All 14 entries tagged Discourse

New Episode: Outreach, Reaching Across the Divide & Engaging the Public

Writing about web page https://spotifyanchor-web.app.link/e/BDEDZbjNcNb

A new episode relating to the research culture special issue is now live.

I am pleased to announce we have a new episode of the Exchanges Discourse podcast, the first in a series of episodes that are coming your way over the next couple of months. This is the first in a mini-series featuring authors who contributed to our special research culture special issue, and I couldn’t be happier to have such a gracious guest as Phil Jemmett from Warwick’s own WMG. Listen to our conversation here:

• https://spotifyanchor-web.app.link/e/BDEDZbjNcNb [35:42]

As always we talk a lot about my guest’s life and work, but especially the article Phil and colleagues contributed to our recent journal issue – entitled: Engaging Academics with Outreach: How the ‘STEM Connections’ model empowers staff. Along the way we also talk about Phil’s publishing experiences, thoughts on being a public academic including matters of opinion on the best way to represent yourself and your research to a class of potentially disengaged school children. As such, our conversation touches on various techniques for engaging the public with topics of academic research and expertise. As a result, we get chatting about how to improve your academic presentational skills and especially the best routes to capturing an audience’s attention.

As always the episode concludes by offering some advice to less seasoned academic authors in publishing approaches and ways in which they can make their papers really sing.

You can read Phil and colleagues article here: https://doi.org/10.31273/eirj.v11i3.1544

As always, my thanks to my guest for their thoughts, and I hope you enjoy the episode.

Next up, as I recorded it last week, is a long and exciting chat with fellow editor and author Jonathan Vickery on the subject of publishing and the knowledge economy. Hopefully with you this time next week!

Gareth Johnson : 26 Sep 2024 15:19 |  Tags: Discourse Engagement Exchanges Outreach Public Publishing |  Comments (0) |  Close comments |  Report a problem

Most Accessed Podcast Episodes of 2023

Writing about web page https://exchanges.warwick.ac.uk/index.php/exchanges/podcast

Looking back on the most popular podcast episodes of 2023 from the Exchanges Discourse reveals a few surprises.

To paraphrase Shatner [1] ‘When it was 2023 it was a very good year. It was a very good year for author interview podcast episodes and soft academic chat’.

In 2023 I produced 13 new episodes of the Exchanges Discourse podcast, representing our fourth (!) production season. I know, I’m as surprised as you are that we’ve been going this long now - but also delighted too. Since we kicked off in the high-pandemic year [2] of 2020 with the intention to create a surrogate for the kinds of conversations we’d been having behind the scenes with authors – but were less able to enjoy so easily during the extended remote working period. Unlike a lot of things which arose during lockdown – banana bread, clapping for the NHS, panicking over the food shopping [3] – the Exchanges Discourse podcast is still alive and well.

Back in 2022 we produced 17 episodes [4] and 6hrs 49 minutes of content over the twelve months. Now you might think that with fewer episodes in 2023, this means there was less content for listeners to enjoy. Slightly less variety of voices, I’ll perhaps give you. However, checking on the episode statistics we clocked in with a grand total of 6hrs and 39 minutes of content produced - most which wasn't me talking! Hence, 2023’s podcast episodes were nothing at which to be sneezed. [5] Now if I were to make one behind the scenes observation, it concerns those conversations which continued followed the end recording. A lot of our guests, once we turned the mic off had a lot more interesting things to say - and while I enjoyed every minute, I wish I'd managed to capture them for our listeners to enjoy. So, my goal for 2024 is to try and let more episodes run longer this way.

