My Wish List of Flash Briefings
When I wrote my two-part Voicebot piece on the, “Cambrian Explosion of Audio Content,” one of the conclusions I kept coming back to was that it felt like the building blocks were starting to mesh for something akin to an “audio-based Twitter.” The more that I’ve thought about this concept, the more I believe that Flash Briefings are the closest representation to this idea that we have currently.
So, today I wanted to have some fun and throw out ideas of how I could see certain people, brands or entities approaching a Flash Briefing. I’d love it if you’d respond on Twitter with some ideas of your own, and if you have a flash briefing of your own, then definitely share it on Twitter so we can all start to follow along. Hey, it’s Friday – Let’s have some fun with this!
- Ben Thompson – Stratechery (high-frequency bloggers/commentators): Ben would be a phenomenal addition to any FB, as he could share some quick, high-level insight on the daily update he writes. If you follow Ben and Stratechery, it’s one on-going narrative and to be able to keep up with that narrative through a quick flash briefing, so that even for the updates that you don’t get around to reading, you still know the gist of it.
- Michael Batnick & Ben Carlson – Animal Spirits (podcasters): As someone not working a job in finance, I absolutely love this podcast from Michael and Ben of Ritzholtz Wealth Management. I could see the two alternating days around who does the FB, which would be an ongoing narrative, or anecdotal stories, around the broader themes they talk about regarding the world of finance. Anyone with a podcast could do something like this.
- St. Louis Blues/Cardinals (sports teams): I’m a huge STL sports fan. I think it would be so cool if teams across all leagues started to get into FB. You could go soooo many different directions here. Having former players share commentary around last night’s game or the upcoming game today. Lineups. Random stats. “On this day.” The list goes on and on, and I think this would be an awesome way for teams to engage fans.
- Adam Schefter – ESPN (Sports Insiders)- I’m surprised Shefty doesn’t already have a Flash. As much NFL news he breaks around trades, free agents and all-around league scoop, FB would be perfect for any sports insider like Woj, Shefty, Rovell, etc.
- Taylor Lorenz – Atlantic (any journalist): I picked Taylor because I’ve read like ten of her articles recently about the evolution of the internet and meme culture. Any journalist, writing on any subject would be able to share or tease all of their stories, as well as provide background info or examples of how the themes they write about are manifesting.
- Voice Designers – Cathy Pearl, Mark Webster, Chris Geison (subject matter experts): I do not have a background in design, but I do understand the importance of properly designing for this new medium. For designers that are shifting toward designing for voice, it would be awesome to have on-going tips and advice from the people that are at the forefront of design in this space, such as Cathy, Mark and Chris. The same could be done for any type of subject-matter experts who use a FB to help share their knowledge.
- Music Artists – It would be awesome to be able to hear from your favorite artists/bands each day. Where are they on tour? What was last night’s show like? Did they play a song they don’t typically play? Any new music coming down the pipeline? Like sports, there are a million different directions you could go with this.
- Michael Lewis – Big Short, Flash Boys, Moneyball, etc (non-fiction authors) – authors like Michael Lewis who write on so many topics could utilize FBs as a tool to provide on-going commentary on what’s happening to the world and relate those back to themes from their books. For example, Lewis could comment on what’s happening in the stock market, and apply it to Flash Boys or the Big Short. Or how a team like the Tampa Bay Devil Rays or the Oakland A’s continue to prove Moneyball, or the evolution of Moneyball, works.
- Joss Whedon – Marvel (movie directors): Like sports and music, movies are another area that is so wide open with what you could do here. Stories of what’s happening behind the scenes with the cast. Honing in on certain scenes from movies to talk about the motivation, etc.
- George RR Martin – Game of Thrones (fiction authors): I actually don’t want George doing a FB because I want him to finish The Winds of Winter! (yes, I’m a big GOT book nerd). Any author that has developed a world that’s as dense as something like Game of Thrones or the many other Fantasy, Sci-Fi, other fiction series could provide a daily update on a random aspect to their world. Again, this is another area that is so wide open.
- Ninja – Gaming: Not a big gamer, but I know who Ninja is so I’m using him kind of generically here to say that top gamers could share tips and ways that noobs like me can improve their skills. E-sports seems to be growing pretty fast, so just like any celebrity could use a FB, I think FBs would work pretty well with gamers.
- Politics – any candidate running for really any level of office would be wise to start a Flash. Use it to communicate your message, where you are on the campaign trail, weighing in on the news around the world, country, and local community.
- Dave Chappelle (comedians) – can you imagine how awesome it would be to get a few minutes of new Chappelle material every day? Just something as simple as joking about the way the world is turning, or going into one of his characters. This is my dream.
I could go on and on here, but I think you get the point! As we enter into an era where we’re constantly pairing our ears to the internet via AirPods (and all its incoming competitors), smart speakers/displays, and other hardware built for audio, consuming our flash briefings will increasingly become more and more seamless. I’ve been enjoying curating my flash briefing and am looking forward to see more and more people, brands and entities start a flash of their own.
-Thanks for Reading-
Dave
