It’s been a whirlwind week, but here are some of the final thoughts I had after spending the week at Podcast Movement 2022 in Dallas.

Attending a conference in person allows you to witness representation first-hand.

Podcast Movement brings together people from all over the world and from many different backgrounds. Getting to attend Podcast Movement helped remind me how vast an industry podcasting has become in such a short time. I think really important to be able to see yourself in the people doing your dream jobs. So it was both exciting for me to meet other female engineers, and an immense honour to be able to get up on stage and be part of that representation as well.

The tools that are being developed for this industry are only going to help make this a continually more inclusive space.

Spending the week watching companies discuss the technical advances they are making to support this industry was fascinating on its own, but I think the most striking thing to me was also seeing how new advances can help lower the barrier to entry for both people working in the space AND listeners alike. Take Descript for example. It’s not a new conversation within the podcast and radio industry that learning complex costly software is a barrier to diversity within audio. But Descript’s tool is only becoming bigger, better, and able to handle more types of projects (looking at you video!) — all while maintaining a simple user interface that doesn’t break the bank. Not to mention, transcripts for your podcast ensure that people with hearing impairments can still access your content.

Everywhere you looked at Podcast Movement there were people working on the tech problems that create pain points and barriers. So I think we’re primed for an ever-growing inclusive space within the industry.

Overall takeaway

Attending Podcast Movement this past week in Dallas reminded me that there are big benefits to meeting people in person to feel connected to your work. Don’t get me wrong, I love working from home. But seeing such a large group of people come together to celebrate a medium that we all love, helped remind me why I do what I do.

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