What Should Creators Disclose When Using AI? | Alberto Betella, RSS.com #670

~ Rob Greenlee ~ Leave a comment

New Media Show with Rob Greenlee and Guest Alberto Betella of RSS.comShould every use of AI in a podcast, video, or creator workflow be disclosed?

A better question is whether AI created the actual substance of what the audience came to hear or watch.

On Episode 670 of the New Media Show, Rob Greenlee is joined by Alberto Betella, co-founder of RSS.com and creator of “Should I Disclose AI?“ 

Is a timely conversation about AI transparency, synthetic media, voice cloning, human trust, and the future of creator-led media.

AI is now helping creators edit video, create captions, translate episodes, generate clips, improve workflows, personalize advertising, and accelerate production. But AI can also generate entire shows, clone voices, imitate experts, create deceptive media, and overwhelm platforms with low-effort content.

The challenge is not simply whether AI was used.

The challenge is understanding when AI use changes what the audience is actually receiving.

Alberto shares his practical “Substance Test” framework for AI disclosure. The central idea is simple: if AI created the core performance, information, expertise, or experience that brought the audience to the content, creators should disclose it. But using AI as a supporting production tool does not necessarily mean the entire episode should be labeled as AI-generated.

Rob and Alberto explore the difficult gray areas: AI-translated episodes, cloned voices reading human-written scripts, AI-written scripts read by humans, platform auto-labeling, watermarking, creator consent, programmatic advertising, AI search, and the future value of human-made media.

They also discuss why disclosure should not be a punishment or a stigma. Transparency can give audiences more context, help platforms manage risk, and allow creators to use AI responsibly without pretending that every use of AI is deceptive or low quality.

The bigger question is whether creators can use AI to make better work while still protecting the human trust, judgment, originality, and relationships that make media meaningful.

Guest:
Alberto Betella: Co-Founder, RSS.com; creator of Should I Disclose AI?

Host:
Rob Greenlee, 2017 Podcast Hall of Fame inductee, New Media Show host, and Chairperson of the Podcast Hall of Fame

AI Use Note:
This episode includes an AI-assisted opening visual and the show notes based on the transcript. The conversation, editorial direction, and analysis are human-led.

Rough Chapter Break Topics:

00:00 Should creators disclose their use of AI?
03:00 Introducing Should I Disclose AI?
06:00 Human imperfection, authenticity, and audience trust
10:00 The difference between AI tools and AI-created substance
15:00 AI translation, cloned voices, and disclosure nuance
22:00 Detection, watermarking, and platform AI labels
26:00 YouTube auto-labeling and the economics of AI content
31:00 Will “human-made” become a premium signal?
33:00 AI-assisted post-production and human creative direction
38:00 Video-first, audio-first, and platform-native content
43:00 Voice cloning, consent, and personalized advertising
47:00 Quality, creator reinvention, and the AI reset
51:00 When AI can create useful new forms of media
56:00 Disclosure without stigma or punishment
57:00 AI search, one-answer systems, and human curation
01:01:00 Prompt literacy, digital likeness, and the future of AI

Guest Links: Alberto Betella

RSS.com: https://rss.com/
Should I Disclose AI?: https://shouldidisclose.ai/
Alberto Betella on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/albertobetella
Should I Disclose AI? on GitHub: https://github.com/albertobeta/shouldidisclose.ai

Rob Greenlee and New Media Show Links

Rob Greenlee Website: https://robgreenlee.com/
New Media Show: https://newmediashow.com/
New Media Show Audio on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/new-media-show-audio/id392545649
New Media Show on YouTube: https://youtube.com/@TheNewMediaShow
Rob Greenlee on YouTube: https://youtube.com/@RobGreenlee
Podcast Hall of Fame: https://podcasthall.com/

About the Host/Author:
Rob Greenlee is a 2017 Podcast Hall of Fame inductee and Chair, a global new-media leader who bridges podcasting’s human roots and its AI-driven future. As founder of Trust Factor Lab and host of the New Media Show and Spoken Human, Rob helps creators start, grow, monetize, and future-proof their content. He has held leadership roles at Microsoft, Spreaker, Libsyn, StreamYard, Podbean, and PodcastOne, and serves as Chairperson of the Podcast Hall of Fame.

Personal / AI Disclosure Note:
I used AI tools to help organize and edit this video, episode description, and generate show notes from the episode transcript. The views, clarifications, responsibility, and industry perspective are mine and my guest’s. I have been working in podcasting, digital media, and platform adoption for more than two decades, and this article reflects my own position and editorial direction.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Android | Podcast Index | RSS

Podcast (audio): Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Android | Podcast Index | RSS

Can Human Creators Still Win in an AI-Flooded Media World? | Rob Walch #669

~ Rob Greenlee ~ Leave a comment

New Media Show with Rob Greenlee #669 with Guest Rob Walch, VP, Podcaster Relations at Captivate.comIn episode 669 of the New Media Show, host Rob Greenlee talks with Rob Walch, VP of Podcaster Relations at Captivate and DAX.

Podcast Hall of Famers Rob Walch and Rob Greenlee discuss one of the biggest pressure points facing creators today: Can human creators grow, monetize, and maintain audience trust as platforms fill with AI-generated podcasts, synthetic video, cloned voices, and automated content channels?

I apologize for the rough audio in this episode. The audio was choppy in the virtual recording, and I did the best I could to improve it.

The conversation begins with a bigger question: Where is the line between useful AI tools and low-effort, fully automated content that weakens trust, damages advertising ROI, and makes it harder for original creators to be discovered and rewarded?

AI can help creators research, edit, translate, caption, clip, and distribute their work more efficiently. But the human perspective, real creative judgment, authentic voice, and trusted audience relationship must remain at the center of the content experience.

Rob Walch shares updates on Captivate, DAX, and the evolving podcast monetization landscape before diving into the rise of mass-produced AI content and the growing use of the term “AI slop.”

