Real Neil McPhedran: Welcome to Continuing Studies, a podcast for higher education podcasters to learn and get inspired.

I'm Neil McPhedran, founder of Podium Podcast Company.

Real Jennifer-Lee: And I'm Jennifer-Lee, founder of JPod Creations, podcasting is broadcasting.

We want you to know you're not alone.

In fact, there are many of you higher ed podcasters out there.

And we can all learn from each other.

Real Neil McPhedran: That's right Jen.

And today we are really gonna lean into this part about learning from each other and talk about the PodCon a little bit more now that we've got all of our speakers and sort of the day's agenda all sorted out.

This is really exciting and we're gonna do something a little bit different today.

We're gonna let AI Jen and AI Neil take over for the rest of the show.

Real Jennifer-Lee: Yeah.

Real Neil McPhedran: I know you're not super excited about this.

Real Jennifer-Lee: I'm not super excited.

I just, Real Neil McPhedran: Full disclosure, my idea.

Real Jennifer-Lee: It is your idea.

Well, I feel like, you know, we keep talking about AI.

I'm not scared of AI.

I use it in my business, but you know, I'm just thinking about that Will Smith movie with the robots.

They build the robots and then they kill them.

I just don't understand why we're creating all these like clone versions because I was like, we're just asking for it.

Didn't we watch these movies?

Like, aren't they warnings?

So this is where my thoughts are going.

It's like, why are we doing this to ourselves?

Real Neil McPhedran: Jen, I think as a broadcaster you might be a little bit more sensitive about this, but I do agree with you.

And there is a reason we did this.

So this is what we did.

We took the Higher Ed PodCon website and all of the agenda and all of the details and everything like that, and had Notebook LM, you know, take all that and then turn it into a five minute discussion.

And so there's a male voice, that's AI Neil, and there's a female voice, that's AI Jen, they don't really sound like us, but that's what it is.

And they have a little discussion about the show and everything about it.

So we thought it was kind of a neat idea and way to dig into the content.

But also I just think it's interesting for the higher education space, not that we wanna replace ourselves as podcasters, and I don't mean it from a podcaster perspective, but it's interesting from a learning perspective, like especially for multitasking and commuting.

So you could take a article about something, a big, huge, long article or a research study or whatever, put it into this and then listen to a dialogue while you're riding the subway.

Not perfect, but it's kind of an interesting approach.

Again, we're not trying to replace ourselves.

Real Jennifer-Lee: No, and I get it.

There is a time and place to use it.

I think my worry is that, and this is a larger discussion, maybe it's a future topic for Continuing Studies, we can't be too reliant on AI.

It's there to be used as a tool to be helpful and to scale us up.

But the problem is, and there's been articles written about this recently from some great minds in podcasting, is the listeners are starting to get wise and you still have to have that content creation.

Content creation is always gonna be there.

And you have to have that personal touch.

But it's okay to use AI every so often, but you know, I was like, I'll try anything once.

Try anything once.

We're gonna let, we'll let it slide.

You and I will be back next week.

You start replacing me with AI Jen, then we're gonna have a, a bigger problem.

Real Neil McPhedran: We're not gonna replace you with AI Jen, that's for sure.

You can't get the personality from AI Jen that the real Jen has.

There's no question.

Real Jennifer-Lee: And I have say from broadcasting, because I have extensive training, her inflection is not quite there yet, but I'm sure they're working on it.

Real Neil McPhedran: It's pretty good.

But you're right, like if you listen to it, you can tell, it's just like when I read something now and I go, that's verbatim out of ChatGPT or something like that.

So I think we can really tell in how we use it.

I was at the Web Summit Vancouver all last week.

Big huge internet conference, 15,000 plus people there, all technology across the board.

Oh my goodness.

AI, AI, AI, AI, AI, AI, AI, AI, all day long.

And then I was telling people what I'm up to, oh, are you using AI?

So I think it's here to stay and I think it's super helpful.

But yeah, let's just see how it all shakes out.

Real Jennifer-Lee: I think it's here to stay like the internet.

We were all scared of the internet, but again, you gotta know how to use the internet because we all know that there's a lot of bad things that have happened to people using the internet.

