The proof is in the podding

How many readers have listened to a podcast? How many know what it means? The fact is that podcasts are this year’s black, and lawyers are not excluded from their influence. Podcasts are trendy and, in commercial terms, it pays to be trendy. But the legal world is badged as a world of text, of written words and black-letter law. Can lawyers incorporate this year’s black into the black-lettered legal world?

Podcast – a winning word

In IT terms, 2005 was the year of the podcast. In terms of words, podcast was the word of the year. The New Oxford American Dictionary selected “podcast – a digital recording of a radio broadcast or similar program, made available on the internet for downloading to a personal audio player” as the winner, due to the increase in familiarity and popularity of the phenomenon. For what it’s worth, “birdflu” and “sudoku” were among the also-rans.

Reflecting this popularity, the number of podcasts related to law has multiplied. The potential is limitless. Legal professionals can find a range of high quality podcasts on a variety of websites. Some examples of websites with legal and other podcast content are shown opposite, although quality and consistency varies.

The Law Society of Scotland has launched a trial podcast, recorded at the Nothing but the Net conference in Glasgow on 3 October. The podcast team (podcast@lawscot.org.uk) welcome comments. This article is not designed to review that podcast, but merely to encourage lawyers to think about the issues surrounding podcasts and their potential.

Pod basics

Podcasting is about audio and video – about the eyes, the ears, and the brain. It’s about messages, communication, the message sender and the message receiver. In a world obsessed with knowledge management, there is no doubt that new media for communicating and managing knowledge are evolving.

In more technical terms, podcasting is about publishing and distributing digital audio and video files. Listeners subscribe in much the same way they subscribe to a news or blog feed. The name podcast suggests playback on an iPod or other MP3 player, but you can listen to them on your computer or burn them onto CDs. Other branded MP3 devices serve the same purpose. “Vodcasts” are the visual equivalent of podcasts and require a suitable device that displays video.

Why podcast?

There are many reasons to podcast: personal passion, convenience, direct revenues, but also distribution and archiving. Podcasts can be used for marketing, internal communication, PR and education, as well as individual expression. The potential in the legal field is wide.

Subscribing or downloading a podcast means being able to listen to commentary anywhere, anytime, on an MP3 player hooked up to a car stereo or just plain old-fashioned headphones on trains, planes, buses, taxis or on foot. It is not a new idea, just the next generation of the old: from radio, through downloadable MP3s or webcasting.

Both podcasts and vodcasts lend themselves to portable devices. They are an “on the move” medium. Audio and video search is also emerging as the new central organising principle, with Google having embraced “You Tube”. There is recognition that consumers are more stimulated by the moving message, the moving image. Lawyers need to assess whether their message can be presented in this new dynamic way: to move beyond brochures, articles or seminars into discussion, conversation and on-the-move nuggets of legal information.

Podcasts can be straightforward MP3/video files presented on a website, or delivered as RSS enclosures – the abbreviation for “really simple syndication”, with subscribers receiving “feeds” of new audio files to their computer as they become available.

As well as podcasting, or publishing (creating audio and video files, posting them on the internet and generating the RSS feed), there has evolved “podcatching”: discovering an RSS feed, subscribing using podcatcher software and downloading the podcast automatically as a producer releases new podcasts. However consumers can access podcasts manually from websites and still share the experience.

Making it happen

Lawyers’ messages are more often than not in written form, and writing may have an authority that talking often lacks. It has been argued however that the best way to share understanding is through conversation, and podcasts are a medium more akin to conversation. The golden rules of using words your reader will recognise easily, making your point then supporting it, and delivering a clear message in clear coherent language, all hold true. If you decide to podcast, you must work out how to produce and present it so as to do the job for you or your firm.

It doesn’t take much to record a voice, and anyone who can record an audio or video file can create a podcast. The skill however lies in framing and communicating the message. The overall production process involves planning (purpose, style, format, length, frequency), recording (recording devices, in-house dedicated areas or outsourced providers), post-production (in-house or outsourced), publishing (MP3 using any web host or RSS using third party tools), promotion (directories, search engines, marketing) and feedback (comments, forums, audio).