Rob Greenlee and Rob Walch discuss why not every use of AI belongs in the same category, why transparency and disclosure matter, and how creators can use AI responsibly without losing the human value that makes their work worth following.

They also explore YouTube’s evolving AI-labeling approach, the future of human-generated content, platform responsibility, advertising risks, Apple HLS video, YouTube’s new focus on audio listening, video-versus-audio strategy, and how AI tools may help independent creators manage a rapidly expanding distribution workload.

The larger takeaway is that creators do not need to choose between being human and using AI. The opportunity is to use AI as a creative and operational assistant while keeping human thinking, trust, judgment, relationships, and original perspective at the core of the work.

00:00 Welcome to New Media Show #669
01:30 Introducing Rob Walch and His New Role at Captivate
02:30 Captivate Marketplace and Creator Monetization
05:00 What DAX and Global Bring to Podcast Advertising
08:30 What Does “AI Slop” Actually Mean?
11:00 How Mass AI Content Could Hurt Ad ROI and CPMs
13:30 The Scale of AI-Generated Podcast Uploads
16:00 Why AI Use Is Not One-Size-Fits-All
18:00 Bad Human Content vs. Bad AI Content
20:00 Platform Responsibility, Spam, and Fraud
22:00 YouTube AI Labeling and Creator Disclosure
25:00 AI Watermarks, Trust, and Human-Generated Content
28:00 Will Advertisers Prefer Human-Hosted Shows?
30:00 When Creators Should Disclose AI Use
33:00 AI Tools for Research, Editing, Audio Cleanup, and Workflows
36:00 Human Creativity Still Matters
39:00 Platform Discovery, Algorithms, and Audience Signals
44:00 Audio, Video, and YouTube’s Growing Interest in Listening
49:00 Apple HLS Video and the Podcast Monetization Challenge
54:00 Video Production, Baked-In Ads, and Creator Complexity
57:00 Why New Creators Can Still Start Audio-First
01:00:00 AI-Powered Clips, Repurposing, and Distribution
01:03:00 Monetization Risks and Alternatives Beyond Advertising
01:07:00 Podcast Standards, Video Metrics, and IAB Definitions
01:11:00 The Future of Audio, Video, AI, and Trusted Human Creators
01:19:00 Closing Thoughts and Where to Find Rob Walch

Guest and Host Links

Guest: Rob Walch
VP of Podcaster Relations, Captivate and DAX
Captivate: https://Captivate.fm
Global DAX: https://Global.com
Podcast411: https://Podcast411.com

Host: Rob Greenlee
New Media Show: https://NewMediaShow.com
Rob Greenlee: https://RobGreenlee.com
Trust Factor Lab: https://TrustFactorLab.com
Podcast Hall of Fame: https://PodcastHall.com
Rob Greenlee on LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/robgreenlee
Rob Greenlee Booking: https://calendly.com/robgreenlee

About the Host/Author:
Rob Greenlee is a 2017 Podcast Hall of Fame inductee and Chair, a global new-media leader who bridges podcasting’s human roots and its AI-driven future. As founder of Trust Factor Lab and host of the New Media Show and Spoken Human, Rob helps creators start, grow, monetize, and future-proof their content. He has held leadership roles at Microsoft, Spreaker, Libsyn, StreamYard, Podbean, and PodcastOne, and serves as Chairperson of the Podcast Hall of Fame.

Personal / AI Disclosure Note:
I used AI tools to help organize and edit this episode description and generate show notes from the episode transcript. The views, clarifications, responsibility, and industry perspective are mine and my guest’s. I have been working in podcasting, digital media, and platform adoption for more than two decades, and this article reflects my own position and editorial direction.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Android | Podcast Index | RSS

Podcast (audio): Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Android | Podcast Index | RSS

Is New Media Replacing the Creator Economy? | Ollie Forsyth #668

~ Rob Greenlee ~ Leave a comment

In episode 668 of the New Media Show, host Rob Greenlee talks with Ollie Forsyth, founder of New Economies and New-Media.co, about the fast-changing meaning of “New Media” and why creator-led media is becoming one of the most important shifts in digital publishing, podcasting, video, newsletters, live streaming, and AI-powered content.

The conversation begins with a bigger question: what does “New Media” mean now?

For years, the term New Media has described digital media outside traditional broadcast, print, and cable. But in 2026, the meaning is changing again. New Media is becoming less about a format and more about who the audience trusts, where attention is moving, and how creators are building direct relationships through podcasts, YouTube channels, newsletters, X, Instagram, live shows, private communities, short-form clips, and emerging AI-generated formats.

Ollie shares how New-Media.co started as a mapping project focused on tech newsletters, podcasts, and creator-led media brands, and quickly became a broader signal that a new category is forming. New Media is no longer just a description of online content. It is becoming a business, creator, and distribution category.

Rob and Ollie explore whether podcasting is still its own category or is becoming one lane within a larger New Media ecosystem. Rob brings the long history of podcasting, RSS, video podcasting, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, Spotify, Netflix, and creator platforms into the discussion, asking whether the word “podcast” is still enough to describe what audiences now consume.

A major theme in this episode is the difference between audience size and audience value. Ollie argues that creators do not always need massive audiences if they have focused, valuable, trusted communities. A show with 5,000 highly relevant listeners or viewers can be more valuable than a much larger audience that does not convert or engage.

The discussion also moves into traditional media and why legacy media companies may struggle to adapt to this new creator-led environment. Ollie says the difference is not just production quality. It is the vibe, the trust, the format, and the feeling that audiences are getting access to something more direct and less institutional.

Rob and Ollie also talk about how X, Instagram, YouTube, newsletters, and short-form clips are becoming the new media distribution stack. YouTube remains central for video and long-form discovery, while X and Instagram are becoming powerful platforms for attention and conversation for creators and media brands.

The final part of the episode turns to AI-generated content, synthetic media, AI micro-dramas, AI-generated podcasts, disclosure, and audience trust. Rob raises the tension around the term “AI slop” and whether the podcast industry is reacting differently to bad AI content than it has historically reacted to bad human-created content.

