Diocesan podcasts

Over the years there has been a lot of talk about Catholics use of the new media and the poor quality of certain segments of this.  For example Catholic parishes have notoriously poor web sites, and while there have been some general improvements there is plenty of room to grow in this regard.

The same goes for diocesan websites, though they are generally of better quality than parish ones since money is being spent is this regard.

One area of the new media that has been much ignored by most diocese is podcasting with very few diocese getting involved in this.  I would like to highlight one example of the effective use of podcasting by a diocese which I think should be a model for other diocese.

The Archdiocese of Boston produces The Good Catholic Life, an hour long show scheduled Monday through Fridays.  The production values are very good  and the host Scot Landry is top notch in moving the show along and doing interviews.  This is a quality show that focuses on local news for the diocese along with news that affects all Catholics. So Catholics in the diocese who listen to it are kept well aware of what is going on in the dioceses along with hearing personal stories of other in the diocese.

I would love to have a similar podcast in my own diocese to learn more about the priests and people in my diocese to build up a real sense of community that is often lacking in today’s parish life.

They also simulcast the show on their local Catholic radio station which is also an ideal way to build up an audience.

No doubt producing such a podcast is time intensive and requires real resources to pull off right, but I think it is something well worth doing.