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In class as each student defined the strip of paper they were given the class irrupted with discussion on a few topics. So many students wanted to chime in on the favorite VoIP service. Students chimed in after a definition of Skype to tell the class about the different advantages of the services that they used like Viber or Google Voice. While a number of other topics cause the class to irrupt in discussion I was interested in the different podcasts that were mentioned. I have been subscribed to the podcast of This American Life from NPR and Public Radio International for almost three years now. In the podcaste, as Ira Glass tells you at the beginning of each episode, that they will choose a theme and present to you a number of stories on that time. 
A few weeks ago there was a story based on the factory's in China where they produce Apple products. In the story they looked into the "Foxconn Village" that is sprawling out around the factors, the living quarters that the employees are placed in as well as the conditions they face at work.The story went into detail exposing a lot of details about the factory that were truly horrifying.

There have been a number of news stories about the apple factories and the conditions they face at work including the staggering suicide rate of the companies employees (there are even nets outside the building to catch people from jumping) but nothing had painted such a clear picture of what the situation is like than this podcast.

Podcasts can be about anything from music to news stories or university lectures. People can subscribe to whatever theme of a podcast they are interested in. Because the technology is becoming so widely available almost anyone can make a podcast. They are increasing the information flow as well as changing who holds the power to distribute information. The issue that podcasts now face is the same that nearly all social media is facing: finding people who will subscribe and continue to listen to their stories. For this blog, as Ira Glass says at the end of each podcast "back next week with more stories of this American life".