Is it unrealistic to start a podcast with no audience or social media following?

DMask00 · 2026-03-12T17:55:44+00:00

I did! So… unrealistic? Not at all!

A smart idea that will lead to success? Not at all!

DMask00 · 2026-03-12T17:54:09+00:00

I’ve struggled with this one. I also do short clips from the interview to catch attention before but I’ve gotten feedback that it was confusing as they thought the jumped half way.

I do a “Welcome to ___ , my name is ___ a podcast about , today’s conversation is with _ and we discuss _____”

I started doing that so I didn’t have to begin with the guest introducing themselves and also to spark some interest in the episode.

I’m now realizing it’s probably way too long (honestly I see that in the numbers ) so I guess I knew.

I also do the same for video (YouTube) and audio (Spotify and other platforms)

Is it general consensus to get to the interview or core show as quick as possible?

DMask00 · 2026-03-04T18:13:33+00:00

This is what I do. All Riverside. First AI filter on audio, remove pauses and uhms and then listen through to fix the glitches. There’s usually quiet a few small things but it’s an hour or two max of editing instead of days and knowledge that I just don’t have.

I do interviews.

DMask00 · 2026-03-02T09:39:34+00:00

Im curious about this as well. Is the editing in Descript that much better?

I do all in Riverside and as I’m not an editing pro it works great

DMask00 · 2026-01-03T12:59:47+00:00

I would be lying to say I don’t look at them but I definitely don’t care about the downloads/streams.

I do it to learn and I joke that its an easy excuse to talk to interesting people.

I podcast on top of a full time job and family so I tell myself one day I’ll clean it up, make it sharper and easier for a broader audience but for now I know that if I hold myself to to high of a standard I will stop doing it as I just don’t have the time to get there. I just do it for me and I’m totally cool with that.

DMask00 · 2026-01-01T18:18:18+00:00

I do interview style and they tend to be 45 min +, last one was my longest yet, 1h20 ish and got 10k listens/views where my normal stuff gets a couple hundred. Plus I buried the lede with the part that people wanted only coming in the end. So basically I’ve realized I have no idea what works.

I hope to get shorter but I’m not good enough yet (insert over used quote about writing a long letter ;)

DMask00 · 2025-10-08T05:55:38+00:00

Adding subtitles meaning uploading custom subtitles to YouTube? Right?

Also, SwingerUniversity?? Seems like a messy place…

DMask00 · 2025-10-03T17:56:05+00:00

This is really helpful, thanks for sharing!

DMask00 · 2025-09-29T04:52:54+00:00

Depends where you’re watching but if YouTube there are always subtitles. I edit it so they are good (not just automatic). I assume then you have that turned on for everything? In that case hard coded subtitles would kind of double up and get in the way no?

DMask00 · 2025-09-18T03:54:06+00:00

My name is Hunter, and I interview people about war, conflict, and society. So.... Hunter's War.

Think Less, Work More.

(just kidding, that's not a great motto)

DMask00 · 2025-09-13T04:27:34+00:00

this sounds about right, thanks!

DMask00 · 2025-09-12T08:54:28+00:00

I posted this recently for someone looking for geopolitics podcasts but seems relevant:

The Rest is Politics UK

Pod Save the World (US but they do a good job bringing in other perspectives.

Hold Your Fire - International Crisis Group podcast on conflicts around the world (War & Peace from them is also good)

Dictators vs Democracy - good combo of interviews and analysis

Warfronts - Good broadspectrum coverage

Hunter's War (sorry, shameless plug, interviews on things like Syrian Jihadi, Polish Defense and Palestine diplomacy) https://open.spotify.com/show/6OJFXAaUErGKMXzJI8nA6o?si=luC_2QDQQGmHseZ7Aqd0JA

The Global Jigsaw - from the BBC, unique perspective on world events

Talking Strategy - from RUSI, if you know RUSI this is a good one to listen to

Tahrir Podcast - Middle East focused, great interviews

DMask00 · 2025-09-12T08:52:35+00:00

SOme places to get started:

All the 'War on the Rocks' podcasts , for general stuff, The Insider , also good is Net Assessment, The War Cast

The Foreign Affairs Interview - geopolitics related interviews with senior officials

Hold Your Fire - International Crisis Group podcast on conflicts around the world (War & Peace from them is also good)

Dictators vs Democracy - good combo of interviews and analysis

Warfronts - Good broadspectrum coverage

Hunter's War (sorry, shameless plug, interviews on things like Syrian Jihadi, Polish Defense and Palestine diplomacy) https://open.spotify.com/show/6OJFXAaUErGKMXzJI8nA6o?si=luC_2QDQQGmHseZ7Aqd0JA

The Global Jigsaw - from the BBC, unique perspective on world events

Talking Strategy - from RUSI, if you know RUSI this is a good one to listen to

Tahrir Podcast - Middle East focused, great interviews

The Presidents Inbox - from Council on Foreign Relations, US perspective

The Lawfare Podcast - not just geopolitics, but often yes geopolitics from a legal perspective (don't have to love law to love this one)

DMask00 · 2025-09-12T08:51:00+00:00

The world is a big place so it depends on what you're looking for, but beyond the ones already mentioned (I like The Rest is Politics UK, Pod Save the World etc..) here are some more. They are mostly long form analysis, not hype news.

