It was pretty cool to stumble across this article in the Guardian Arts Blog which talks about the future of the audio theater, and features some of my opinions on the sad yet hopeful state of affairs (yes, me, quoted in a real newspaper!). I think one of the toughest things radio drama is facing right now is people not realizing its existence. So articles like this that raise awareness are incredibly appreciated!
There’s also an interesting discussion of devices to put “visual’ in the radio… which while they sound interesting, I can’t help but wonder, isn’t the joy of radio is that the only visuals are the ones in your mind?
Anyways, a really great article overall and worth a read, and maybe a comment?
Regarding the current state of podcasted audio drama, I can relate to issues raised in the article about podcast quality and listeners awareness.
I created Dramapod.com for the audio drama podcasting community to help raise awareness of audio drama. The aim of the rating system in place on the site is to help listeners find quality dramas and over the years I believe that podcast quality will continue to improve.
The question I have relates to one part of the article that reads:
“though a quick look at the latter’s main categories – Superhero, Dr Who, Star Trek – points to Greenhalgh’s fears”
All of the categories mentioned could be said to relate to science fiction and fantasy, they also all relate to fan fiction and I was hoping you could clarify your fears, as I wasn’t sure what was meant?