Podcast的崛起

撰文及考題設計／British Council 英協教育中心 Nicholas Gray 　中譯／陳怡君 （中央社編譯）

Podcasts are a relatively recent phenomenon. In 2000, the first system that enabled people to download and store episodic content such as podcasts, for computers and portable players was created, and in the early 2000s broadband internet and the release of the iPod meant that podcasts started to become popular. The word ‘podcast’ was first used in 2004, and by 2005 Google had over 100 million hits for the word. Also in 2005, The Ricky Gervais Show -- a comedy podcast that introduced the world to the weird and wonderful mind of Karl Pilkington -- was the first podcast to have over a million downloads.

Podcast（或稱播客）是股新興現象。讓使用者以電腦或攜帶裝置下載儲存不連貫、章節形式資訊─如Podcast的系統始於2000年，2000年代初期， 隨寬頻網路與iPod相繼問世，Podcast類型的傳播方式也開始流行。「Podcast」一詞於2004年首次出現後至2005年，谷歌（Google）的搜尋紀錄超過1 億筆。此外，介紹怪咖卡爾皮金頓奇妙思維的喜劇《瑞吉賈維斯秀》，也在2005年成為第一個被下載超過百萬次的Podcast。

The popularity of podcasts then decreased for a while, but in 2014 along came a 12-episode true crime murder mystery story called Serial. Hosted by investigative journalist Sarah Koenig, Serial followed the story of the murder of a young Korean student in the USA, and the subsequent conviction and imprisonment of her ex-boyfriend. With an episode released for free each week, much excitement stemmed from the ‘did he or didn’t he do it?’ mystery and the excellent storytelling, interviews and gathering of evidence. The internet was abuzz with discussion, and Serial broke records by being the first ever podcast to reach 5 million downloads.

Podcast風光一時卻好似悄然褪色，然而在2014 年，由調查記者莎拉凱尼格主持、以12集長度探討真實凶殺懸案的節目《Serial》開播，講述一位年輕韓國女學生在美遇害，與她的前男友被定罪入獄的經過。《Serial》每週更新，鋪陳蒐證審訊敘事技巧卓越又是免費下載，成功在網路上掀起熱議，並引發「嫌犯究竟有沒有謀殺被害人」的討論；《Serial》也以逾500萬下載次數打破紀錄。

According to Wikipedia, there are currently 115,000 podcasts available, with topics ranging from sport to comedy to crime, and some of them have taken the medium to unforeseen levels of popularity. Radiolab is currently the number one science podcast on iTunes, and appears on many top 10 lists. Its hour-long shows combine science , philosophy and human stories with excellent production values and personable hosts. TED Radio Hour is another popular podcast which organises excerpts of TED talks a nd i nterviews by theme. The current number one spot in the comedy list on iTunes is occupied by the Joe Rogan Experience. Rogan, a martial artist and comedian, hosts the 3-hour conversational podcast, and has a range of fascinating guests and covers a variety of topics from comedy to politics to health to bow hunting. The podcast was generating 30 million downloads per month in 2016, according to Rogan.

根據維基百科，目前網路上以體育、喜劇或者犯罪為主題的Podcast，約有11萬5,000部，有些節目受歡迎程度超出預期；多項評比都名列前茅的科普節目《Radiolab》在iTunes穩坐第一，一小時內容談自然科學、哲學與人文小品，主持討喜且製作水準極佳。《TED Radio Hour》節錄美國網站及菁英會議（TED Talks）的專訪與精彩內容；《Joe Rogan Experience》則在喜劇類奪冠，主持人羅根是前綜合格鬥家也是喜劇演員，三小時談話節目裡，他與迷人的來賓們大聊喜劇、政治、健康保健，主題範圍之廣甚至還有持弓打獵等話題。羅根說，他的節目去年每月被下載達3,000萬次。

So what makes podcasts so popular? Firstly, the long-for m for mat which allows in-depth discussion of topics and creates a sense of intimacy definitely helps. Also, as content isn’t determined by advertisers and corporations, podcasters are free to talk about whatever topics they want, and thereby appeal to people’s various interests. Another element is that the quality has improved markedly over the years, as experienced people from the world of radio have gotten involved. Finally, podcasts are usually free, and given that most people have smartphones with podcast apps, they are easy to access and download.

Podcast究竟為何如此流行？首先，長篇報導模式能深度討論主題，節目營造的親切感更是加分。再者，因為內容不受贊助商或大公司左右，主持人能針對主題暢所欲言，符合眾多聽眾需求。另外，有電台經驗的主持群陸續加入，使Podcast品質大幅提升；加上智慧型手機使用者會利用各種Podcast App，下載免費節目來聽也很方便。

Podcasts for language learners haven’t quite taken off in the same way, but there are several good ones out there, and listening in this way is an excellent method for improving your English. The BBC’s The English we Speak is a short podcast released weekly with each episode looking at an English phrase or idiom. Also from the BBC, not technically a podcast but worthy of mention, is the excellent 6 Minute English. Again, the hosts discuss a topic of interest each week and provide useful vocabulary and transcripts. Both of the BBC podcasts are for intermediate level learners. Another popular podcast website is Elllo. It has over 1,000 short episodes, mostly at intermediate level and including transcripts and vocabulary activities. Longer podcasts are available from Luke’s English Podcast. Luke is a stand-up comedian who covers topics from the past continuous, to superheroes, to tea. All podcasts mentioned here are free, so why not give one a try?

若想提升英語能力，從Podcast下手是好方法。儘管不如他類節目受歡迎，線上仍有數種出色的語言學習Podcast：英國廣播公司（BBC）的每週短篇《The English We Speak》，介紹英文片語與諺語；雖不盡然算是Podcast，每週提供不同主題專文及有用字彙的《6 Minute English》同樣值得一提；兩個節目都適用於英語中級程度者。熱門網站「Elllo」，單字與文章也多屬中級程度，收錄逾1,000部短篇節目；《Luke's English Podcast》節目時間較長，單人脫口秀藝人魯克教大家過去進行式，也討論茶道和超級英雄。以上列舉的Podcast 通通免費，您何不聽聽看呢？

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