Ollie argues that AI can help create new forms of content, but it cannot replace the human element, charisma, taste, and trust that make a real show work.

This episode lands on a core New Media Show idea: podcasting helped build the foundation of today’s creator-led media world, but the next era is broader, more video-driven, more AI-assisted, more platform-diverse, and more dependent on human trust than ever before.

Key Topics:

  • What “New Media” means in 2026
  • Why creator-led media is gaining cultural and business influence
    New Media vs. the creator economy
  • How New-Media.co maps creators, newsletters, podcasts, and media brands
  • Why podcasting may now be one lane inside a broader media ecosystem
    Audience size vs. audience value
  • Why niche audiences can be more powerful than mass reach
  • How creators are building multi-platform distribution systems
  • YouTube, X, Instagram, Substack, newsletters, and short-form video
    The role of clips in modern media growth
  • Why traditional media struggles to capture the creator-led “vibe”
  • How legacy media companies could partner with creators
  • Why “podcast” may be an audience term more than a creator identity
    Netflix, YouTube, Apple Podcasts, and the shifting meaning of shows
  • AI-generated podcasts, AI micro-dramas, and synthetic content
  • Disclosure and transparency around AI-created media
  • Why human taste, trust, charisma, and curation still matter
  • The future of podcasting inside the larger New Media category

Chapter Markers:

00:00 Welcome to New Media Show #668
00:30 Why New Media Is Entering a New Era
01:30 Introducing Ollie Forsyth
03:00 What New Media Means Now
04:00 How New-Media.co Started
05:30 Why the New Media Category Is Gaining Attention
06:30 Mapping the New Media Landscape
08:00 How Creators Get Discovered
10:00 Creator Economy vs. New Media
11:30 Why OpenAI and TBPN Became a Signal
13:30 Audience Value vs. Audience Size
16:30 Timely vs. Timeless Content
18:00 Why Distribution Channels Matter
20:00 Are Podcasters Becoming Creators?
21:30 AI Micro-Dramas and New Entertainment Formats
23:00 Short-Form Content and Creator ROI
25:00 Building Multiple Distribution Channels
27:00 Is Podcasting Still the Right Term?
29:00 Apple Podcasts, HLS Video, and YouTube’s Influence
31:30 New Media as a Broader Category
32:30 Why AI Companies Want New Media Shows
33:30 Why Legacy Media Struggles to Adapt
35:00 The Vibe Difference Between Traditional Media and Creator Media
37:00 X, Instagram, and the New Distribution Stack
40:30 YouTube, Video, and Future-Proofing Media Brands
43:00 Planning Content Like a Media Company
45:00 Is Podcasting One Lane on a Bigger Freeway?
48:00 Why Creators Need More Than One Channel
50:00 Does the Audience Care What We Call It?
52:00 Is It Just a Show Now?
53:30 Netflix, YouTube, and Audience Expectations
55:00 Is New Media Here to Stay?
56:30 Taste, Attention, and Human Connection
58:30 AI-Generated Content and Podcasting’s Reaction
01:00:30 AI Disclosure and Transparency
01:02:00 AI Micro-Dramas and Synthetic Media
01:03:30 Can AI Replace the Human Element?
01:05:00 Bad AI Content vs. Bad Human Content
01:07:00 Why YouTube Raises the Production Bar
01:09:00 Why Human Curation Still Matters
01:11:00 Where New Media Goes Next
01:13:00 Closing Thoughts

Guest and Host Links

Guest: Ollie Forsyth
Founder, New Economies and New-Media.co
New Media: new-media.co
New Economies: neweconomies.co

Host: Rob Greenlee
New Media Show: NewMediaShow.com
Rob Greenlee: RobGreenlee.com
Podcast Hall of Fame: PodcastHall.com
Rob Greenlee on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/robgreenlee
Rob Greenlee Booking: calendly.com/robgreenlee

About the Host/Author:
Rob Greenlee is a 2017 Podcast Hall of Fame inductee and Chair, a global new-media leader who bridges podcasting’s human roots and its AI-driven future. As founder of Trust Factor Lab and host of the New Media Show and Spoken Human, Rob helps creators start, grow, monetize, and future-proof their content. He has held leadership roles at Microsoft, Spreaker, Libsyn, StreamYard, Podbean, and PodcastOne, and serves as Chairperson of the Podcast Hall of Fame.

Personal / AI Disclosure Note:
I used AI tools to help organize and edit this episode description and generate show notes from the episode transcript. The views, clarifications, responsibility, and industry perspective are mine and my guest’s. I have been working in podcasting, digital media, and platform adoption for more than two decades, and this article reflects my own position and editorial direction.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Android | Podcast Index | RSS

Podcast (audio): Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Android | Podcast Index | RSS

Are Podcast Networks becoming Creator Networks? | Greg Wasserman #666

~ Rob Greenlee ~ Leave a comment

New Media Show with Rob Greenlee and guest Greg WassermanIn episode 666 of the New Media Show, hosted by 2017 Podcast Hall of Famer Rob Greenlee, Rob talks with Greg Wasserman, Head of Relationships at RSS.com and host of Podcast Network Insights, for a deep conversation about one of the biggest questions facing podcasting, video, creator media, and digital networks right now:

Podcast networks were originally built for an audio-first industry, but audiences have already moved the definition of a podcast beyond audio. Today, a podcast can be a YouTube show, a Spotify video, an Apple video podcast, a livestream, a short clip, a newsletter, a community, or part of a larger creator-led media brand.

Greg brings a unique perspective from his work at RSS.com and from interviewing the leaders behind podcast networks, collectives, production companies, and niche media groups on Podcast Network Insights. He explains that podcast networks are no longer one simple model. Some are media-sales businesses. Some are community-driven groups. Some operate more like production companies, collectives, or full creator networks.

Rob and Greg explore how the network model is shifting as video, live streaming, AI, Apple Podcasts, HLS video, YouTube, Netflix, Spotify, FAST channels, private communities, and creator monetization reshape what podcasting can become.