Real Neil McPhedran: Okay, so with that, let's let AI Jen and AI Neil take over for the next five minutes and we'll come back at the end.

Real Jennifer-Lee: Well, at least there's one good thing about this.

We can go have a coffee break.

AI Neil McPhedran: Okay.

So, uh, let's dive into these sources.

We've got some interesting material here about something new, something specific happening in higher education audio.

AI Jennifer-Lee: That's right.

We're looking at, um, the launch of a conference.

And the interesting thing is it seems to have come directly from the higher ed community itself.

AI Neil McPhedran: Right.

Like they were asking for it.

AI Jennifer-Lee: Exactly.

A dedicated space, you know, just for talking about podcasting and digital media within colleges and universities, our sources say this event is really filling that gap.

AI Neil McPhedran: Okay, so for this deep dive, let's try and pull out the key details.

What's the story behind this first ever event and, uh, why should we pay attention?

AI Jennifer-Lee: Well, first things first, the name.

The sources, call it the inaugural Higher Ed PodCon.

AI Neil McPhedran: Higher Ed PodCon.

Okay, catchy enough.

And the basics, where, when?

AI Jennifer-Lee: It's happening Saturday, July 12th, 2025.

So it's a one day event packed, I imagine.

And it's being held at the University of Illinois Chicago.

AI Neil McPhedran: Okay.

And who's expected to be there?

Is it just administrators or?

AI Jennifer-Lee: No, the sources are pretty clear.

It's for the people actually, you know, making this stuff.

Faculty, staff, the tech specialists who support it, communicators.

Basically anyone involved in campus audio and digital media.

AI Neil McPhedran: Got it.

And it sounds like it's not just a small gathering, judging by the numbers and the material we have.

AI Jennifer-Lee: Yeah.

That's what's kind of striking for a first event.

Uh, the sources mention over 15 sessions.

AI Neil McPhedran: 15.

Wow.

AI Jennifer-Lee: And more than 40 presenters.

Plus participation from, I think it said over 25 different institutions.

They list some big names too, like Purdue, Stanford, Penn State.

AI Neil McPhedran: That definitely signals some real momentum right from the start.

But let's, uh, let's dig into the content, the sessions, the speakers.

That's where the real value is, right?

The keynote sounds interesting.

AI Jennifer-Lee: Absolutely.

Sources point to Matt Abraham's.

He's, um, teaches at Stanford's Business School and host that podcast, Think Fast, Talk Smart.

AI Neil McPhedran: Oh, right.

I know that one.

AI Jennifer-Lee: Yeah.

And his session, based on the material, is focused on like strategic communication, how to be clear, how to engage your audience effectively in audio, getting practical tactics, really.

AI Neil McPhedran: Which is crucial.

Anyone creating content needs that, and there was something about Purdue that caught my eye in the sources.

AI Jennifer-Lee: Yes.

The Purdue University team, Kate Young and Maria Welch.

Their session title is great.

Podcasting, Social Media and Video, Oh My.

And they're apparently sharing the quote, formula behind their show, This is Purdue, which is, uh, often cited as a top university podcast.

AI Neil McPhedran: The formula.

So the nuts and bolts.

AI Jennifer-Lee: Exactly.

The sources say they'll cover things like integrating social media, video strategy, how to optimize content so it works everywhere.

Basically building a whole multimedia approach around the podcast.

AI Neil McPhedran: That sounds incredibly useful, like really actionable stuff.

And wasn't there a podcast Hall of Famer mentioned too?

AI Jennifer-Lee: Uh-huh.

Dave Jackson.

The material notes, he's helped launch hundreds of shows.

AI Neil McPhedran: Wow.

AI Jennifer-Lee: His session is about practical guidance for launching or maybe relaunching a show.

Specifically thinking about university budgets.

AI Neil McPhedran: Uh, the budget constraint.

Always key.

AI Jennifer-Lee: Right.

So cost effective production, using YouTube effectively, strategies for making it sustainable, you know, long-term, pragmatic stuff.

AI Neil McPhedran: Makes sense.

And there was one more about scaling up a whole network.

AI Jennifer-Lee: Yeah.

From Lansing Community College, Ed Lowry and Layne Ingram.