Anyway, all this aside – what you want to know in this post are which were the most popular episodes we published this past year. As always, we pick a top five and with four episodes appearing in December I’m was curious myself to see if any of these made it into the list when I ran the stats:

Well there you go - and yes - a three way tie there for 5^th place, with two of those being podcasts we launched in December! How especially gratifying to see them there, meaning a real potential for them to keep climbing up the ranks. I am personally a little delighted to see what occupies our number 1 slot, as it also happened to be the 50^th episode of the podcast – which was a minor milestone all of its own. I think the one surprise for me is that my solo episode on creating critical reflections has proved so popular. I suspect, given we’ve two special issues which are critical reflection focussed, this episode likely had a bit of a boost from authors planning to submit to them. I can’t tell for certain, although I know one or two authors have mentioned listening to it ahead of submission - so there's some evidence to support this assumption.

Anyway, what was your favourite episode in our top 5? Let us know if it was, or even if it wasn’t, in the comments below!

And now on to Season 5 - which I start recording today with an author interview again. Do join me.

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Endnotes

[1] I know it’s by Sinatra originally, but I’ve only ever listened to Kirk’s version. It’s rather good. But no, I shan’t be performing it in karaoke any time soon.

[2] Rather than the pre-vaccination endemic COVID-19 pandemic we’re still experiencing.

[3] UK inflation being what it is, I don’t think this one’s gone away – it’s just evolved into a more fiscal than existential mode.

[4] 15 author interviews, two solo performances by myself

[5] For 2023 the average episode length is 30 minutes 41 seconds, for 2022 it was only 24 minutes 3 seconds – so we talked a lot more this year just passed.

Gareth Johnson : 11 Jan 2024 09:39 |  Tags: 2023 Charts Discourse Episodes Exchanges Listeners Metrics Podcasts |  Comments (0) |  Close comments |  Report a problem

New Episode – The Textures of Research: In Conversation with Berilsu Tarcan

Writing about web page https://open.spotify.com/episode/21ZeAct9Negsa9qzQFTK67?si=P0RZT3hKQHuQHyGyKEx1dg

A new podcast episode tackles issues around publishing design and textile based research practice.

With great delight I can reveal we've released the latest episode in our Exchanges discourse podcast series. In this new episode I talk to past journal author Berilsu Tarcan (Norwegian University of Science and Technology), about the paper she co-authored Repositioning Craft and Design in the Anthropocene: Applying a More-Than-Human approach to textiles as part of our recent special issue. We discuss the challenges of publishing design and artefact related research, as well as exploring Berilsu’s current research focus. We close with considerations and advice for authors looking to submit their papers to Exchanges and other academic journals.

Listen in here: https://open.spotify.com/episode/21ZeAct9Negsa9qzQFTK67?si=P0RZT3hKQHuQHyGyKEx1dg[32:36]

For those of you who are pressed for time and would like to skip to the salient portion of the episode - here's a time index to aid your navigation.

Episode Index

• 00:00: Opening
• 00:52: Introduction
• 05:55: Article Perspectives & Insight
• 14:34: Current Research Activities
• 19:00: Publication Feedback Experiences
• 25:00: Article Publication Advice
• 31:06: Closing Conversations
• 31:50: Outro

Gareth Johnson : 24 May 2023 10:51 |  Tags: Anthropocene Design Discourse Episode Exchanges Podcast Research Textiles |  Comments (0) |  Close comments |  Report a problem

New Episode: In Conversation with Harriet Richmond

Writing about web page https://exchanges.warwick.ac.uk/index.php/exchanges/podcast

Another author graces the Exchanges' podcast with their thoughts on research and publication.

Once more we present another new episode of The Exchanges Discourse podcast, this time featuring another chat with an author from a recent volume of the journal. In a lengthy, and lively, discussion Harriet and myself explore a range of topics from HE marketisation – always a favourite of mine – through being an outsider and locating oneself within a discipline and into the realm of cultural studies and organisational stories. I find myself saying this about all the author interviews, but its true, that once again it was a very enjoyable and informative conversation.

