast with Audacity" to observe how the program functions. The usage looks extremely easy, full of simple dragging and dropping of audio's like your recording and background music files. 

I experimented with a simple 10 second clip I recorded using Sound Recorder and tried applying background music to my recording with a fade-out using Audacity. It was extremely easy to use, just as was demonstrated in the video - even for someone technologically dis-functional as me. I recommend it!!

Search Strategies

A ‘subject’ is a keyword you search in a journal database. It is useful to know how to look up official subjects because it will make your search for a specific, let’s say, article- since we are talking journal database- much more efficient, using a keyword or an arrangement of keywords. I have tried searching official subjects on databases and it has proven to be very efficient, for it helps you zone in on a specific discipline/subject you may be looking for. Yes, I will continue using this research method.

Digging Deeper

Throughout my research, I have found many popular and scholarly sources on my subject in online newspapers, online news sites and journalist articles concerning the negative response to Russia because of the Russian/Ukrainian relations concerning the Maiden revolution. The Maiden events definitely have influence on how the rest of the world perceives Russia and the Olympics in Sochi. On the actual topic of the Sochi Olympics scandals I have also had much luck with access to online material, as these are all events currently in the world news spotlight.

I started my research on Google to see what scandals have been mentioned and what other things are generally being said overall about my topic's key-words like Ukrainian Revolution 2014 and Sochi Olympics scandals. Then I started looking up legitimate news sites and newspaper websites for circulating news. Also, I went to Google Scholar to look up scholarly information.

A few links to popular and scholarly sources in the midst of my research:

http://www.vanityfair.com/culture/2014/02/sochi-olympics-russia-corruption

http://grantland.com/the-triangle/just-how-bad-is-the-scene-in-sochi/

http://articles.latimes.com/2014/jan/16/sports/la-sp-sn-gay-rights-sochi-olympics-20140116

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-23674661

http://www.thestranger.com/images/blogimages/2013/07/24/1374708988-dump_russian_vodka_flyer_lo_res.pdf

http://www.risingpowersinitiative.org/policy-alert-rising-powers-respond-to-security-concerns-at-upcoming-sochi-winter-olympics/

^ “chine: criticising the West for being unfair on Sochi security”

Topic Refinement

Having the task of doing a podcast pitch was a helpful part of this assignment for me. I feel it was simply an extra step to polishing out any extra, unnecessary material and refining my topic. I started out stuck in between two topics: the Antikythera machine, or a historical,architectural piece. As the blog posts progressed I was able to orient myself better on what my interests were passionate about and I chose to cover the media topic of the Ukrainian Maiden Revolution. The pitch helped me narrow down my topic, setting me closer to a precise question for my podcast discussion. 

A pitch could definitely be useful for other assignments since it is simply another step/another chance to revise and refine your work. 

So far, post-pitch, my refined show idea is to cover the question of Is/How the media reporting on the Ukrainian Euromaiden Revolution slandering Russia's hosting of the Olympics and adding to damages of the controversies and security threats of the 2014 Olympics in Sochi? 

Topic Selection ---Pitch Preparation

The advice I found particularly significant during my research on How to Successfully Pitch a Podcast is this: to be a personable person during your presentation – be yourself, social, friendly, and most of all, genuine. People can tell when you are being genuine and this trait will play a part in their decision as to whether you are a trustworthy person.  Articulate your speech and stay on topic with your presentation, covering your podcasts/projects main details painting a Big Picture. Communicate with the people in the room, respectfully listen to questions they may pose, and show them you can think through obstacles on the spot. Show that you know your podcast thoroughly and know what you are talking about (material/facts/also show that you can have a formulated opinion of your own based on...). Details will make you look professional and trustworthy, and showing passion for your project/podcast will appeal on an informal level. Research the company/person who you are pitching to and most importantly Their Audience! Know everything about them; from their successes to their failures and their previously launched podcasts. Know why your podcast will appeal to them and their audience and show the compatibility correlation. All in all, make your presentation a short, well-told story, meaning, PRACTICE your presentation plenty of times beforehand.

The sources I used for my research were either blogs written by authors who have backgrounds in leadership, presentation or business and such, or certified stations like CBC and their prestigious Dragons Den entrepreneur show. The podcast blogs look and checked-out to be professional with contact information, and detailed, certified credentials on their About page. In one of the podcasts, there are a few guest individuals who were introduced also as reliable sources with reasonable education and experience backgrounds. The one video of the Behind the Scenes of Dragons Den was, although a video of regular business owners/regular people, yet their advice came from first-hand experience and I believe their advice in particular, to a fellow regular pitcher, is the most realistic re-cap of the pitching process.

http://www.cbc.ca/dragonsden/behindthescenes/audition-advice-from-the-den

http://coachingforleaders.com/podcast/pitching-a-great-idea/

http://www.jumpstartinc.org/blog/podcast-perfecting-your-pitch.aspx

                The information I need to be clear on when presenting my pitch this week will be my overall knowledge of the topic, the specific question/issue I will be regarding and the key aspects that it will encompass, the importance of this topic in relation to current events or the reason from its revival, my sources to be filtered to the best, most reliable material to create an authoritarian, yet informal tone in my, after all, scholarly-ish podcast. Overall, to present the appeal and the interesting side of the topic and why it will be as interesting for audiences as it was for me to research.

Topic Selection

For my assignment, I have chosen to go with either an Under the Influence or Everyday Einstein podcast styled show. I liked them personally because I found them easy to listen to. There were no commercials or excessive noises which would interrupt with my listening comprehension of the information the primary podcast voice was presenting to me. Some podcast shows, like the 99% Invisible, I found to be hard to listen to. They discussed deeper topics of science and technical things which the listener needs to keenly listen to, yet clips of sounds would interfere with my comprehension. I felt like those ‘sound scenes’ would apply best visually not audibly because knowing little about the topic and having a ‘sound scene’ at the beginning of a podcast makes it extremely difficult for the audience to visualize something they do not know about or recognize yet.

            I want to create a show about the ancient city of Petra found in Jordan- a historical/architectural/cultural piece or on gangs in prison. I want it to be easy on the ears- audibly simple to comprehend and understand, yet appealing and hooking even in its simplicity. Although, contrarily Sparks uses a controlled amount of background noise to keep its podcasts involving, I find the sounds-to-the-words synchronization too choreographed in a corny way.

Concerning topic discussion and The Question, I have noticed that most podcasts consist of about a quarter of defining and explaining, aside from answering a question. A topic is presented, talked about, expanded on briefly and then a question is asked. The question is followed by a few definitions or explanations to break down the topic further for the audience. The key to a successful podcast seems to be the quality of information and making sure that your audience is with you 100% of the way because once you say something the audience cannot go back and reread what you said in the case that they did not understand your information. Everything you say must be very understandable.