The Power of Decentralisation with Adam Curry - WBD491

Adam Curry is a DJ, internet entrepreneur, and, along with Dave
Winer, the creator of podcasting. In this interview, we discuss
Texas and guns, how Bitcoin features in world events, food
intelligence and smarter education, as well as the origins,
ethos, and future of podcasting.




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The ubiquity of podcasts has masked how innovative and ground
breaking the technology is. In only 2 decades an idea about
using RSS feeds to distribute audio blogs has now arguably
become the most effective media channel rivalling both main
stream media and increasingly social media.


It is estimated that more than a third of Americans regularly
listen to podcasts. Market forecasts suggest the industry
will be worth over $2 billion in the next few years. The
relative ease of production, lack of editing constraints, and
its long form character, has resulted in an explosion of
content.


At a time when trust is in short supply, clickbait is
employed over honest reportage, and toxicity is increasingly
infecting discussions, podcasting is providing a desirable
alternative for those seeking truth and facts. As a result,
podcasting has been important to disseminating knowledge
across a range of subjects.


And yet, there are risks that podcasters could make the same
mistakes of other media: audience capture and reliance on
centralised distribution channels could undermine the
effectiveness of the industry to continue to provide a
valuable source of truth.


Adam Curry had a critical and central role in the genesis of
podcastings. Yet, his passion for the medium is as fervent as
ever. He’s at the forefront of both Podcasting 2.0 technical
developments, whilst also being one of the industry's most
industrious contributors. He was orange-pilled via podcasts,
now he’s using his knowledge of Bitcoin to strengthen
podcasting.