After seeing Leo Laporte who is a podcasting business person put out a request for people to donate money to him,I started a discussion on Twitter. I am sure Leo is passionate about what he does and enjoys his position in New Media,but lets make no mistake about this,he is a business man with a desire to make money from podcasting. What got my goat,and annoyed me is that he stated in a convention recently that he earned 1.5 million last year and it is getting bigger each year,then in the same breath he declared podcasting to be dead. Not dead enough though for him to stop doing it.
The Donation Model
I see the donation model as a business model for the web site owner and content producer to use when like him,you are starting up and you will appreciate a helping hand to cover costs and keep things going until you are in situation where there is a strong enough business there,that doesn’t need that type of support. All well and good if you were giving the support at the beginning and feel that you are getting a good deal that you want to show your appreciation still and keep on paying. It is all about choice after all. I am not telling you what to do with your money.
He just put out this blog post at Posterous telling people that although he doesn’t need the money,because of other income coming in,he would have these donations pay him his salary. he would use it as a gauge as to whether he was doing a good job with the Twit Network. I look at what he wrote more cynically in terms of he was probably looking at the donations dropping due to the financial climate and his statements of having income of 1.5 million from podcasting,and put out a blog post to perhaps give the donations a boost. Judging by the comments I saw on the blog post,it worked.
Twits are happily still giving him money to put in his back pocket or wallet. Well done Leo. Good business move!
Twitter Discussion
What I started the conversation on Twitter with was a a suggestion that people would be better supporting the up and coming podcasts that need some help rather than handing more cash to Leo Laporte. I did not say at any point in the chat,I wanted the money specifically even though my podcasts are in that category same as a few others. The discussion went back and forth quite a bit and some of the comments were not logical in terms of argument. Some started talking about quality of content and I don’t know if they were making a personal comment or not about Mac20Q but I think not as I strive for high production values. I know that my content is better than some due to the care I take with the editing process.
Some started talking about having to have passion in what you are doing with a podcast,with the inference that because I was talking about business and money that it was not possible to passionate about the podcasting content. Balderdash is the answer to that ! So logically that same argument if applied to Leo Laporte must mean that he is not passionate about podcasting and is only in it for the money ?? Some of these statements came from the hobbyist podcaster that seem to think that all you need to do is to enjoy making the podcasts and have fun. They have no business plan and probably don’t care anyway as they have other jobs to put food on the table.
Seeing as I mention other jobs people have –do they enjoy it and if they do do they work for free. “No boss I had fun working for you this month,you don’t have to pay me.”In my discussions with podcasters recently on Mac20Q they have told me that they know it is possible to make money with a web site and they expect to make money by providing content too. They have a business plan and live off they money that comes in from what they do. Marcelo of New Media Studies for one Gary Rosenzweig of MacMost Now for another and of course Don McAllister. They are passionate about their work producing content and rightly so get paid for producing high quality content.
Admiration for Leo Laporte
Has to be said though that I admire Leo Laporte for his podcasting business and how well he has done with it. The head start he had because he was a TV and radio personality before he came to podcasting is down to him also. So there is every reason to say “Well done Leo!”I just object though to him continuing to use the donation model for Twit when he patently has no need of it. It is the same as if you are walking down the street and a guy with a new Ford Mustang with all the bells and whistles and paid for,with a Rolex on the wrist and a flash suit gets out of the car and asks if you can spare 2 quid for a cup of coffee. If that were to happen I dare say you would be inclined to tell the cheeky git to take a running jump.
In the wake of the Japan Earthquake Disaster –Congratulations to Shelter Box and others
I found it truly heart warming to see the people of Shelter Box in the UK gutting stuck in with getting their Shelter Box Kits ready to send out to the Japan Earthquake disaster. I know there are certainly other disaster rescue and help out fits around the world but I saw these on the BBC news and they were putting their backs in to getting as many as possible of the kits they have ready and loaded up on lorries to send out.
There is the North Africa region going completely haywire lately and just getting busy killing each other. More interested in destroying the country they live in,especially Libya than thinking about what they could do to make the world a better place. It has been television that I have been unable to take my eyes off during the day,just seeing how bad things can get on this planet.
I expect the Red Cross will be getting out there in Japan and the firefighter teams that go and help to save people from the fallen down building. Great to see that there is some humanity left in the world and we can fight as one species. Honestly I get quite emotional seeing all the devastation actually happening in front of my eyes today and really feel for the poor people that are caught up in the situation.
Please Help Shelter Box if you can.