Elsie Escobar on Leading From the Front for Women and Diversity in Podcasting
Pod Chat - Insights and Trends from Podcast Experts
Elsie Escobar is a highly respected member of the podcasting industry who has been podcasting since 2006. She is the co-host and co-partner of She Podcasts, a podcasting movement whose mission is to empower women to continue to share their voices while creating a safe community of podcasting education and support.
She is also the community manager for podcast hosting company Libsyn, where she has been since 2007. In this episode, Elsie discusses her impressive career in the podcasting industry, including her work with She Podcasts.
Yoga as an Introduction to Podcasting
Elsie shares how her very first podcast was as a teacher of yoga, and how that wasn't as strange as it might sound (teaching yoga via an audio format as opposed to a visual medium). It's through this podcast that her career at Libsyn began.
From Life Changes to A Podcast Career with Libsyn
Not long after this, Elsie was chatting with Rob Walch of Libsyn, and mentioned she was going through some big life changes, and as things would have it, this tied in perfectly with something Rob was looking for with Libsyn. The rest is history.
Leading From the Front
It wasn't long after Elsie started at Libsyn that she wanted to have an official podcast from the team, to help podcasters with their questions about the medium. Despite being the new person, she was driven to create the show, and pitched it to Rob, and from there The Feed was born.
The Multiple Sides of Diversity in Podcasting
Elsie shares where she sees advances have been made in podcasting when it comes to diversity, and where we still struggle, as individuals and the bigger medium, at promoting and lifting more diverse voices up. For Elsie, this really needs to start at the board and decision-makers level.
How Bad Podcasting Advice Led to She Podcasts
As a regular attendee of various podcast shows, Elsie soon realized that a lot of the advice given at these events was pretty generic, and wouldn't help with the goals she had. Along with Jessica Kupferman, she co-founded She Podcasts, where women could find a private, supportive space that shared the type of advice needed to grow, and flourish.
The Power of Being Undeniable as a Woman in Podcasting
The theme for this year's She Podcasts Live event is "undeniable", and this is something that Elsie is very passionate about for all women in podcasting. It goes beyond the goal for the event itself, and looks to make sure every woman can say "I won't be denied".
Key points:
02:23 Podcasting and Yoga: How Elsie Found Her Balance
09:59 How to Balance Work and Life
18:05 The Importance of Diversity in the Podcasting Industry
26:58 The Rise of She Podcasts: How Two Women Created a Safe Space for Women Podcasters
43:20 The Impact of the Role v. Wade Decision on Women's Lives
47:17 The Importance of Supporting BIPOC Podcasters
50:54 Podcast Recommendations for Leaders in the Industry
Connect with Elsie:
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