The conversation also asks whether independent podcasters should join networks, what creators need to understand before making that decision, and why the future may depend less on downloads alone and more on trust, audience relationships, collaboration, niche value, and direct monetization.

00:00 Welcome to New Media Show #666

00:32 Are podcast networks becoming creator networks?

01:00 How audiences have already redefined podcasting

02:00 Introducing Greg Wasserman from RSS.com

03:00 Why Greg created Podcast Network Insights

04:00 How different podcast networks define community

05:00 Monetization, growth, and the changing role of networks

06:00 Internal network community vs audience community

07:00 Private communities, subscriptions, and audience relationships

08:00 Nova Podcast Network and media-company network models

09:00 Cross-promotion and collaboration inside networks

10:00 Are creators returning to collaboration?

11:00 Podcast networks as media companies

13:00 Owned-and-operated shows vs independent rev-share shows

15:00 Why ad revenue is not the only network business model

16:00 Marketing Podcast Network and niche value

17:00 Jay Shetty, Netflix, and platform exclusivity

18:00 Is Netflix becoming a podcast network?

19:00 Collectives, media companies, and different network definitions

20:00 What is a podcast network today?

21:00 Production companies and network partnerships

23:00 How creators should decide whether to join a network

24:00 Understanding your “why” before joining a network

25:00 iHeart, ad inventory, and the volume-based network model

26:00 Why sponsor status can distract from real monetization

27:00 Does network branding still matter?

28:00 Pineapple Street, GZM, Disney, and network identity

30:00 MCNs, YouTube networks, and the return of multi-channel networks

31:00 Silicon Valley, new media networks, and digital-native media

34:00 Traditional media adopts podcasting, video, and companion content

35:00 Apple Podcasts HLS video as a future distribution channel

36:00 Why video attracts higher media dollars

37:00 Know, like, and trust as a creator value

38:00 Will Apple Podcasts HLS video matter?

39:00 Free platforms, hidden costs, and creator control

41:00 Future ad dashboards across Spotify, Apple, YouTube, and Twitch

42:00 Platform exclusivity, Jay Shetty, Joe Rogan, and audience loss

44:00 Creator hustle and why networks cannot do all the work

46:00 Subscription fatigue and fragmented media access

47:00 More than 20 ways creators can make money

48:00 Lean creator teams, production help, and content scale

49:00 How podcast networks are using AI

50:00 AI-generated voices, sleep content, and audience behavior

52:00 AI for ads, scripts, show notes, social, and workflows

53:00 AI podcast networks and automated show creation

54:00 Agentic workflows and creator production systems

56:00 AI-generated content, humanity, and audience trust

57:00 Algorithms, AI interfaces, and future discovery

58:00 Platform algorithm changes and creator risk

59:00 Human connection, live events, and AI video podcasts

01:00:00 Why human storytelling still matters

01:01:00 Could creators build AI clones of themselves?

01:02:00 Avatars, HeyGen, Gemini, and disclosure

01:03:00 Human-hosted content labels and AI transparency

01:04:00 Video-first creators and separate audio/video feeds

01:05:00 Why The New Media Show still uses separate audio and video feeds

01:06:00 Audio-first creators, social media, and growth challenges

01:07:00 Different networks play different games

01:08:00 The future of compelling audio experiences

01:09:00 Spatial audio, AI audio, and interactive media

01:10:00 Personalized audience experiences and liquid content

01:11:00 Can audiences be moved from YouTube to Netflix?

01:12:00 Bundling, subscriptions, and platform experiments

01:15:00 Algorithms vs human curation

01:16:00 Netflix, FAST channels, and new distribution models

01:17:00 The technology challenge behind FAST channels

01:23:00 Greg’s Tesla and the future of in-car video podcast listening

01:24:00 RSS.com, Podcasting 2.0, and AI labeling standards

01:25:00 Closing thoughts and where podcasting is heading

Guest and Host Links

Guest: Greg Wasserman

Head of Relationships at RSS.com and host of Podcast Network Insights

Host: Rob Greenlee

About the Host/Author:

Rob Greenlee is a 2017 Podcast Hall of Fame inductee and Chair, a global new-media leader who bridges podcasting’s human roots and its AI-driven future. As founder of Trust Factor Lab and host of the “New Media Show” and “Spoken Human”, Rob helps creators start, grow, monetize, and future-proof their content. He’s held leadership roles at Microsoft, Spreaker, Libsyn, StreamYard, and PodcastOne, and serves as Chairperson of the Podcast Hall of Fame. Learn more at RobGreenlee.com and join the Trust Factor Lab Creator/Podcast Services.

Personal/AI Disclosure Note: I used AI tools to help organize and edit this episode and generate show notes. I have made hand edits; the views, clarifications, responsibility, and industry perspective are mine and my guest’s. I have been working in podcasting and platform adoption for more than two decades, and this article reflects my own position.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Android | Podcast Index | RSS

Podcast (audio): Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Android | Podcast Index | RSS

What Is New Media Now vs Podcasting? | Ashley Christenson / @Ashni #665

~ Rob Greenlee ~ Leave a comment

In episode 665 of the New Media Show, hosted by 2017 Podcast Hall of Famer Rob Greenlee, Rob talks with Ashley Christenson, also known as Ashni, for a deep conversation about one of the most important questions facing podcasting, streaming, creator media, startups, and traditional media right now:

What does “New Media” actually mean today?

The term “New Media” has been around since the late 1990s, but its meaning is shifting again. What once described digital media outside traditional broadcast and print is now being used by creators, VCs, startups, streaming strategists, AI companies, and professional communities to refer to something more specific: creator-led media that builds trust, influence, industry position, and direct audience relationships.

Ashley brings a unique perspective from 13 years in online media, Twitch streaming, YouTube education, startup marketing, community building, and creator strategy. She explains that she sees the creator economy as building an audience as the asset, whereas the emerging version of New Media is more about building status and position within an industry conversation. In her view, the key difference is not simply between consumer and professional audiences, but about what the media operation is designed to build and protect.