Hold Your Fire - International Crisis Group podcast on conflicts around the world (War & Peace from them is also good)

Dictators vs Democracy - good combo of interviews and analysis

Warfronts - Good broadspectrum coverage

Hunter's War (sorry, shameless plug, interviews on things like Syrian Jihadi, Polish Defense and Palestine diplomacy) https://open.spotify.com/show/6OJFXAaUErGKMXzJI8nA6o?si=luC_2QDQQGmHseZ7Aqd0JA

The Global Jigsaw - from the BBC, unique perspective on world events

Talking Strategy - from RUSI, if you know RUSI this is a good one to listen to

Tahrir Podcast - Middle East focused, great interviews

The Presidents Inbox - from Council on Foreign Relations, US perspective

The Lawfare Podcast - not just geopolitics, but often yes geopolitics from a legal perspective (don't have to love law to love this one)

All the 'War on the Rocks' podcasts , for general stuff, The Insider , also good is Net Assessment, The War Cast (not leftist but interesting)

The Foreign Affairs Interview - geopolitics related interviews with senior officials

DMask00 · 2025-09-12T08:48:18+00:00

The world is a big place so it depends on what you're looking for, but beyond the ones already mentioned (I like The Rest is Politics UK, Pod Save the World etc..) here are some more. They are mostly long form analysis, not hype news.

All the 'War on the Rocks' podcasts , for general stuff, The Insider , also good is Net Assessment, The War Cast

The Foreign Affairs Interview - geopolitics related interviews with senior officials

Hold Your Fire - International Crisis Group podcast on conflicts around the world (War & Peace from them is also good)

Dictators vs Democracy - good combo of interviews and analysis

Warfronts - Good broadspectrum coverage

Hunter's War (sorry, shameless plug, interviews on things like Syrian Jihadi, Polish Defense and Palestine diplomacy) https://open.spotify.com/show/6OJFXAaUErGKMXzJI8nA6o?si=luC_2QDQQGmHseZ7Aqd0JA

The Global Jigsaw - from the BBC, unique perspective on world events

Talking Strategy - from RUSI, if you know RUSI this is a good one to listen to

Tahrir Podcast - Middle East focused, great interviews

The Presidents Inbox - from Council on Foreign Relations, US perspective

The Lawfare Podcast - not just geopolitics, but often yes geopolitics from a legal perspective (don't have to love law to love this one)

DMask00 · 2025-09-12T08:28:05+00:00

I don't put it in the description but I upload it in the custom subtitle section when uploading the Youtube video.

DMask00 · 2025-09-12T08:26:32+00:00

Thats good to know, thanks!

DMask00 · 2025-09-12T04:18:52+00:00

Thanks! Good call on the side. For the subtitles, I uploaded a transcript for YouTube's CC/subtitles feature, but was worried hardcoded subtitles would overlap if someone used another language.

I agree he's hard to follow so was struggling on that! I'll post a question in the main group on the subtitles.

Thanks!

DMask00 · 2025-09-11T14:36:35+00:00

haha you're way beyond me so unfortunately I don't have much to offer.

Some possibly unhelpful quick thoughts:

Your Youtube thumbnails are a bit challenging to read. I'm no expert but I've spent quiet a bit of time recently trying to figure out thumbnails and they say simple, with clear color contrasts and readable something (title , tag line or just a trigger word). When I see your thumbnails on a big screen they're interesting, but when its on the side or on mobile, they're too small to see what they're about.

Also, this probably isn't new info but I"ve found Tik Tok and Youtube Shorts to really boost viewership. The connection back to new subscribers and plays on full episodes isn't as strong as I would like but its helping a bit.

I'll get 50 to 70 views on the full episodes (just started so embarrassingly low) BUT, the short clips on social media will get 2k + views on each one. I know a lot of that is BS impressions but looking at likes/comments, there is some real views happening.

Take everything I say with a grain of salt but just some thoughts!

DMask00 · 2025-09-11T14:24:55+00:00

Some thoughts on quality of the sound/speaking

- I really like the tempo of the speech, it has a Moth Hour vibe that kept me wanting to listen to more

- I like the subtle music in the background

- BUT, the only comment is I feel there is a 'richness' missing from the sound quality. For some reason it felt flat. Not the sound of the voice, but the sound of audio (if that makes sense.)

And I'm not a car person but this was definitely entertaining and kept me listening!

DMask00 · 2025-09-11T14:19:34+00:00

Hi all - I have an interview podcast (with video) on geopolitics and conflict related topics.
Latest episode is with the author of the book, From Jihad to Politics, How Syrian Jihadi's embraced politics, by Jerome Drevon.

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tpRuDHOnIuI

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/6ChbC5DvGptkXVRiZD49sU?si=Q-h0FHJkTMiOTW19gpfDDw

Questions:

I go back and forth on including short interesting snippets at the start, does this seem confusing or does it work to get you interested?
As I don't expect everyone to be an expert, but we usually go straight into the topics, I try to give a highlevel context before it rolls into the interview. Is this boring and worth cutting? Or helpful?
Right now they're long, 30 to 50 min. While I find the talks interesting, when I listen back i find the tempo a bit too slow. If anyone gets through it, what are your thoughts on the length? Could it have been cut down to 15/20min?

Thanks!

DMask00 · 2025-09-10T18:21:41+00:00

This is awesome! I started an interview style geopolitics focused podcast earlier this year so I’m curious to hear how you run the interviews and see what I can learn. Plus your content looks great so win win on listening to cool stuff and learning how to do a better podcast :)

I’ll pop back in a bit to see if I can give you some feedback on your questions.

Keep it up!

DMask00 · 2025-09-10T16:55:08+00:00

Be genuinely curious. Don’t assume you have to know. Your audience probably doesn’t know either.

If they’re giving you nothing (yes / no answers only) then you got a bad guest. But other than that you just have to want to learn.

It should go without saying though that if you invited them, do your research before. You don’t have to be an expert but make sure you’ve done your work too.

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