Exercise 7 - Podcasts

Given that the last post reviewed Wikipedia’s increasing reliability, I thought we’d draw on their services for the following definition of podcast:

A podcast is an episodic series of digital media files which a user can set up so that new episodes are automatically downloaded via web syndication to the user's own local computer or portable media player.

The word arose as a portmanteau of "iPod" (a brand of media player) and "broadcast". Thus, the files distributed are typically in audio or video formats, but may sometimes include other file formats such as PDF or ePub.

(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Podcast)

In other words, it’s like serialised radio.  Content is saved in ‘episodes’ and distributed (usually) freely via a website.  The content can be fiction – like the radio serials of old, or it can be factual.  A commonly recognisable podcast in Sydney would be Richard Fidler’s “Conversations”.  The series of hour long pre-recorded interviews is broadcast on ABC 702 Radio at 11am daily, and each episode is then placed on the 702 website for downloading as a podcast.  The range of topics is broad as it is a collection of interviews with interesting people, and stories from around the world.  Here is the link to these Richard Fidler’s podcasts: Conversations

The podcast from an Australian library I have decided to link to is part of the  Blacktown City Libraries Podcasts.  These podcasts are recordings of author talks and discussions hosted by the Library.  The link is http://www.libraries.blacktown.nsw.gov.au/Digital_Library/Digital_Library/Podcasts

The podcast I listened to was entitled “Dianne Bestwick (March, 2015)”.  Diane lived in the Blacktown area with her family for two years whilst she finished writing and researching her book And a Bird Sang (published by Createspace, 2014).  The book is a fictionalized account of a woman pregnant with her second child.  It explores the problems she faces with the difficult choice of continuing her pregnancy or having a forced abortion as required by Chinese law.  

The podcast provides the background to the novel, as Diane speaks of her life experiences and her interest in writing.  She also tells the story of how she comes to be in China, and how her interest in the lives of the students she teaches (all from one-child families) leads her to develop trust and relationships with the local families.  Diane feels strongly the inequality and the anxieties of the women’s lives where the state controls the very nature of their families.  She became active in areas of social justice seeking to help the abandoned babies of the one-child system – mainly girls and disabled children – by volunteering in local orphanages.  Indeed sales from the book are being donated to some of these orphanages so that children have the medical assistance they require.

Exercise 6 - Wikipedia

I will admit that I often use Wikipedia as a quick reference point, especially if I am after information in a subject not completely foreign to me.  My kids usually object to using it as a source because their teachers have taught them the unfortunate phrase “wiki it up”. 

Much to the kids disappointment though, I have been aware of Wikipedia’s reliability issues for many years.  In 2009 I was researching Andorran cuisine and wine preparing to host a Tour de France party as the race traversed Andorra.  It was not the easiest subject to research, and when hunting for suitable party recipes with an Andorran (read cabbage and smoked ham) flavour, I came across the Wiki entry for Andorra in my digital travels.  I clearly remember the article discussing Andorra’s Navy and its coastal access – interesting assertions for a country isolated atop the Pyrenean Mountains!  Clearly a mischievous entry…

     +      =    ?!

          

I think the library initiatives to improve Wikipedia are great.  Having read the suggested articles, I checked the Wikipedia entry for the First Fleet and did find references to documents and data held in the State Library of NSW, so clearl;y the efforts to improve things are paying off.  The information as to how contributions to Wikipedia articles can increase traffic to a library’s website (via linkages) was an interesting eye opener for me and must be a temptation for libraries with great local history collections or digital repositories which could be usefully shared and could attract additional patronage of the library in question.

In many ways, particularly for speed and ease of access, Wikipedia has replaced the ubiquitous sets of World Book or Britannica Encyclopaedias that were once found in homes, school and libraries.  It provides and quick and convenient reference source for general information on a specific topic.  I love the dream of Jimmy Wales, one of the founders of Wikipedia, in which we are urged to “Imagine a world in which every single person on the planet is given free access to the sum of all human knowledge.” (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:About)

Exercise 5 - Social Networking & the Library

Despite my continued reluctance to use social media on a personal basis, I think it’s a great institution for private companies and public services, such as libraries, to use.

It is many years since private companies became alert to the unparalleled marketing opportunities and consumer access offered by Facebook.  This was then expanded by the growth of other social media platforms such as YouTube and Twitter.  Most individuals today use some form of social media, with many opting to create profiles on more than one platform.  It has also become common place for people to seek information about products and services online, where word of mouth, and popular reviews have reached epic proportions – the popularity of ranking sites such as TripAdvisor attest to the importance of word of mouth reviews through the online communities.  

On 1 June 2016, Sensis released their annual social media report, “Sensis Social Media Report 2016- How Australian people and businesses are using social media”.  This report surveyed 800 Australian consumers and 1,100 Australian businesses to show how social media is being used.  For the purposes of the report, the term social media is defined as:

• Social networking platforms, such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Google+, and
• Online blogs and online rating and review mechanisms.

The Executive Summary of the report notes that as the growth of social media continues the “It therefore appears to be more a question of how, rather than if, businesses and marketers should use social media to connect and engage with consumers meaningfully and effectively.”  Furthermore the Foreword notes that “Social media is one of the only digital avenues where businesses can have a two-way communication with customers, giving them the opportunity to receive feedback, monitor sentiment and build a relatable brand personality. They can do all of this with minimal marketing spend, making social media one of the easiest and most cost effective channels to get in front of customers.”

This two way access doubly applies to libraries allowing their patrons to build an online extension of the local community.  It also keeps libraries fully engaged in their communities for very little marketing cost, an expenditure many can ill afford.

The Sensis Report also indicates that 87% of Australians access the internet on a daily basis, with up to following proportions accessing social media:

All of this means that libraries need to embrace Library 2.0 and reach out to their patrons, encouraging access by social media.  It seems that a social media profile will not only embed the library firmly in its community’s consciousness, but will also promote its use and its perceived accessibility to their consumer.  Both of which are vitally important in the current age of government cost cutting.

The question then becomes which sites should a Library use?  It appears that research around the world is showing similar trends - the choice of social media platform is age dependent with younger people choosing the more visual platforms such as Instagram and Snapchat, foregoing Facebook which is perceived to belong to the older generations. 

To test how Australian libraries were going in this regard, I visited the Australian Bureau of Statistics website to ascertain which of the local governments areas (LGAs) in NSW and Victoria had the lowest median ages.  I then looked at the library website for each LGA to see what social media platforms were used.  The following table illustrates my findings:

In general I found that libraries in these areas were doing well by providing their communities with a number of tools for engagement, with each library supporting at least 2 social media platforms.

There is a potential downside to all this engagement though: firstly the social media sites need to be well managed with entertaining and engaging content otherwise they will be overlooked and forgotten, and secondly, as many organisations have discovered there can be a downside when social media becomes negative. 

In 2013 Nacy Dowd wrote an interesting article, published in The Library Journal entitled Social Media: Libraries are Posting but is Anyone Listening?  This article makes the point that, like all other ventures undertaken by a Library, the use of social media needs to be planned, monitored and reviewed to ensure the initiatives are successful in achieving each libraries stated goals.  The final paragraph of the paper sums up the situation perfectly…

Social media is not going away. As new platforms emerge, libraries will need to choose the channels that work for their communities. But whatever platforms they choose, they must have some kind of plan that outlines their goals and embrace philosophies that support interactivity with their communities. I think Bizzle summed it up best, “Successful libraries will determine what platforms most effectively reach their target audience and aggressively build sustainable presences there.”