Rob brings the longer history of podcasting and digital media into the discussion, asking whether podcasting was one of the first major expressions of New Media and whether it now sits within a much larger creator-led ecosystem. The conversation explores how podcasting, YouTube, streaming video, newsletters, live shows, X, AI-generated content, and Apple Podcasts’ move toward HLS video streaming are all blurring the old lines between podcasting, creator media, and professional media.

A major theme in this episode is whether podcasting is still its own category or has become a powerful format within the broader New Media industry. Rob argues that the word “podcast” is increasingly defined by audiences and platforms, while creators may need to think more broadly as show builders, media operators, and participants in the creator economy.

Ashley and Rob also explore how X is becoming a real-time professional media layer, why founders, investors, executives, and AI builders are returning to the platform, and why companies are experimenting with live streaming, clipping, launch videos, short-form content, and creator-style formats to reach professional audiences.

The episode also moves into AI-generated media, human-hosted content, AI clones, disclosure, and trust. Rob argues that human-created and AI-created content may both need clear labeling, while Ashley points out that long-form podcasts may remain more defensible because listeners often build real relationships with hosts over time.

This conversation lands on a bigger media reality: New Media is no longer just a technology term. It is becoming a business category, a creator category, a trust category, and a professional influence category. Podcasting helped build the foundation, but the next version of New Media is broader, more video-driven, more AI-assisted, more platform-diverse, and more dependent on trust than ever before.

Key Topics:

  • What “New Media” means in 2026
  • Creator economy vs. New Media
  • Audience as an asset vs. status as an asset
  • Why podcasting helped define early New Media
  • Whether podcasters should now think more like creators and show builders
  • Apple Podcasts HLS video and the return of video podcasting
  • YouTube, Spotify, X, and the platform shift around shows
  • Why VCs and startups are using the term New Media
  • X is a professional media and live content platform
  • Traditional media is trying to become more internet-native
  • AI-generated podcasts, AI clones, and synthetic media
  • Human-hosted content, disclosure, and audience trust
  • Why long-form podcasts may remain defensible in the AI era

Chapter Markers:

00:00 Cold Open and Welcome
00:32 What Does New Media Mean
02:08 Podcasting Meets Multi Format
03:14 Meet Rob Greenlee
04:01 Introducing Ashley Christensen
04:53 Ashley’s Creator Economy Journey
08:26 AI Definitions of New Media
12:35 Creator Economy vs New Media
16:29 The Kill Switch Test
21:38 Is VC Rebranding New Media
24:10 Niche Status Media Examples
31:55 Traditional Media Goes Internet Native
34:59 Podcasting Identity and Convergence
41:35 Creator as a Catch-All Term
43:56 Naming New Media
46:11 Podcast Term Debate
51:02 X Shapes Media
55:35 X Video Creator Push
01:00:51 Twitter Podcast Roots
01:04:38 AI Flooding Podcasts
01:07:48 Human Trust Labels
01:11:34 Clones and Disclosure
01:17:49 Trust Factor Wrap
01:18:19 Closing and Where to Follow

Guest and Host Links

Guest: Ashley Christenson / Ashni

Streaming strategist, creator economy, and new media operator

Host: Rob Greenlee

About the Host/Author:
Rob Greenlee is a 2017 Podcast Hall of Fame inductee and Chair, a global new-media leader who bridges podcasting’s human roots and its AI-driven future. As founder of Trust Factor Lab and host of the “New Media Show” and “Spoken Human”, Rob helps creators start, grow, monetize, and future-proof their content. He’s held leadership roles at Microsoft, Spreaker, Libsyn, StreamYard, and PodcastOne, and serves as Chairperson of the Podcast Hall of Fame. Learn more at RobGreenlee.com and join the Trust Factor Lab Creator/Podcast Services.

Personal/AI Disclosure Note: I used AI tools to help organize and edit this episode and generate show notes. I have many hand edits; the views, clarifications, responsibility, and industry perspective are mine and my guests’. I have been working in podcasting and platform adoption for more than two decades, and this article reflects my own position. The original word choice was mine, and so is the clarification.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Android | Podcast Index | RSS

Podcast (audio): Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Android | Podcast Index | RSS

How Creators Are Using AI Agents to Work Smarter | Mike Russell #664

~ Rob Greenlee ~ Leave a comment

New Media Show with Rob Greenlee #664AI use with creators is moving beyond simple tools for transcripts, show notes, image generation, and editing.

In this episode 664 of the New Media Show, host Rob Greenlee, 2017 Podcast Hall of Famer, talks with Mike Russell, founder of CreatorMagic.ai and longtime audio producer behind Music Radio Creative, about how new media creators, podcasters, and video producers can begin building their own “AI creator employee.”

Mike explains how AI agents are becoming active collaborators capable of controlling studio lighting, camera settings, thumbnails, content workflows, research, WordPress optimization, and production tasks.

The conversation explores the shift from podcasting as an audio-first medium to a broader video-first creator economy, where YouTube, Apple Podcasts HLS video, AI workflows, and agentic automation are reshaping how content is made, distributed, measured, and monetized.

Rob and Mike also dig into the tension between human-created and AI-assisted media, why “taste” still matters, how creators can avoid generic AI slop, and why the next competitive advantage may come from combining human judgment with powerful AI systems.

What happens when AI stops being just a tool and starts acting like a real creative team member?

Rob Greenlee and Mike Russell explore how AI agents, video-first media, and creator workflows are changing podcasting, YouTube, and the future of new media.