• In Conversation with Harriet Richmond: https://anchor.fm/exchangesias/episodes/A-Conversation-with-Harriet-Richmond-e1qq7i4

(Also available on Spotify)

I’ll be recording the next episode tomorrow, once more featuring an author of a recent paper – and I’m looking forward to a similarly illuminatory chat too. Listen out for it!

Gareth Johnson : 16 Nov 2022 10:46 |  Tags: Author Collage Discourse Episode Exchanges Interview New Podcast |  Comments (0) |  Close comments |  Report a problem

New Podcast Episode: So, What Makes a Good Peer Reviewer?

Writing about web page https://anchor.fm/exchangesias/episodes/So--What-Makes-a-Good-Peer-Reviewer-e1qi7ju

Another week, another new episode of the Exchanges Discourse Podcast goes live.

Following on from the other week's Exchanges AMAseminar in the IAS, I've tried to capture the answer to one of the most interesting questions I was posed in the session. To whit: So, What Makes a Good Peer Reviewer? It's a question I've never explicitly tried answering before, even if implicitly I've long had opinions and thoughts on the subject. Now you can listen in and decide for yourself how these - and probably other - qualities make up an 'ideal' peer reviewer.

So, What Makes a Good Peer Reviewer? https://anchor.fm/exchangesias/episodes/So--What-Makes-a-Good-Peer-Reviewer-e1qi7ju

(Also available on Spotify!)

Next episode, which I recorded yesterday, I’ll be speaking to the first of a number of authors who published in the most recent issue of the journal.

Gareth Johnson : 10 Nov 2022 16:35 |  Tags: Advice Comment Discourse Editorial Episode Exchanges Peer Podcast Reviewing |  Comments (0) |  Close comments |  Report a problem

Podcast: Chatting with https://open.spotify.com/episode/6HHuETdXCalvt1yz0zOMA2?si=Ik5OAv–nTQ–jmy8VDd

Writing about web page https://anchor.fm/exchangesias/episodes/In-Conversation-with-Francesca-Brunetti-e1k9v63

And we’re back with the second of our two recently recorded episodes of the Exchanges Discourse podcast. This time I’m in conversation with Francesca Brunetti, currently based at the ISI Florence, Italy but shortly moving to an exciting new post. Listen to the episode here:

> In Conversation with Francesca Brunetti

This episode we talk to scholar, artist and past-Exchanges author, Francesca Brunetti (ISI Florence, Italy), about her paper Delicious Bodies, Beautiful Food, Powerful Pleasure, which appeared in the most recent issue of the Exchanges journal (V9.2). Along the way we touch on desire and pleasure, food and sex, and cultural perceptions of the southern Italian women. We also talk about some of Francesca’s work in progress, alongside her advice for new authors too.

The Exchanges Discoursepodcast is available on Anchor.fm, Spotifyand most major podcast platforms.

My thanks to Francesca for coming on and talking with us. Obviously, if you’d like to be featured in a future episode, well the best way to do that is to be a featured author in Exchanges. Find out here how to submit your paper to us!

Gareth Johnson : 22 Jun 2022 16:00 |  Tags: Art Discourse Episode Exchanges Italy Podcast Research |  Comments (0) |  Close comments |  Report a problem

Podcast: Talking with Jon Braddy

Writing about web page https://anchor.fm/exchangesias/episodes/In-Conversation-with-Jon-Braddy-e1jstis

Yes, we're back with an all-new episode of the Exchanges Discourse podcast. It's been a bust few months thanks to bank holidays, the launch of the new issue and working on various special issue projects. Which has meant the podcast took a slightly back-seat for a couple of months. But the good news is, we're back and with a couple of author interviews to start us off again. Hopefully, there's a few more interesting episodes to follow - especially once we launch our next special issue of the journal. More on that in the coming month.

In the meantime, please enjoy my conversation with Jon about everything from the weather, through developing your writing with passion and the idea that publishing CAN and should be fun without diminishing the scholarship.

