Rodge Walker Bigsby says he was born to read the news.
When he was 3, he says he rode his toy wagon down to a local AM radio station in Chicago and maneuvered his way into the booth where the Capital Hour, a flash news bulletin featuring top headlines from the Windy City, was being broadcast.
After that early start, and then working in the traditional world of news broadcasting, Bigsby conceived Retrotone, a podcast that is modeled after the Movietone newsreels of the 1930s. Retrotone is full of color commentary from Bigsby, who delivers top stories, op-eds, music picks, politics, and Hollywood scuttlebutt in a flash digest style, short-form podcast.
Bigsby will be one of the presenters at PoD Discovery(s), this year’s version of Cincinnati’s podcast festival.
The event is back for a second year with a new name and a new venue, taking place in Rhinegeist Brewery’s event spaces in Over-the-Rhine.
It has expanded to include some well-known podcasters from Cincinnati and around the country.
“It’s different from what most midsized cities have, which is regional showcases of the best of the podcasts of that area,” says organizer Steve Ramos. “We do some of that too, but we really focus on creators.”
Also expected is Linnea Gartin, whose podcast Arranged Encounters records and archives the stories of women in the Midwest experiencing today’s society and culture. Gartin says her goal is to “expose the common woman’s wisdom, story, and perspective on the world.”
PoD Discovery(s) will be an interactive experience, including live podcasts, creative pop-ups, breakouts, and brainstorms.
A new partner, Cincinnati’s Gwynne Sound, a downtown sound studio, will enable podcasts to be streamed live.
PoD Discovery(s) will kick off Tuesday, Oct. 22 at Novel Coworking in the Hooper Building on Fourth Street downtown.
The evening will begin with some mingling, but the focus will be a PechaKucha night, a series of lightning talks designed for creatives to share their work and ideas, which will be held from 5:30 p.m.–8 p.m.
The main event will take place at Rhinegeist on Wednesday, Oct. 23, from 8 a.m.–4 p.m., and includes a series of workshops, panels, presentations, and live performances. Festival passes are $75. Student tickets are $35. Tickets can be ordered here.
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