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I love the audio.

Yet, extremely motivated/lazy multitaskers (like myself) already use text-to-speech (TTS) AI to have a computer ‘read’ me text while I drive, rock a baby, etc.

Listening to your voice is much better (for many reasons), and your ‘asides’ are an important bonus of your audio recording.

I just want to make sure you are tracking the tech as you decide if recording is worth your time.

[I wonder how many of your other readers use text-to-speech apps, though, too...]

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Your email poll was skewed towards doing podcasts, with only one, drastic option to never do it again. What do you want to achieve? Does a podcast do that better than text alone? Personally, I'd like to hear a short discussion with other people on the subject of the written post; maybe one or two short discussions? With people having different insights? Audio lends itself to that well, I think. And as a text/audio package each subject would be covered in a more fulsome way. Thanks.

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Keith, thank you for the suggestion. My idea of the audio was simply to provide a means to "read" the post in audio form during a commute, a walk, or as a sleep aid. I have no interest in a podcast per se, but that's not what you're suggestion. You're suggestion for discussions around specific posts as a package could, indeed, be interesting. Intriguing. I know I'd learn something from such a conversation.

By the way, on the broad topic of informational activities abroad, see The Cognitive Crucible Podcast (https://information-professionals.org/podcasts/cognitive-crucible/). That is more on the military side, but that is where the bulk of the discussions lie. (I attribute this reality, among other reasons, to the closed nature of our foreign ministry versus ventilating of ideas through schoolhouses and journals at the defense department).

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Thanks, Matt, and good luck with shaping your delivery systems. The cognitive crucible is in my podcast app. I also listen occasionally to One CA (https://www.civilaffairsassoc.org/podcast). It covers a broader set of topics on civil affairs, but information activities are almost always baked in.

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