Building Access, One Episode at a Time
A visit with students at Boston Arts Academy reminded me that accessibility is community
Last week I was invited to join students at Boston Arts Academy for a discussion about Scene in Boston. Taught by local music producer Joshua Jackson, the students demonstrated incredible creativity, professionalism, and a deep understanding of what it means to make work that connects with an audience.
I opened the class with a short elevator pitch for Scene in Boston, then handed out the market research I published here last week. Students worked in pairs or individually for a quick five minutes to make notes on what is already out there. After discussing these reflections, we moved to a conversation— fully led by the students— on how to build a podcast, like Scene in Boston, from the ground up.
Readers, these students knew about business plans. They knew about audiences. They knew about graphic design. And, most impressively, they knew about inclusion. And they made me think about it differently, too. Here are the three big takeaways:
- What are the different needs of fans versus insiders? Using the market research, they concluded that the existing podcasts that target insiders tend to be almost an hour in length, while the shorter shows (about 20 minutes) target fans. This was a really mature observation about audience needs.
- How does ticket price shape who you’re really speaking to? The students hypothesized that the audience is going to be shaped by the ticket prices of the shows you are recommending and reviewing. Recommend $20 shows, and you might pick up a younger audience. Only recommend and review shows that cost upwards of $100, and you’re going to get a lot of “old people.” I’m going to be thinking about this a lot as we build, and making sure we have shows at different price points.
- How do we include people who audio doesn’t work for? They offered something I hadn’t considered—adding a YouTube version isn’t just adding another platform, it’s adding accessibility. Visuals and subtitles make the show more inclusive for anyone who benefits from them.
Their insights—linking storytelling with access and equity—reminded me why collaboration matters. Jackson’s students didn’t just imagine what a podcast could sound like; they thought deeply about who it could reach, and why that reach matters.
It’s a reminder that every choice—format, platform, or show recommendation—can be an act of inclusion.
