5by5

A podcast is a series of digital media files which can be either audio or video and are released episodically and often downloaded through web syndication. The podcasts produced by the 5by5 broadcasting network, hosted by Dan Benjamin, come in the form of audio or video depending on the podcast, with new episodes for every podcast being released at least once a week, with a few podcasts being recorded and released daily. The podcasts are available for download on the iTunes store, as well as to listen to or download via the 5by5 website. All of the 17 currently updated podcasts, and the 4 discontinued podcasts done by Dan Benjamin, usually on the topic of technology but in some case branch out to other topics, are excellent because they have great content, are of great quality, and are produced on a regular basis.

First of all, each and every podcast on the 5by5 network is absolutely amazing. One of the reasons that the podcasts from the 5by5 network are so great is that the content of all the shows, as well as each episode within the specific program, is of very high quality. Each show has a different co-host who is an expert in the topic of the show and therefore makes for an interesting and engaging podcast. For example, one of the relatively new podcasts-new podcasts are being created surprisingly frequently-on the 5by5 network called Back to Work is a great example of the quality content present in every 5by5 show. On Back to Work, Dan Benjamin and his host Merlin Mann talk about productivity, communication, barriers, constraints, and tools, among many other topics. Merlin Mann brings his expertise on those topics to the table, Dan Benjamin brings his expertise in podcast production to the table, and together these two gentlemen produce a truly impressive podcast talking about some very interesting subjects. The combination of the two hosts, Dan Benjamin and Merlin Mann, serve to make what would have been an interesting topic alone even more appealing, and one of the great podcasts available on the 5by5 network. Similarly, another podcast recently created called Hypercritical is also a very excellent show. On Hypercritical hosts Dan Benjamin and John Siracusa discuss everything that is wrong with the Apple world and technology related to that topic, as well as all kinds of other sub-topics in great detail and with tremendous insight. No matter what the subject of a particular episode is, whether it be the iPad, graphical user interfaces, or why Google is so successful on the internet whereas a hardware company like Apple is not, John Siracusa and Dan Benjamin do an outstanding job of making a very engaging podcast that has quickly grown to be very popular. Not surprisingly Hypercritical has become popular not only among geeks and nerds, but also a large number of other people who simply wish to hear news with great commentary into exactly what is happening right now. As the show descriptions says so excellently, “Nothing is so perfect that it can’t be complained about.” Back to Work and Hypercritical are just two of the 17 actively produces podcasts available on the 5by5 network, but they are two of the podcasts that most exemplify the high-quality content prevalent in each and every program produced on the network.

Secondly, all podcasts on the 5by5 network are of extremely good audio quality. Dan Benjamin put thousands of dollars into obtaining the best equipment and learning the most efficient methods to record and produce his shows, and that effort and hard work becomes obvious after listening to any of the podcasts on the 5by5 network. One of the many examples of the great quality podcasts on the network can be found in The Daily Edition, which is a podcast produced almost daily by Dan Benjamin and Jen Simmons. The Daily Edition is a talk show that brings a little bit of everything to the table and features some very interesting conversations between the two hosts. Additionally, the podcast is of such high-quality audio that it is comparable to the quality of NPR, which is a popular radio station that has a large staff as well as an audio engineer on hand to manage their sound. Another illustration of the superb quality present in the podcasts of the 5by5 network is apparent when considering The Dev Show. The Dev Show is a weekly podcast by Dan Benjamin and Jason Seifer. On The Dev Show the two hosts discuss the latest news in the software and programming world, followed by a discussion related to one of the topics presented earlier or a totally new topic that one of them wishes to discuss with the other, but regardless of the conversation’s subject, the dialogue, as well as the quality of the podcast as a whole, is outstanding. Even though the quality of The Daily Edition and The Dev Show are at such high standards, absolutely no background noise is audible over the voices speaking, which just leaves crystal-clear audio for the listener to hear. This crystal-clear audio is not only apparent in The Daily Edition and The Dev Show though, but in each and every podcast on the 5by5 network.

Third, one of my favorite aspects of the remarkable podcasts created on the 5by5 network is that every podcast has a new episode each week, and that fans have the option to tune-in live to the recording of the podcasts through the 5by5 website. Rather than release episodes semi-regularly as many of the podcasts I have listened to in the past have, Dan Benjamin does a fantastic job of keeping up a great production pace and releasing a new episode for almost every podcast each week with very, very few exceptions. To obtain proof of this, one must merely look at The Pipeline. The Pipeline is a weekly interview podcast that is now in its 49^th episode. On The Pipeline Dan Benjamin interviews “innovators, geeks, and people who create amazing things” as the 5by5 website puts it, and has been released weekly with very few interruptions since its beginning in February of 2010. Similarly, The Big Web Show is another weekly podcast and is now in its 44^thepisode. The Big Web Show is, as its name suggests, about the web as well as much more such as content strategy, publishing, and art direction. And the great thing about both of these podcasts, beside the great content and superb quality, is that it is possible to listen to each of them live each week as they are recorded. This feature is made possible through the 5by5 website on the “Live” page. Additionally, the “Schedule” page features a Google Calendar with the dates and times for all the shows. This calendar can be imported into a personal Google Calendars and reminders set for specific shows, therefore making it very easy to always be around for the live presentation of any podcast. By releasing podcasts weekly, or as in the case of The Daily Edition almost every day, and enabling fans to listen to the podcasts recorded live, Dan Benjamin has done a fantastic job of making it easy for anyone interested in the podcasts he creates and releases as part of the 5by5 project available for everyone; he has truly set a new precedent that all other serious podcast providers should adopt. On top of that, the frequency at which the podcasts are released makes for very current and up-to-date episodes, which adds even greater appeal to the shows as a whole.

After considering the reasons and examples as to why the podcasts created by Dan Benjamin and released on the 5by5 network are as good as they are, it is no wonder that the 5by5 podcasts have over 1 million listeners, and the website has over 250,000 views a month. The growing popularity of these podcasts, as outlined above, is because they are produced on a regular basis, because they have great content, and due to the fact that each and every episode is of superb quality. With even one of these traits a podcast could become very popular, but by combination of all three aspects and implementing them into each show, Dan Benjamin is able to produce some of the best, if not the best, podcasts available on the internet. Dan Benjamin, I tip my hat to you.

 

 

Shownotes:

The 5by5 homepage: http://5by5.tv/
5by5 Live: http://5by5.tv/live
5by5 Shows: http://5by5.tv/broadcasts
5by5 Schedule: http://5by5.tv/schedule

5by5 on iTunes: http://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/5by5/id391030532

Dan Benjamin on Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/danbenjamin
Dan Benjamin’s blog: http://hivelogic.com/

As a special note, anyone interested in podcasting the right way can check out Dan Benjamin’s blog post “Podcasting Equipment Guide for 2011” which was posted to his blog April 08, 2011.
http://hivelogic.com/articles/podcasting-equipment-software-guide-2011/