Well hello there, September, and while I’m at it, farewell to the old archive of musings available here at kenmcguire.ie.
By way of an introduction, my name is Ken McGuire and I’ve been producing content for podcasts and radio for the best part of 20 years. It’s taken me almost as long to start writing about it.
As a product of 80s and 90s Ireland, radio has always been there for me. You woke up to a radio, had it in the car, brought it in your pocket, fell asleep to it and did it all over again. From request shows to concerts, eagerly waiting to find out what was going to be top of the Irish music charts, to hoping the presenter would stop yapping so you could hit record at *just* the right moment for a mixtape, radio holds a lot of fond memories of a youth well spent. Even through my college years, the radio was still there as a daily interaction, before jumping into podcast production in 2006. Ask most people in 2006 what I podcast was and they’d be throwing funny looks at you. Apple Podcasts wasn’t there. Spotify wasn’t there. But we still did it.
In the years since, I’ve presented and produced hundreds of episodes of varying podcast series on music, food, technology, sport and gaming. I’ve been an arts presenter and reporter, night-time radio presenter, and drive-time radio presenter (a fine 4+ years presenting KCLR Drive) and as I write this gentle introduction, you’ll find me as a broadcast engineer for KCLR where all those learnings come into play. Sure, you’ll still hear me on air, and you’ll find me on radio ads around the country, but a lot more of the work these days happens behind the scenes in helping develop and shape the technical runnings of a radio station and all the add-ons that come with it on the digital front.
From radio aficionado to content creator in the audio sense, it’s been a fun and rewarding journey to date and this blog is a culmination of those experiences.
So let’s talk about radio and podcasting
Seen as I spend my days either creating content for people’s ears or working on content and technical solutions for the FM and digital worlds, I may as well write about it too.
For the radio buffs, I’ll be sharing insights into the world of radio technology, shining a light on some of the magic behind the airwaves, and discussing the technicalities, innovations and evolution of radio as I see it. Sure, there are plenty of people out there far more qualified than I in different aspects of the industry so I’m sharing my thoughts, learnings and observations while signposting some of the great reads and research I find along the way.
On the podcasting side, for both budding and seasoned podcasters, in due time you’ll find a treasure trove of tips and tricks. Whether you’re looking to start your own podcast or fine-tune existing content, I’ll have you covered. In the middle, I’ll look at where radio meets podcasting, opening the door on the future of audio content and the exciting possibilities that it holds.
Add to that a sprinkle of industry news, trends and insights, you’ll find plenty to chew on with updates coming 2-3 times a week.
What to expect and how to connect
Over the coming months (it’s been well planned out at this stage), you can expect a mix of deep dives, tutorials, thoughts and suggestions that will help with podcast production and radio programming. I’m aiming this content at both industry professionals and aspiring radio and podcast creators. The comments are always open, so feel free to jump in and have your say on any of the articles you’ll find here and let’s start a conversation.
If you prefer to have content like this delivered to your inbox, you can join my free newsletter here.
For a more personal connection or if you’d like to shoot me a quick question, share your own story, or point me in the direction of content worth sharing, you can find me on LinkedIn here, Twitter / X here, or I’ll be posting updates on my business Facebook page here.
Looking forward to the chats!
