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Chapter 8: Editing Software & Audiograms
Learning Objectives
Audacity audio editing {Video tutorial}
Garageband audio editing {Video tutorial}
Adobe Audition audio editing {Video tutorial}
All-in-One App Services
Editing Social Media Audiograms (Video tutorial}
Chapter 8: Editing Software & Audiograms
Once a podcast has been recorded, scripted, and voiced it’s time for digital editing. There are a number of software options available for a variety of budgets, production demands, and expertise levels. Your selection of a Digital Audio Workstation (DAW) also comes down to personal preference.
This chapter emphasizes free or low-cost audio editing programs – Audacity, GarageBand, and Adobe Audition. I created video tutorials to cover the basics and also offer links to NPR Training on audio mixing. The concepts apply to all digital audio software no matter which software program you decide to use.
Record & Edit in WAV or AIFF
Audio recording and editing should always be done using uncompressed WAV or AIFF audio files, which take up a lot of disk space. However, once editing is completed the files should be exported into compressed MP3 audio files, the format virtually every digital device can read.
Listen Before Editing
The best place to start editing is actually through listening.
Listen to all of your interviews at regular speed even though it might be tempting to listen at twice the speed in order to speed up the editing process. But this shortcut is not a good idea because it doesn’t allow you to get a feel for natural pacing and pauses during the interview. Take notes on sections where you think the audio is best and note the timestamp of where the clip is located on the timeline.
You will want to edit out background sounds, plosive pops, and loud breathing when you can. However, be careful not to go overboard with editing especially when it comes to breathing because it’s unnatural if you don’t hear any breath intakes.
At the right moment, a lingering pause can be a powerful moment in the story.
Audacity {Video tutorial}
Audacity is a free recording and editing software that’s been around since 2000. It has huge appeal because it’s free and can be used by both Mac and PC users.
While Audacity does have a bit of a learning curve and there can be some recording or editing problems with free platforms, there are online help forums.
I created a video tutorial to help you learn Audacity, such as the one provided below. There are also keyboard shortcuts that can save you time and effort.
For more advanced work, Buzzsprout explains how to isolate and remove unwanted background sound in Audacity.
Syncing Up Audio Tracks in Audacity
When editing two separate voice tracks – the host and the interviewer – each track needs to begin at the same time. In the recording process, it’s helpful when doing a remote interview if both the interviewer and the