Topic Chapters:

00:00, Welcome to New Media Show #664 with Mike Russell
01:00, Why AI is becoming more than a creator tool
02:00, Building your own “AI creator employee.”
03:00, Using AI agents to control studio lighting, cameras, and production settings
05:00, The growing complexity of being a modern creator
07:00, Why video quality is becoming a bigger creator advantage
08:00, YouTube as the new TV and the move toward 4K content
09:00, Podcasting, YouTube, and the digital replacement for broadcast
11:00, Mike Russell’s shift from audio production to video and AI
12:00, Early YouTube lessons and why creators need to be on camera
14:00, Why video matters now for creators
15:00, Audio versus video consumption and the risk of treating audio listeners as secondary
18:00, Apple Podcasts HLS video, deeper metrics, and YouTube analytics envy
20:00, How streaming video could help podcasting catch up on measurement
22:00, Creator Magic, community growth, and helping creators adopt AI
23:00, Mike’s AI-focused YouTube channel and 200,000 subscriber milestone
25:00, From Adobe Audition expert to AI creator educator
26:00, Why human taste still matters in an AI content world
28:00, Using AI as a creative director, not a replacement
30:00, AI agent experiments, crypto wallets, OpenClaw, and automation
32:00, AI tools versus AI agents
33:00, How agents connect tools across transcripts, thumbnails, analytics, and publishing
35:00, Moving from Zapier-style workflows to agentic AI systems
37:00, OpenClaw, Hermes, and self-healing AI workflows
38:00, Keeping the human layer in AI-generated content
39:00, Training AI agents on your own creative style and back catalog
40:00, Studying successful creators without copying them
42:00, Orchestrating AI tools to create output that feels personal
43:00, How AI models are improving creator workflows
45:00, Prompting for better thumbnail style, text, and simplicity
47:00, The tension between human-created and AI-created content
48:00, AI in communication, negotiation, and personal reflection
50:00, Embodied AI, Tesla, robots, and real-world AI systems
51:00, AI moving into cameras, microphones, appliances, and creator devices
53:00, Polished production versus raw human authenticity
54:00, Where shorts, live streaming, and long-form video each fit
55:00, Human clones, AI-generated versions, and trust labeling
57:00, Will AI-generated content become as good as or better than human content?
58:00, First steps for creators moving toward agentic AI
59:00, Claude, Codex, Gemini, and easier entry points for non-technical creators
01:01:00, How Claude Code can connect with WordPress and audit content
01:03:00, CreatorMagic.ai community and YouTube resources
01:04:00, Why AI agents are becoming practical for everyday creators
01:24:00, AI search optimization, answer engines, and formatting content for discovery
01:25:00, Why creators should direct AI instead of rejecting it
01:26:00, The “AI slop” debate and why humans also create low-quality content
01:28:00, Where to find Mike Russell and Creator Magic
01:29:00, Rob’s closing thoughts on the expanded New Media Show mission

Host: Rob Greenlee

Guest: Mike Russell, Founder of Creator Magic AI

About the Host/Author:
Rob Greenlee is a 2017 Podcast Hall of Fame inductee and Chair, a global new-media leader who bridges podcasting’s human roots and its AI-driven future. As founder of Trust Factor Lab and host of the “New Media Show” and “Spoken Human”, Rob helps creators start, grow, monetize, and future-proof their content. He’s held leadership roles at Microsoft, Spreaker, Libsyn, StreamYard, and PodcastOne, and serves as Chairperson of the Podcast Hall of Fame. Learn more at RobGreenlee.com and join the Trust Factor Lab Creator/Podcast Services.

Personal/AI Disclosure Note: I used AI tools to help organize and edit this episode and generate show notes. I have many hand edits; the views, clarifications, responsibility, and industry perspective are mine and my guests’. I have been working in podcasting and platform adoption for more than two decades, and this article reflects my own position. The original word choice was mine, and so is the clarification.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Android | Podcast Index | RSS

Podcast (audio): Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Android | Podcast Index | RSS

When AI Content Stops Looking and Sounding Artificial | Jeanine Wright + Robert Scoble #663

~ Rob Greenlee ~ Leave a comment

New Media Show - #663 In episode 663 of the New Media Show, hosted by 2017 Podcast Hall of Famer Rob Greenlee, Rob talks with Jeanine Wright, CEO of Inception Point AI, and Robert Scoble, known as Scobleizer, Founder of AlignedNews.ai for a deep conversation about one of the biggest and most uncomfortable questions facing podcasting, video, social media, and the creator economy: what happens when AI-generated content stops sounding and looking artificial? 

I apologize for the lower audio quality of this episode, which was affected by recording source errors, and I used the best audio enhancement tools to improve it.

AI-generated media is no longer just an experiment. It is becoming shows, hosts, voices, personalities, clips, channels, avatars, and soon, live interactive media experiences.

Podcasting has always been built around voice, trust, authenticity, and human connection. But that foundation is now being challenged by AI-generated voices, cloned likenesses, synthetic video, autonomous podcasters, and AI systems that can research, write, produce, publish, and personalize content at a scale human creators cannot match.

The conversation explores whether the podcasting/new media industry is reacting too broadly by labeling AI-generated media as “AI slop” while missing the bigger shift beneath the surface.

Some AI content is low quality, deceptive, or spammy. Some AI content is becoming polished, useful, creative, and scalable. Some human-created content is also low quality, misleading, or poorly produced.

The real issue may not be whether content is human-made or AI-made.

The better question may be whether it is transparent, authentically-human, accurate, consent-based, valuable, and trustworthy.

Jeanine joins Rob to discuss what Inception Point AI is building with AI-generated personalities, autonomous creators, synthetic audio, video characters, quality control systems, and AI-native media workflows. She explains why the future may include AI podcasters, AI influencers, AI brand personalities, and AI-generated shows that serve audiences in ways traditional human production cannot easily support.

Robert brings a broader technology lens to the conversation, connecting AI-generated media to agents, real-time news systems, spatial computing, glasses, robots, synthetic people, and the next phase of human-computer interaction. He also discusses his own work using AI systems to read large volumes of AI industry activity and turn that into new forms of media intelligence.

The conversation asks whether “AI slop” is a useful label or is becoming a way to dismiss an entire category before quality, ethics, and trust systems have had time to mature.

