Rockin’ Libsyn Podcasts: Future Hindsight

This series is all about libsyn’s podcasters. Its sole purpose is to introduce these awesome podcasts to the world as well as share their podcasting insight to empower the community!


Q & A with Mila from Future Hindsight


When did you start podcasting?

I came up with the idea of Future Hindsight in the summer of 2017, started recording that Fall, and dropped the first episode on January 20, 2018.

It was the anniversary of the presidential inauguration, which seemed a fitting time to start conversing about civic engagement and democracy!

Why did you start podcasting?

I wanted to start podcasting because I saw that podcasts were a very modern and yet very personal way to engage with listeners.

I listen myself to quite a few podcasts and was inspired by how Hidden Brain helped me gain a new perspective on how the mind works, and loved how Slow Burn uncovered what it was really like to live through Watergate.

I wanted to offer a way of thinking about civic engagement that encourages us to participate and enrich our society.

My goal is to talk about what it means to be an engaged citizen and why now is a crucial time to be involved.

At the same time, I wanted to inspire the listeners with the example of the incredible guests, the work that they do, and the passion they bring to their issues. At Future Hindsight, we call them ‘citizen changemakers.’

What’s the name of your show and what is it about?

The name of our show is Future Hindsight.

It’s a weekly podcast that aims to spark civic engagement through in-depth conversations with citizen changemakers. American democracy is a living, breathing mechanism whose well-being deserves to be cultivated and protected.

We explore the ways in which we all have the power to shape our society, and hope our conversations will move you to be engaged in the real world.

By the way, I always like to say that anyone listening to Future Hindsight is just by the mere act of listening – being an engaged citizen!

What’s your podcasting set-up? Hardware, software, CMS, etc.

When in the studio, we use Pro Tools software for capture and editing of our host and local guests on Neumann U87 or AKG 414 mics through Avalon Mic Pre’s.

If we are capturing on location, we use EV RE–20 mics directly to a Sound Devices MixPre–10.

A variety of plugins from Universal Audio, Waves, Softube, iZotope and Fab Filter are used for mixing and mastering with iZotope Rx for cleanup and Sonnox Codec Toolbox for encoding.

Scoring is done with a Native Instruments S61 Mk2 keyboard running NI Komplete and Arturia V Collection software, a Fender Telecaster guitar and a Fender Precision Bass tracked through UA hardware and amp emulator plugins.

For remote guests, the ideal is a nearby studio with Source Connect, but Skype is the standard for tape syncs.

We rely on Sonix for content editing and Dropbox for file sharing. Our website is on WordPress and we distribute on Libsyn and SoundCloud.

How have you promoted your podcast?

Marketing is a bit tough when you’re not Oprah or Malcolm Gladwell!

We have done some cross promotion with other like-minded podcasts, like Democracy Works, and been on a number of panel sessions around the subject of democracy and citizen engagement.

We’ve also done a teeny bit of digital marketing in places we think are open to civil discourse and civic engagement like Seattle, LA, D.C., and NYC. We don’t have a big media budget, so it’s a small foray.

More importantly, we have four themes a year and try to have one or two episodes per season with a ‘bigger’ name, which should naturally attract listenership.

We then hope that listeners enjoy the seasonal theme, or just enjoy the listening in on conversations with really amazing people and then subscribe and start listening to our weekly Saturday morning drops.

We are deep into our 8th season on the forces that support democracy. I had a terrific conversation with Robert Tsai, the author of Practical Equality. We discuss why equality is so important to ensure justice for all in a democracy.

If you’re reading this, you should listen to it. You won’t be disappointed. In fact, please get in touch with us after you listen. We want to hear from new listeners, and know what they think and what they want to hear about. Please send an email to [email protected]!

Our guest this coming Saturday, December 28, is Suzanne Nossel, the CEO of Pen America, an organization that protects human rights and freedom of expression in the United States. Is free speech being manipulated? Tune in to this deep dive on the first amendment.

What do you know now that you wish you knew when you started?

I wish I had known how long it takes to edit audio!


Are you someone who is interested in how you can be a more engaged citizen, and what steps to take to know and learn more about civic duties? You must subscribe to the inspiring Future Hindsight! Mila shares some great episodes to start with right in this post!


If you feel that you have so much to offer the world in 2020 and beyond, and are recognizing that a podcast is the way to go, why not host your podcast with us? We have the best podcast hosting plans out there! Need a little bit of extra support here and there? We have a FREE Podcasting Quickstart! Start your podcast with us!

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