In Conversation with Jon Braddy (S03E06)

We talk with Jon Braddy, Florida Gulf Coast University, about his paper Utilizing the Octothorpe (#): Schizoanalytic cartographies recognized in War Games, which appeared in the most recent issue of the Exchanges journal (V9.2). Along the way, aside from contrasting the trans-Atlantic weather differences, we look at passion how it can serve to evolve your own academic voice within your writing. We also discuss some areas of mutual challenges for authors and editors of scholarly journals, and reflect on the value and process of peer-review.

The Exchanges Discourse podcast is available on Anchor.fm, Spotify and most major podcast platforms.

Our next episode was recorded this morning, so listen out for it next week.

Gareth Johnson : 14 Jun 2022 09:00 |  Tags: Academics Discourse Episode Exchanges New Podcast Writing |  Comments (0) |  Close comments |  Report a problem

Creating a metanarrative conversation within a journal issue

Writing about web page https://exchanges.warwick.ac.uk/index.php/exchanges/

How much does creating a conversation between articles in a journal volume rely on luck, authors or the editors themselves?

This morning I was interviewing one of my associate editors (hi Anna!) who had reached the end of her time with the journal. As I’ve probably mentioned in previous posts, I always like to run exit interviews with my editors to explore what they’ve learned, how they’ve grown and perhaps most importantly what were the challenges they faced. All of which feeds into my plans and support for the journal team going forward. The interviews are also a great point at which I can personally thank the editors for their efforts: literally without them we are nothing as a journal, so it’s always worth saying.

While we talked over various issues in our chat, one point today’s editor made concerned not being able to see the ‘whole’ journal as she was only working on a few papers. Hence, for an associate editor how the journal comes together is seen from a very ‘fragmentary’ perspective. I thought this was an interesting point, worth a few minutes’ reflection of my own. I must confess, how collections of articles become more than an assemblage of text and evolve into a conversation, where pieces almost speak to each other, can be an incredibly illusive element of the editorial process. For our regular issues there have been a few glorious, serendipitous moments where articles can be seen to resonate with each other, occasionally even between issues. I say ‘serendipitous’, as our regular issues comprise articles usually submitted and developed entirely in total isolation from each another. I will acknowledge how on a rare occasion we have pieces submitted which are responding to earlier texts, but although these are worthy contributions, they are the exceptions rather than the rule.

For our special issues though, there’s a much greater chance its articles will exist in some form of cogent metanarrative. The articles are often framed as outputs from an event, most notably as in our first three special issues for example, or may instead emerge from a call for contributions. For the former option this means while articles might have been finalised by authors in private, there’s been some degree of interchange and interaction ahead of their creation with their fellow contributors. All of which will have influenced their thinking and writing to a degree, making the appearance of threads of commonality or counterpoint in the prose more likely. For those responding to an open call though, I’ll acknowledge there’s going to be less immediate interrelationship within the texts.

Certainly, though, as editor-in-chief it’s also part of my role to maximise any resonance between individual articles too. This might be achieved through how they are assembled within the running order of the issue, but also most notably within my editorial overview of the issue’s contents too. It’s often when I’m writing this guide, as I am currently for issue 9(2) that I begin to identify some of the common threads of discussion and debate within the pieces.[1]

The benefits stemming from a well-curated and highlighted collection of articles has been one of the stronger arguments for the continuation of the journal as a form of scholarly publication. Rather than expecting readers to only use an article level accesses to specific texts, co-locating articles within a single journal issue, serves to enhance people’s awareness of other works of interest. Hence, a collection of thought from disparate writers, aggregated within a single volume, can potentially offer something more insightful as a whole than the individual components. Or at least that’s how the common argument goes.

I am perhaps in awe, and slightly jealous, of those journal editors who make this work look effortless though. For some perhaps it is easier due to the volume of texts they receive and publish far exceeds that of Exchanges: with more work to pick and choose from, and a likely greater regularity of publication, collating these pieces to form volumes with a stronger central narrative core becomes a less-complex achievement. It also forms a powerful incentive for readers and contributors alike to turn to their journals knowing the volume will contain multiple points of interest.