Rob, Jeanine, and Robert also dig into the complicated issue of AI disclosure.

  • Should every AI voice be labeled?
  • Should AI-written scripts be disclosed?
  • What about human voices reading AI-written material?
  • What about cloned voices using human-written scripts?
  • And if most media becomes materially assisted by AI, will audiences still care in the same way?

The episode also explores the darker side of synthetic media, including unauthorized voice cloning, fake likenesses, impersonation, fraud, deceptive content, misinformation, platform abuse, and AI bias. The discussion makes a clear distinction between ethical AI-generated media and synthetic media designed to mislead audiences.

This is not a simple pro-AI or anti-AI conversation. It is a discussion about the future of media trust.

The bigger question is whether podcasting and new media should reject AI-generated content outright or help build better standards around disclosure, quality, consent, ownership, monetization, brand safety, platform rules, and audience transparency.

The future may not be human versus AI.

It may be human plus AI, human extended by AI, AI personalities supervised by humans, and audiences deciding what they trust based on usefulness, quality, transparency, and connection.

Key Topics Covered

  • AI-generated podcasts, video, and synthetic media
  • Why the phrase “AI slop” may be too broad
  • How AI-generated voices and video hosts are becoming more realistic
  • The difference between low-quality AI content and responsible AI media
  • Why podcasting is emotionally tied to human voice and trust
  • How AI personalities and autonomous podcasters are being created
  • What Inception Point AI is building with synthetic creators
  • Robert Scoble’s view of AI agents, X, and real-time AI media systems
  • Whether audiences care more about quality than human authorship
  • Why AI-generated content may outperform average human-created content
  • AI disclosure, labeling, and transparency challenges
  • Human voice, cloned voice, AI-written scripts, and hybrid production
  • Fraud, fake voices, synthetic likenesses, and deceptive media
  • AI bias, culture, representation, and training data concerns
  • Platform rules across YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, X, and social platforms
  • The rise of live AI-human-like media experiences
  • Human creators using AI clones and brand extensions
  • Why the future of media may be human plus AI, not human versus AI

Guest: Jeanine Wright, CEO of Inception Point AI 

Guest: Robert Scoble, Scobleizer

Host: Rob Greenlee

About the Author
Rob Greenlee is a 2017 Podcast Hall of Fame inductee and Chair, a global new media leader who bridges podcasting’s human roots with its AI-driven future. As founder of Trust Factor Lab and host of the “New Media Show” and “Spoken Human”, Rob helps creators start, grow, monetize, and future-proof their content. He’s held leadership roles at Microsoft, Spreaker, Libsyn, StreamYard, and PodcastOne, and serves as Chairperson of the Podcast Hall of Fame. Learn more at RobGreenlee.com and join the Trust Factor Lab Creator/Podcast Services.

Personal note: I used AI tools to help organize and edit this episode and generate show notes. I have many hand edits; the views, clarifications, responsibility, and industry perspective are mine and my guests’. I have been working in podcasting and platform adoption for more than two decades, and this article reflects my own position. The original word choice was mine, and so is the clarification.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Android | Podcast Index | RSS

Podcast (audio): Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Android | Podcast Index | RSS

Podcasting Is Not Broken. It Is Becoming Something Bigger

~ Rob Greenlee ~ Leave a comment

New Media Show with Rob Greenlee - NewMediaShow.comBy Rob Greenlee

I do not believe podcasting is broken.

I also do not believe podcasting is outdated.

But I understand why some people are starting to say that. The medium is changing so fast right now that it can feel like the old definitions no longer fit what audiences and creators are actually doing.

That does not mean podcasting is dying. It means podcasting has reached a major inflection point.

For audiences, podcasts have become one of the main media habits in everyday life. People listen while driving, walking, working, exercising, relaxing, and doing all the things that make audio such a powerful companion medium. That part has not gone away. Audio remains deeply personal, flexible, and trusted.

But for many creators, the word “podcaster” no longer fully describes what they are building.

They are making shows.

They are producing conversations, video episodes, clips, livestreams, newsletters, communities, events, and social content. The podcast is still part of the system, but it is no longer always the whole identity.

That is the big shift.

The traditional definition of a podcast as an audio-first, RSS-distributed show remains important. It is the foundation of the medium. It gave podcasting its openness, portability, and independence. But that definition is increasingly becoming one part of a larger video-first creator strategy.

This is where some tension comes in.

Audio-first creators will continue to have large audiences. Many of the most trusted and successful shows will remain primarily audio-driven. There will always be room for audio-first storytelling, interviews, news, education, comedy, and commentary. Audio is not going away.

But audio-first alone may no longer be the path to the largest possible audience.

Discovery has shifted. Audience behavior has shifted. Monetization has shifted. Younger audiences often discover shows through video clips, YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and other social platforms before they ever subscribe to an RSS feed or follow a show in a traditional podcast app.

For many people, the first experience of a “podcast” is now a video moment.

That does not make it less of a podcast. It means the audience definition has expanded beyond the industry definition.

This is why I keep saying we are moving from “podcasts” into a broader “shows” era.

The show is the core intellectual property. The show is the brand. The show is the relationship with the audience. Audio, video, clips, newsletters, and community are all distribution expressions of that show.

That shift has real consequences for the entire industry.

Hosting companies have to think beyond audio file delivery. Apps have to think beyond audio playback. Ad platforms have to think beyond downloads. Measurement companies have to think beyond separate audio and video reports. Creators have to think beyond a single format and a single feed.

This is especially true as HLS video streaming begins to scale inside podcasting.

The Apple Podcasts shift toward HLS video streaming is a major signal. Video podcasting is no longer just about uploading a large MP4 file or posting a version on YouTube. It is moving toward modern streaming infrastructure, adaptive playback, dynamic ad possibilities, and more seamless switching between listening and viewing.

That means some of what we have historically called audio-only consumption may increasingly be delivered through video-enabled HLS streaming systems. A person may listen to the audio from a video podcast stream. They may start with video, switch to audio, or never look at the screen at all. The content experience becomes more fluid.

