Here's something I love about podcasting: when it's done well - and often that means highly informal (read: real) - it makes you feel as if you're sitting aside the conversationalists. It makes you think, laugh, listen harder, and ... in many cases, act. Case in point, this blog post.
While listening to a podcast yesterday, I soaked in the brilliant minds of Brian Micklethwait and Perry de Havilland. (side note: it was good to hear Perry's voice again, which brought me back to the all-too-brief time I spent, gratefully, at the home of Perry and Adriana.)
I chose to quote this specific, and comparatively simplistic*, part of the conversation because of its relevance to a very big point. First, what Perry says, towards the end of the 'cast:
"Sometimes you read something in the newspaper and you think, Bloody hell! I've got to blog this!" It's sometimes so frustrating ... and you think, arghhh! I just want to send a letter to the editor. But, you don't have to anymore. You just do it on your own blog."
To that, Brian comments: "the point about letters to the editor is that most of them never get printed. Because they all have the wrong assumptions in them, which you're not allowed to assume." This ties in directly to meta-context - and directly to my next post.
*Other topics within the podcast include blogging, libertarianism, meta-context, entrepreneurism, social media, objectivism, politics, Samizdata, life influence. Have a listen.