Then again, attempting to achieve such a narrative for a disciplinary title – rather than one trading in interdisciplinary contents such as ours – is also likely an easier, if not entirely facile, task too.

That said, coming up in the next issue of Exchanges will be a call for papers on a singular theme. I have high hopes this may well offer the creation of such a coherent discourse. Naturally, whether it succeeds or not I suspect will be largely down the coherency of the call that I write, but more than anything on the perceptions and scholarship of the issue’s contributors. Hence, we will have to see what fate, and our prodigious and generous authors, provide!

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[1] Due for publication at the end of April '22

Gareth Johnson : 06 Apr 2022 11:45 |  Tags: Discourse Discussion Inter-Relationship Narrative Resonance |  Comments (0) |  Close comments |  Report a problem

In Conversation with Huayi Huang

Writing about web page https://open.spotify.com/show/5amW8qMjCrUihAvtBq5ChM

This past month has seen the launch of two new episodes of the Exchanges Discourse companion podcast series chatting with past authors about their lives, work and publishing activities. The first, that with Elloit Cardozo, I highlighted in an earlier post. This time I’m pleased to bring you our next episode, an extended episode with Huayi Huang of the University of Edinburgh, UK.

In this podcast episode Huayi and myself discuss the concepts of routine dynamics, alongside offering some insight into the roles of early career researchers in society. As always, I also ask my guest to offer their personal insights and suggestions into publishing which are specifically tailored to be of interest to post-graduate and early career researchers.

• Listen to the episode here: In Conversation with Huayi Huang

Behind the scenes this was probably the longest recording I’ve done with one of our authors. What you tragically don’t get as part of the recording was the twenty minutes or so Huayi and I continued talking about issues of career development and the academy from an early career researcher’s perspective. Perhaps a shame to lose this content, but with such a generous guest as Huayi, I’d hope to invite him back to appear on a future episode I’m slowly fermenting in my head.

More on that as and when I get it off the ground. In the meantime, enjoy this new podcast episode – and I’ll hopefully be back in the next week or so with the next episode of the Exchanges Discourse – already recorded, but now just in need of post-production polishing!

Gareth Johnson : 18 Feb 2022 16:00 |  Tags: Discourse Dynamics Episode Exchanges Guest New Podcast Routine |  Comments (0) |  Close comments |  Report a problem

In Conversation with Elloit Cardozo

Writing about web page https://open.spotify.com/episode/2DuQiVJGLoGmpms13QC8R1?si=STWSEzmdSTmkOxkyWsAWyg

And here's the second new episode of the podcast, with the last of our 2021 recorded sessions with past authors. An interesting discussion as we get into issues around setting up a special issue as well as the usual thoughts around the author's research and publication activities too.

In Conversation with Elloit Cardozo [14m 01s]

In this episode Elloit Cardozo talks about his research activities, especially as they relating to his recent paper ‘The Sagacity of Words’: Gandhi and 21st Century Hip Hop. Elloit discusses how the paper was partly inspired from desires to provide an easier route for younger school and university students to gain a greater understanding of the life and times of Gandhi. While deploying an analytical lens empowered through Hip-Hop music might seem an unusual approach to some readers, Elloit explores how it offered him a fresh and exciting way to explore the topic. Elloit also takes us into his current publishing plans, and how The Big Lebowski factors into them, before finishing by offering advice to other early career researchers looking towards publishing their first paper.

My thanks to Elloit for chatting with me, and please do share this episode with anyone you think might be interested.

I'll be recording two new episodes of the podcast with past authors next week, so there's plenty more audio content coming your way this February!

Gareth Johnson : 01 Feb 2022 16:27 |  Tags: Author Discourse Episode Exchanges Interview New Podcast |  Comments (0) |  Close comments |  Report a problem