That creates a major measurement challenge.

The industry cannot keep treating audio and video metrics as if they live in separate worlds. Creators need to know the show’s total reach and value, not just the performance of a single format in a single app.

Downloads, streams, plays, views, watch time, listen time, completion, retention, subscribers, followers, and engagement all need to be consolidated into a single framework.

Right now, too much of the industry is still measuring yesterday’s format while the audience is already consuming tomorrow’s show.

This is not just a technical issue. It is a business issue.

If a creator has 50,000 audio downloads, 100,000 YouTube views, 25,000 Spotify video plays, 15,000 Apple video streams, and millions of short-form impressions, what is the actual size and value of that show?

The old answer was to separate all of that into different buckets.

The new answer has to be more unified.

Brands and sponsors want to understand total audience impact. Creators want to understand where trust, attention, and revenue are being created. Platforms want to prove value. Hosting companies want to stay relevant. Measurement providers want to remain credible.

That requires merged and consolidated metrics.

Podcasting has always struggled with measurement consistency, even in the audio-only era. Now video makes that challenge more complicated, but also more urgent.

The industry needs a better way to measure shows across formats, not just files across feeds.

This does not mean we abandon RSS. It does not mean we abandon audio. It does not mean every creator has to become a YouTuber or video personality.

It means podcasting has to evolve its infrastructure, language, and business model to align with what audiences are already doing.

The audience does not care whether the industry calls something a podcast, a video podcast, a show, a stream, or creator media.

They ONLY care whether it is useful, entertaining, trustworthy, and available where they already spend time.

That is the part we should pay attention to.

Podcasting is expanding.

It is expanding into video. It is expanding into streaming. It is expanding into social/YouTube discovery. It is expanding into creator-led media brands. It is expanding into AI-assisted and generated production and distribution. It is expanding into a world where the show matters more than the format.

The danger is not that podcasting is outdated.

The danger is that the industry keeps defending an old definition while the audience has already moved into a broader one.

The future of podcasting will still include audio-first shows, RSS feeds, open distribution, and traditional podcast apps. Those pieces still matter. But the growth edge of the medium is moving toward video-enabled, multi-format, cross-platform show experiences.

The inflection point.

– The creators who understand this will not stop being podcasters. They will become stronger show builders.

– The companies that understand this will not abandon podcasting. They will build the infrastructure for the next version.

– And the industry that understands this will stop asking whether podcasting is broken and start asking a better question:

– How do we preserve what made podcasting powerful while building the modern show-based media ecosystem it is clearly becoming?

About the Author

Rob Greenlee is a 2017 Podcast Hall of Fame inductee and Chair, a global new media leader who bridges podcasting’s human roots with its AI-driven future. As founder of Trust Factor Lab and host of the “New Media Show” and “Spoken Human”, Rob helps creators start, grow, monetize, and future-proof their content. He’s held leadership roles at Microsoft, Spreaker, Libsyn, StreamYard, and PodcastOne, and serves as Chairperson of the Podcast Hall of Fame. Learn more at RobGreenlee.com and join the Trust Factor Lab Creator/Podcast Services.

Personal note: I used AI tools to help organize this article and hand-edited it; the views, clarifications, responsibility, and industry perspective are mine. I have been working in podcasting and platform adoption for more than two decades, and this article reflects my own position. The original word choice was mine, and so is the clarification.

 

Can Human Critics Improve Podcast Discovery? | Imran Ahmed, Great Pods #662

~ Rob Greenlee ~ Leave a comment

#662-New-Media-Show-300x300-Episode-Imran-GreatPods.coIn episode 662 from May 6th, 2026, of the New Media Show, hosted by 2017 Podcast Hall of Famer Rob Greenlee, he talks with Imran Ahmed, founder of Great Pods, for a deep conversation about one of podcasting’s longest-running controversies: Discovery.

Podcasting has never had a shortage of content. The bigger challenge has always been helping listeners find the right shows and helping quality creators get noticed.

  • Charts often reward scale.
  • Algorithms can miss the human context.
  • Social media attention does not always create trust.
  • But human recommendations, professional reviews, and transparency. editorial signals may still play an important role.

Imran joins Rob to discuss how Great Pods is building a podcast discovery and decision-making platform around critic reviews, ratings, attribution, podcast search, user reviews, badges, and curated discovery.

The conversation explores why reviews differ from basic listener comments, why constructive criticism can help creators, and how professional critics can serve as trusted filters for listeners trying to decide what to hear next.

Rob and Imran also dig into the broader evolution of podcasting, including the role of word-of-mouth discovery, the limits of podcast app charts, the rise of YouTube as a major discovery platform, and the ongoing tension around what defines a podcast in a world of audio, video, RSS feeds, platform exclusives, APIs, Netflix-style talk shows, and AI-generated content.

The episode also connects Great Pods to larger trust and transparency issues in new media. As AI-generated shows, algorithmic recommendations, and platform-controlled discovery continue to grow.

Rob and Imran discuss why human editorial judgment, clear labeling, attribution, and credible review systems may become even more important for listeners, creators, and platforms.

Key Topics Covered

  • Podcast discovery in 2026
  • Why podcast charts and algorithms often fall short
  • The difference between reviews, ratings, and listener comments
  • Why constructive criticism can help creators improve
  • How Great Pods uses professional reviews and attribution
  • Why human critics can become trusted discovery filters
  • The role of word-of-mouth recommendations in podcast growth
  • Why YouTube has become a major podcast discovery platform
  • How video, RSS, APIs, and platform exclusives are changing podcast definitions
  • Why AI-generated content increases the need for labeling and transparency
  • How podcasters can use reviews, badges, backlinks, and SEO to build credibility
  • What creators should do to make their shows more discoverable

Guest and Host Links

Guest: Imran Ahmed, Founder of Great Pods

Host: Rob Greenlee

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Android | Podcast Index | RSS

Podcast (audio): Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Android | Podcast Index | RSS