About Podcast Village

Podcast Village is a new audio content Web site featuring Podcasts produced by nonprofit organizations that are active in social justice issues including disaster response and relief organizations. It is hosted by Village Life Company, the producer of the Disaster News Network www.disasternews.net, a leading resource of U.S.-based disaster response information.

The Mennonite Central Committee and the Disaster News Network are the first organizations featured on the site. Other nonprofits are expected to be added in coming months.

Podcasts are an Internet-delivered radio-like service that holds the promise of revolutionizing how the nonprofit community communicates with its members and the secular press about disaster response and social justice issues.

Podcast Village seamlessly delivers pre-recorded MP3 audio files, commonly called podcasts or netcasts, to Internet users who subscribe through an aggregator like iTunes and then listen to when it is convenient on their computers or audio players like Apple Computer's iPod.

The first Podcasts were independently produced and many focused on tech-related subjects. Today, Podcasts reflect nearly every conceivable subject. Even some broadcast stations are packaging programming into the Podcast format.

Initially created as little more than a fun hobby, an increasing number of schools and colleges are using Podcasts as an integral part of the education experience. Many colleges are now delivering courses via podcasts. In addition, many businesses are also adding Podcasts to their marketing efforts.

Podcast Village is one of the first sites to use the new Podcast Content ManagerSM developed by New Village Media a Columbia, MD-based Internet Solution Provider that specializes in work with nonprofit organizations. The Podcast Content ManagerSM simplifies uploading and categorizing audio files on Web sites, automatically creating a separate page of show notes, RSS feeds and mailing list announcements.