Their session is called From 5 to 30: Growing a Podcast Network, AI Neil McPhedran: 5 to 30 shows, how they manage that?

AI Jennifer-Lee: Well, that's what the session's about.

The sources highlight how they did it.

Fostering collaboration, encouraging people, getting that crucial buy-in across different departments.

It's like a blueprint for building that internal support system for audio.

AI Neil McPhedran: Okay, so lots of practical takeaways.

If you're someone in higher ed thinking about this the sources seem to list some core reasons to go.

AI Jennifer-Lee: They frame them as benefits.

One is, you know, joining the leading edge, being part of this growing movement.

Networking is another big one, meeting peers doing similar things.

AI Neil McPhedran: So connecting with others.

AI Jennifer-Lee: And then crucially getting those practical tools and strategies you can actually use back on campus.

And finally, sort of staying competitive, keeping your institution relevant in how it communicates digitally.

AI Neil McPhedran: Those all sound like real needs.

And if people want more info?

AI Jennifer-Lee: The sources point to a website HigherEdPodCon.com AI Neil McPhedran: HHIGHER ED PODCON.com.

Got it.

So let's zoom out.

What is this conference really signify happening now?

AI Jennifer-Lee: Well, it feels like more than just another conference.

It suggests, um, a kind of coming of age for podcasting in higher ed.

It's becoming a recognized field, you know, not just a side project anymore.

There's a community forming, looking to share best practices.

It marks a certain maturity.

AI Neil McPhedran: And why does this matter to you listening?

I think it shows how universities are actively exploring these really powerful ways to connect, to share knowledge, tell their stories, using audio to reach people in new ways.

AI Jennifer-Lee: Which does make you wonder, if this is just the beginning of a focused movement, what could the future of education, communication, connection, what could it sound like if more places really lean into this kind of digital audio storytelling.

Gives you something to think about.

Real Neil McPhedran: Okay, we're back.

Real Neil.

Real Jen.

We're back.

That was fun.

Real Jennifer-Lee: That was a good coffee break.

Real Neil McPhedran: It was a good coffee break.

I think they did a good job of, you know, in five minutes doing a interesting discussion about PodCon and the speakers and the content.

And that's why we, we did this episode.

Real Jennifer-Lee: I'll give them that.

But again, I was rating their broadcasting skills.

They need some work.

Maybe I should coach them.

Real Neil McPhedran: What letter grade are you giving them?

Jen, a C?

Real Jennifer-Lee: Yeah, maybe a C.

Just, they're where I was like 20 years ago at the beginning of my broadcast career.

They're like early, early days, but maybe that's a new job for me.

Instead of training people how to speak on podcasts, I can train the AI's to be better.

Real Neil McPhedran: Train bots.

Real Jennifer-Lee: I don't know if that's really what I wanna do, Real Neil McPhedran: Bot trainer, Jen.

Real Jennifer-Lee: New job.

Real Neil McPhedran: Anyway, I think let's just end with, that if you're listening and you haven't bought a ticket yet, we really hope to see you there.

I think it's gonna be a really amazing day of learning.

But as we've said all along, at the heart of it really is about networking.

We really wanna meet each other, support each other.

I think higher education is a unique corner of the podcast space and there's a lot of things that are unique to us and I think that we could learn a lot from each other.

So, hope to see you there.

Real Jennifer-Lee: I agree.

And that's the one thing I'll say about podcast conferences in general, 'cause I just got back from one, is that podcasting is still very young in all fields.

Here in Canada especially, there's not that many of us.

So when you go to these conferences, it is so nice.

The vibe is so great because you learn a lot.

But like you said, you meet a ton of people and it's a really great feeling that you're like, oh, I'm not alone.

And everyone's excited.

Because everyone's doing the same thing.

So that's what I really love about it.

Real Neil McPhedran: It's about the connections really at the end of the day.

So there you go.

We met at a conference.

Real Jennifer-Lee: That's how this whole journey began.

I would've never met you.

Real Neil McPhedran: Okay, real Jen, why don't you read a out?

Real Jennifer-Lee: Real Jen.

Thank you for tuning into Continuing Studies podcast, a podcast for higher education podcasters.

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