Ever since I started talking to other journalists about how to launch a podcast, one of the big questions I always get is, “How do I record an interview with somebody who lives far away?”

I used to answer, “Well, get a job at a radio station, like me.” But I realized that was a really jerky thing to say, especially to someone with a legitimate question about podcasting.

Hannah Russell-Goodson, community manager, Blab. (Screenshot by Michael O’Connell)

I’m lucky that I’m able to use the telephone system at my job to record straight to an audio board, but few people have that option. In fact, with more and more people dumping their landlines and owning only cellphones, we do have to find other means sometimes to record good quality audio.

We’ve recorded a few episodes using Sykpe and Google Hangouts. Both have their pluses and minuses, so I’m always looking for other options out there.

A few months back, a fellow podcaster told me he had positive experiences using PodClear, an online tool designed to deliver crystal-clear audio for podcasters.

I was just about ready to contact the people at PodClear to set up an interview when Blab, the live-streaming video platform, acquired the company.

This turned out to be a happy coincidence because I’d met a few people who were doing their own Blab shows and I wanted talk to someone about it for the podcast.

I reached out to Blab and Hannah Russell-Goodson, a community manager there and a former PodClear employee, suggested we record the interview on Blab.

So, on this special podcast, I get to try out Blab for the first time, while learning more about how journalists and just about anyone can use the platform to live-stream their own show; and, once you’ve finished recording that show, how you can get audio and video files to edit and post on your website.

— Michael O’Connell

Below, you’ll find an unedited version of my first attempt at video live-streaming — a conversation with Blab community manager Hannah Russell-Goodson.

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