Podcast Postproduction and Distribution

This unit covers core postproduction workflows, metadata and file-management practices, and the technical steps required to publish and promote a podcast episode across platforms. Students will learn editing, format and metadata standards, distribution (RSS/FTP/streaming/YouTube), and audience-engagement and promotion strategies, building on foundational recording skills and preparing for advanced audience development and monetization.

Learning Objectives

• Analyze recorded audio (sample rates, levels, noise, pacing, and headphone monitoring) to determine appropriate edits, noise reduction, and background music placement for a broadcast-quality episode
• Apply consistent file-naming, folder organization, sample-rate conversion, and ID3 tagging workflows using tools such as Audacity and Descript to produce distribution-ready audio files
• Demonstrate end-to-end publishing and distribution by configuring RSS feeds, uploading via FTP or streaming platforms, posting to YouTube, and publishing show notes so an episode is accessible across major platforms
• Evaluate promotional and audience-engagement strategies — including ad options, comment and forum engagement, social promotion, and AI-assisted copy (e.g., ChatGPT) — and measure basic engagement indicators to inform iterative improvements