Rough Draft of Research Essay

This is the page for our Research Essay rough draft. In here, our team posts their first drafts so the rest of the team can visualize how the entire essay will look and if there's any need for more edits, additions, etc.

Introduction: (By Bree)

Social media and the technology used to communicate in social networking has progressed throughout the years since the internet first formed. One such tool for social networking has been the development of podcasts and the discussions around them, including the relevant issues that have plagued podcasting since its popularity has increased, which include copyright infringement mostly, yet the discussion about podcasts have also changed to better formulate a complete positive outlook with the call to freedom of speech and opinion, regardless of the issues that plague this type of social media.

Paragraph 1: (By Bree, still finishing but here's the rough draft first!)

Podcasts were first created as audio blogs before the internet was made popular around the 1980s. People would record their blogs, yet had no viable way to network or share their audios with the world. This first round of audio blogging was met with failure and no popularity. As the internet and technological advances created a network around the globe, audio blogs and the new feature to download audio blogs started to gain traction.In 2001, Apple introduced the IPod, thus revitalizing the medium of podcasts. The first host websites for podcasts didn’t have a viable social network with users, yet podcasting “audio content [was] the easiest and most effective way to broadcast…personal messages” to connect all users and website traffic without the communicating features (Safko). This was a disadvantage that was later remedied with host sites such as Spotify and Podbean, where users can post comments and vote for favorite podcasts.. Although many podcasts “emerge as an increasingly popular form of social [media]…[they] are largely released for free”, and copyright didn’t take precedence as a huge disadvantage, save but a few of them when monetary gain was introduced as a business model for podcasts, which included advertising for other products as well as gaining popularity for other users inside the podcast episode itself (Scott). Copyright was called for podcasts that directly used audio from other monetary podcasts or videos while being a monetized podcast.

Paragraph ?: (Megan)

Podcasting is a brand-new take on sharing information and stories with the world, and as such it often utilizes new business approaches as well. Traditional entrepreneurs starting a business have an idea and then need a way to obtain the funding for their idea. They may be thousands of dollars in debt by the time their product launches without knowing its success rate. Traditional feedback for improvements in products can also be hindered by a gap between producer and audience (Chandler). Crowdfunding addresses these issues, allowing a podcast entrepreneur to gain funding based off interest, offer incentives for listeners, and understand interests with immediate feedback. Crowdfunding is obtaining smaller investments through many donors as opposed to one large investment from a business startup. To begin a crowdfunding campaign there are a variety of options. One can seek funds from interested listeners by promoting themselves through social media platforms, but if this is too time-consuming or not an option for an entrepreneur then there are crowdfunding platforms that can be utilized. Crowdfunding platforms like Kickstarter, Indiegogo, and GoFundMe can attract people looking to invest in a product to your product specifically (Team). The key to crowdfunding is to collect and listen to the audience. The more interest in the product, the more funding one will receive. Once a podcast is funded and gains popularity further monetization is achievable through marketing.

Paragraph 2/3 (Britney): Pros and Cons of Podcasting for Social Networking

Works Cited (so far)

Chandler, Jeffrey A., et al. “Working the Crowd: Leveraging Podcasts to Enhance Crowdfunding Success.” *Business Horizons*, vol. 65, no. 1, Jan. 2022, pp. 79–88. *EBSCOhost*, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bushor.2021.10.002.

Team, Podcastle. “How to Run Crowdfunding for Podcasts?” *Podcastle Blog*, Nov. 2022, podcastle.ai/blog/how-to-run-crowdfunding-for-podcasts/#:~:text=Therefore%2C%20if%20you%20can%20present%20your%20podcast%20in,Offer%20something%20in%20exchange%20for%20the%20financial%20contribution.

Rei-Anderson, Cody. “Copyright, Podcasts and Crowdfunding: An ‘abundance Model’ for an Emerging Medium?” Elgar Online: The Online Content Platform for Edward Elgar Publishing, 30 June 2022, www.elgaronline.com/view/journals/qmjip/12/2/article-p185.xml.

Safko, Lon. The Social Media Bible. 3rd ed., BibliU version, Wiley, 2012.

Scott, David Meerman. “The New Rules of Marketing and PR: How to Use Content Marketing, Podcasting.” Google Books, 3 May 2022, books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=48R6EAAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PR1&dq=podcasting%2Bsocial%2Bmedia&ots=iKWhLEEIei&sig=wzwSuInfe58VUJu\_uzcVX9acEfs#v=onepage&q=podcasting%20social%20media&f=false.