There are potential dangers. Bad video or audio equals bad message. It is difficult to find technology that will filter out the umms and uhhs, the coughing and slurping. Lawyers must try to avoid horrible production, poor content and the danger of reading out legal documents. Information that is hard to absorb is not made easier to understand by being read aloud to you, especially by a lawyer. The format has to be short, sharp and to the point. Question then answer. Use tone to bulletpoint your message so the listener can recreate their own image of the message in their mind. Even a 20 minute podcast may be a big ask for most people.

Pod potential

Podcasting allows the listener or viewer to go over things more often – a brilliant way to learn. There is a general misconception that it’s for the young, but podcasts can be focused and directed at all clients, potential clients, general public, other lawyers or support staff. It can allow different generations of lawyers to share their different experiences, opinions and behaviour. The ultimate aim has to be podcast analysis for commercial and/or educational purposes, using the technology to analyse the subscriber base and the most popular files.

Podcasting has the potential to be the next big thing in continuing legal education, through “trainee pods” and “CPD pods”. Podcasts can be tailored to curriculum or CPD area and supplemented with bespoke materials to support any learning situation. 

For general study, podcasting is a fast, convenient and low-cost way to extend lessons beyond the lecture theatre. The challenge must be to strike the balance between allowing good students to take advantage of this resource and discouraging bad students from staying at home all the time. The solution may be to monitor download and to assess and maximise the benefits of the time made available by the new technology. Would tutorial attendance and focus increase if a student could “refresh” en route to the tutorial? Is the best time to sit through a legal lecture when you are at the gym? Podcast proponents say the technology helps the flow of information and a more efficient use of time. Sceptics fear the loss of the critical student-teacher dynamic. The debate is ongoing.

Legal issues

Intellectual property rights and protection are also relevant. Copyright law may be infringed by the procurer or producer copying, adapting or changing a work to include it in the podcast; by those who use and exploit another’s podcasts elsewhere; in situations where music or jingles are used without appropriate permissions, and so on. Trade mark law, performance and publicity rights, podcast licences and other IP rights all need to be considered in the context of individual podcasts. The only solution and guidance is to try to be as original as possible and to seek specialist IP advice early on. 

Sowing and harvesting

A podcast is not just for Christmas. It’s not just about music. Podcasts have many applications and the next stage will depend on how the collective legal imagination can exploit the opportunities. Podcasting may or may not be a panacea. It may be that it will vanish into the broader spectrum of downloadable media as wireless internet connections develop. It is all about access, and more particularly access for success. Who knows what will evolve: “podstations” and “podkiosks” where consumers can download legal snippets at their convenience ( www.dexigner. com/product/news-g3190.html ), or a whole new division of law setting out “podrights”? Podcasting is potentially the human voice and perspective on the firm’s actions and information, but it could also be a potential disaster if not implemented professionally. This article can only plant the pods and the rest must be left to grow with the reader. As in all trials, the proof will be in the podding.

    Scott Faulkiner is a solicitor with Biggart Baillie, Glasgow. He also lectures part-time at Strathclyde Law School in company and commercial law.

How many readers have listened to a podcast? How many know what it means? The fact is that podcasts are this year’s black, and lawyers are not excluded from their influence. Podcasts are trendy and, in commercial terms, it pays to be trendy. But the legal world is badged as a world of text, of written words and black-letter law. Can lawyers incorporate this year’s black into the black-lettered legal world?

Podcast – a winning word

In IT terms, 2005 was the year of the podcast. In terms of words, podcast was the word of the year. The New Oxford American Dictionary selected “podcast – a digital recording of a radio broadcast or similar program, made available on the internet for downloading to a personal audio player” as the winner, due to the increase in familiarity and popularity of the phenomenon. For what it’s worth, “birdflu” and “sudoku” were among the also-rans.

