Yuto: So, I was reading this and it said this history professor, Heather Cox Richardson, she just reads her daily newsletter into a microphone. And then the next day, it's like, the number two podcast in the whole country.
Harper: Wait, the whole country? Like, beating out... what's number three?
Yuto: Yeah. Number two. Right behind The Daily. She just... speaks the words.
Harper: You're kidding me. So, like, no sound design, no interviews, just her reading her own words?
Yuto: That's what it says. Just a simple voiceover.
Harper: Huh. Well, that's wild, because this article's whole point is that just reading your stuff aloud, like, literally just reading your articles, could be the biggest thing for writers right now.
Yuto: So she's, like, living proof.
Harper: Exactly. Because she's been writing these 'Letters from an American' for a while now, and they're super popular, right? But she just recorded one of them, turned it into audio, and boom. Top of the charts.
Yuto: So it's not even, like, a proper podcast. It's just... text with her voice.
Harper: That's the thing! The line between an 'article' and a 'podcast' is just... gone. You turn text into audio, and it's not just an accessibility thing, like for people who can't see the screen. It's a whole new product.
Yuto: New product... for like, different times of day, too. Like, you can't read in the shower, right?
Harper: Exactly. Or driving, or, you know, doing dishes. So they're saying, if you write stuff, record your most popular archived post. Just do it. Don't just read it, perform it, they say. Add a little intro.
Yuto: Perform it. That's a good point. Not just monotone.
Harper: Yeah, because I follow this one writer, their writing is brilliant. Absolutely brilliant. But then they started doing these voiceovers, and I honestly had to stop listening. Like, the audio was bad, it was monotone, and it just made me realize that writing and performing are just totally different skills. Being good at one doesn't mean you're good at the other.
Yuto: Oh, I see what you mean. It's like... different muscles, I guess.
Harper: Totally different muscles. But then you have someone like Stephen Fry, when he launched his Substack, he read his first post, '40 Years On,' aloud. And it made people feel, like, instant intimacy. Like he was speaking directly to them.
Yuto: Okay, that's different. Stephen Fry, he has, you know, a very good voice. It's almost unfair.
Harper: It is a little unfair. But it's not just that. Adam Mastroianni, he's also a standup comedian. He adds asides and riffs to his voiceovers that aren't even in the written text. So if you're a paid subscriber, you get these extra jokes and insights that nobody else does.
Yuto: Ah, so bonus content. That's smart. Making it worth it.
Harper: Yeah, and someone told Adam that his show came on right after 'The Daily' when they were in the shower. Which is just proving that audio gets you into places text can't.
Yuto: Right. You're captive. You can't just scroll past.
Harper: Exactly. And then there's this voice coach, Samara Bay, who reads her posts aloud. And a subscriber told her, 'I forgot this was not a private voice note, because it felt like you were speaking directly to me!'
Yuto: That's... that's powerful. You know, when someone feels that kind of connection.
Harper: It really is. So, all these people are finding new audiences, deeper connections, just by pressing record.
Yuto: Okay, totally different direction—
Harper: But is this actually good for listeners?
Yuto: Oh, I thought you were going to say something else. But yeah, that's a good question. Like, what about all those... monotone voices?
Harper: Exactly! Just because you can turn an article into an audio file doesn't mean it's a good podcast. We just said that writing and audio performance are totally different skills. So now we're just gonna get flooded with low-quality audio, right?
Yuto: Hmm, I don't know if it's 'flooded.' I think maybe... it's just more options. If you don't like it, you don't listen. But for someone who maybe can't read as easily, or is doing something else... it's a good option.
Harper: But what if the good stuff gets drowned out by all the bad stuff? Like, I love podcasts. I love a well-produced, well-narrated story. And now everything's just gonna be some guy reading his blog post on a cheap mic?
Yuto: But isn't that how, like, YouTube started? Lots of bad quality videos, but then the good ones rose to the top. It's just more... democracy, maybe?
Harper: Democracy of bad audio. I don't know if I want that. I think it's gonna lower the bar for what we consider a 'podcast.' It's like, we had this craft, right? Narrative, sound design, music. And now it's just... 'Hey, I spoke into a phone!'
Yuto: But if people are listening, and it's making them feel more connected, as the article said... isn't that a good thing? Even if it's not perfect production?
Harper: I mean, sure, for the writer, for the connection. But for the listener's experience? If I'm listening to something, I want it to be good. I don't want to struggle to hear them or deal with terrible echo.
Yuto: I guess... I don't know how to argue with that exactly. But still, the option is good, right? Like, a different lane. It's not trying to compete with 'The Daily' on production, but on convenience and directness.
Harper: But if this 'read-aloud' podcast becomes the standard format, what does that do to the actual craft of sound-designed, narrative podcasting? Does it just disappear?
Yuto: I don't think it disappears. I think it just makes it... more special. But I'm Yuto.
Harper: And I'm Harper. And I think we're just gonna be wading through a lot of bad audio for a while. This has been Manish Chiniwalar's Station.