Washington Post targets youth with AI podcasts

The Washington Post is experimenting with a new AI-powered "Your Personal Podcast" feature, allowing listeners to customise their news audio experience. This innovative offering, developed in partnership with AI voice-generating software company ElevenLabs, aims to broaden the Post's reach and engage new audiences, particularly younger demographics. It signifies a growing trend among publishers to use AI to deliver content in more flexible and personalised formats.

Tailored News on Demand

Available through the Post's mobile app, "Your Personal Podcast" gives users unprecedented control over their news consumption. Listeners can choose from several customisation options:

• Automated Selection: The app can automatically generate a podcast of roughly four top stories, curated based on the user's reading and listening history, as well as preferred topics.
• AI Hosts: Two AI hosts summarise the news, conversing in a more casual tone than a traditional news briefing. Each story segment is under two minutes long, and the content updates throughout the day to reflect the latest news cycle.
• Personalised Choices: Users can actively customise their podcast by selecting specific topics, such as "tech" or "politics," choosing from various AI-generated "personas" to host, and setting the podcast's length, ranging from four to eight minutes.

This approach aligns with the increasing consumer demand for on-demand, user-centric experiences, mirroring the quick consumption habits seen on platforms like TikTok. It also shows how publishers are exploring AI's potential to create new avenues for engagement and loyalty. For instance, similar efforts are being made in other sectors, such as the development of AI Prompts to Create Viral TikTok Shorts for content creators.

Beyond Traditional Podcasting

Bailey Kattleman, The Washington Post's head of product and design, views "Your Personal Podcast" as a "broadening product" designed to supplement, rather than replace, their existing audio journalism portfolio. It represents an experiment in meeting audience habits where they are shifting, using AI to deepen reach and foster loyalty.

Glenn Rubenstein, founder and CEO of Adopter Media, an advertising agency specialising in podcasts, highlighted the uniqueness of the Post's offering: "This seems like [The Post is] really creating an interactive environment for their audience to engage with the content." He noted that while it’s an audio experience, its customisation for an audience of one and its app-exclusive nature set it apart from traditional, RSS-fed podcasts.

The development process, which took about six months, involved refining the podcast's quality through an internal scoring algorithm. This algorithm assessed factual accuracy, the tone of the AI voices, correct attribution, and overall engagement. This meticulous approach underscores the Post's commitment to maintaining journalistic standards even with AI-generated content.

The Future of Interactive News Audio

Looking ahead, Kattleman envisions further evolution for the podcast. This includes more granular topic selections, such as updates on specific sports teams rather than just general "sports" news.

Crucially, the Post plans to integrate a voice interaction feature. Soon, users will be able to pause the podcast and ask questions aloud, with the AI hosts providing further context or clarification. This interactive element, built upon the Post's existing "Ask the Post AI" generative search tool, could revolutionise how listeners engage with news. Imagine being able to ask for more details on a story or clarify a complex topic directly from your podcast; this represents a significant step towards human-AI skill fusion in content consumption. This is reminiscent of the kind of innovation seen in tools like the Pebble Founder Unveils $75 AI Smart Ring for Voice Notes, which also focuses on seamless voice interaction.

Rubenstein believes this interactive capability could also open doors for innovative advertising. He suggests the potential for interactive audio ads where listeners could engage directly with a commercial message. While monetisation isn't the immediate focus, Kattleman acknowledges its long-term potential, prioritising audience growth and engagement first.

This initiative is part of a broader strategy by The Washington Post to integrate AI across its operations, building on previous AI-powered products like conversational voice functionality, AI-generated audio articles, news summaries, and enhanced commenting systems. It reflects a wider industry trend; organisations are increasingly looking to AI to enhance content delivery and user experience, as evidenced by Google unveiling new AI features for Android.

The move by The Washington Post illustrates a significant shift in how news organisations are adapting to AI technologies, focusing on personalised, interactive, and accessible content delivery. Their collaboration with ElevenLabs highlights the growing importance of specialised AI companies in shaping the future of digital media. As AI tools become more sophisticated, we can expect to see further innovations in how news is created, distributed, and consumed globally, with a focus on user experience and engagement as highlighted in reports on media innovation.