Reflecting this popularity, the number of podcasts related to law has multiplied. The potential is limitless. Legal professionals can find a range of high quality podcasts on a variety of websites. Some examples of websites with legal and other podcast content are shown opposite, although quality and consistency varies.

The Law Society of Scotland has launched a trial podcast, recorded at the Nothing but the Net conference in Glasgow on 3 October. The podcast team (podcast@lawscot.org.uk) welcome comments. This article is not designed to review that podcast, but merely to encourage lawyers to think about the issues surrounding podcasts and their potential.

Pod basics

Podcasting is about audio and video – about the eyes, the ears, and the brain. It’s about messages, communication, the message sender and the message receiver. In a world obsessed with knowledge management, there is no doubt that new media for communicating and managing knowledge are evolving.

In more technical terms, podcasting is about publishing and distributing digital audio and video files. Listeners subscribe in much the same way they subscribe to a news or blog feed. The name podcast suggests playback on an iPod or other MP3 player, but you can listen to them on your computer or burn them onto CDs. Other branded MP3 devices serve the same purpose. “Vodcasts” are the visual equivalent of podcasts and require a suitable device that displays video.

Why podcast?

There are many reasons to podcast: personal passion, convenience, direct revenues, but also distribution and archiving. Podcasts can be used for marketing, internal communication, PR and education, as well as individual expression. The potential in the legal field is wide.

Subscribing or downloading a podcast means being able to listen to commentary anywhere, anytime, on an MP3 player hooked up to a car stereo or just plain old-fashioned headphones on trains, planes, buses, taxis or on foot. It is not a new idea, just the next generation of the old: from radio, through downloadable MP3s or webcasting.

Both podcasts and vodcasts lend themselves to portable devices. They are an “on the move” medium. Audio and video search is also emerging as the new central organising principle, with Google having embraced “You Tube”. There is recognition that consumers are more stimulated by the moving message, the moving image. Lawyers need to assess whether their message can be presented in this new dynamic way: to move beyond brochures, articles or seminars into discussion, conversation and on-the-move nuggets of legal information.

Podcasts can be straightforward MP3/video files presented on a website, or delivered as RSS enclosures – the abbreviation for “really simple syndication”, with subscribers receiving “feeds” of new audio files to their computer as they become available.

As well as podcasting, or publishing (creating audio and video files, posting them on the internet and generating the RSS feed), there has evolved “podcatching”: discovering an RSS feed, subscribing using podcatcher software and downloading the podcast automatically as a producer releases new podcasts. However consumers can access podcasts manually from websites and still share the experience.

Making it happen

Lawyers’ messages are more often than not in written form, and writing may have an authority that talking often lacks. It has been argued however that the best way to share understanding is through conversation, and podcasts are a medium more akin to conversation. The golden rules of using words your reader will recognise easily, making your point then supporting it, and delivering a clear message in clear coherent language, all hold true. If you decide to podcast, you must work out how to produce and present it so as to do the job for you or your firm.

It doesn’t take much to record a voice, and anyone who can record an audio or video file can create a podcast. The skill however lies in framing and communicating the message. The overall production process involves planning (purpose, style, format, length, frequency), recording (recording devices, in-house dedicated areas or outsourced providers), post-production (in-house or outsourced), publishing (MP3 using any web host or RSS using third party tools), promotion (directories, search engines, marketing) and feedback (comments, forums, audio).

There are potential dangers. Bad video or audio equals bad message. It is difficult to find technology that will filter out the umms and uhhs, the coughing and slurping. Lawyers must try to avoid horrible production, poor content and the danger of reading out legal documents. Information that is hard to absorb is not made easier to understand by being read aloud to you, especially by a lawyer. The format has to be short, sharp and to the point. Question then answer. Use tone to bulletpoint your message so the listener can recreate their own image of the message in their mind. Even a 20 minute podcast may be a big ask for most people.

Pod potential

Podcasting allows the listener or viewer to go over things more often – a brilliant way to learn. There is a general misconception that it’s for the young, but podcasts can be focused and directed at all clients, potential clients, general public, other lawyers or support staff. It can allow different generations of lawyers to share their different experiences, opinions and behaviour. The ultimate aim has to be podcast analysis for commercial and/or educational purposes, using the technology to analyse the subscriber base and the most popular files.

