This is the GitHub repository of the Civitas podcast. You can find episodes:
This is my fourth podcast:
Each of these podcasts was produced using different methods and I’m bringing together my favorite bits to make this podcast.
The key question is if you have remote guests or not. While you can get better results with software designed for remote recording, such as Zencastr, I’ve had good luck just getting on a call with people using video meeting software (Zoom, Microsoft Teams, Google Meet, etc.) and recording the call. Most people already know one or more of these systems and it’s a lot quicker to get to the recording stage.
Generally speaking, it helps if everyone is on headphones to avoid sound from other speakers leaking in, but modern computers do a good job of avoiding that problem. Good mics can get better sound, but even the built-in mics work for most conversations.
When it’s just me reading from a screen, I find OBS Studio gives me flexibility to set up the screen the way I want it. That said, I’ve had some luck recording myself in my own Zoom room.
My philosophy of podcast productions is “Do as little as possible.” By all means hire an editor to get the most out of your recording after you’ve proven your success. Interesting content will help you build an audience as long as you’ve got a minimal level of quality.
If the podcast is going on YouTube, YouTube Studio works well to edit out awkward pauses and that sort of thing.
I use my edit_podcast.rb script to mix the audio. It removes noise and sets the audio levels to a reasonable place.
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