Podcasting has the potential to be the next big thing in continuing legal education, through “trainee pods” and “CPD pods”. Podcasts can be tailored to curriculum or CPD area and supplemented with bespoke materials to support any learning situation. 

For general study, podcasting is a fast, convenient and low-cost way to extend lessons beyond the lecture theatre. The challenge must be to strike the balance between allowing good students to take advantage of this resource and discouraging bad students from staying at home all the time. The solution may be to monitor download and to assess and maximise the benefits of the time made available by the new technology. Would tutorial attendance and focus increase if a student could “refresh” en route to the tutorial? Is the best time to sit through a legal lecture when you are at the gym? Podcast proponents say the technology helps the flow of information and a more efficient use of time. Sceptics fear the loss of the critical student-teacher dynamic. The debate is ongoing.

Legal issues

Intellectual property rights and protection are also relevant. Copyright law may be infringed by the procurer or producer copying, adapting or changing a work to include it in the podcast; by those who use and exploit another’s podcasts elsewhere; in situations where music or jingles are used without appropriate permissions, and so on. Trade mark law, performance and publicity rights, podcast licences and other IP rights all need to be considered in the context of individual podcasts. The only solution and guidance is to try to be as original as possible and to seek specialist IP advice early on. 

Sowing and harvesting

A podcast is not just for Christmas. It’s not just about music. Podcasts have many applications and the next stage will depend on how the collective legal imagination can exploit the opportunities. Podcasting may or may not be a panacea. It may be that it will vanish into the broader spectrum of downloadable media as wireless internet connections develop. It is all about access, and more particularly access for success. Who knows what will evolve: “podstations” and “podkiosks” where consumers can download legal snippets at their convenience (www.dexigner. com/product/news-g3190.html), or a whole new division of law setting out “podrights”? Podcasting is potentially the human voice and perspective on the firm’s actions and information, but it could also be a potential disaster if not implemented professionally. This article can only plant the pods and the rest must be left to grow with the reader. As in all trials, the proof will be in the podding.

    Scott Faulkiner is a solicitor with Biggart Baillie, Glasgow. He also lectures part-time at Strathclyde Law School in company and commercial law.

Law

www.lawscot.org.uk/Members_Information/podcasts (the Society’s podcast trial).

www.wjm.co.uk/misc-template.php?p=podcast (employment law podcast library).

www.raeburns.co.uk/media/podcast.asp (Aberdeen-based Raeburn Christie Clark & Wallace offers legal podcasts on its website).

www.out-law.com/page-7212 (Out-Law Radio is a free 10-minute podcast, updated every Thursday, offering interviews, news and views).

www.lfyp.org.uk (a legal service website for children and young people aged up to 25 in the Essex area).

http://brighttalk.com/event/TheLawSociety/8f53295a73-179-event (English Law Society CEO Des Hudson’s vision for the Society in a conference speech on 13 October 2006).

...and others

www.apple.com/uk/education/solutions/podcasting/ (Apple’s new free service enables colleges and universities to put course lectures online, and offers a customised version of iTunes software that enables administrators to manage access to online materials).

www.informationlaw.org.uk (a website offering a freedom of information podcast).

www.audible.com (a leading provider of spoken entertainment, information and educational programming).

www.podzinger.com (a search engine that lets you search the full audio of podcasts just like you search for any other information on the web).

www.visitscotland.com/sitewide/edinburghpodcast (a mini tour guide “so that you don’t miss out on experiencing the best that Edinburgh has to offer”).

www.ukpodcasts.info/Business (a directory of podcasts with UK focused content and UK based podcasts).

www.lib.duke.edu/reference/pri/podcasts (A selection of academic podcast links presented by Duke University Libraries).

www.bbc.co.uk/radio/downloadtrial/podcast.shtml (selection of podcasts presented by the BBC).