The Wolf Den

Howard Lindzon is the guest for Adam's first episode as host. Howard is a financial analyst, angel investor and hedge fund manager, best known for founding StockTwits, the social network for investors. He’s also a witty guy who created and sold a successful web video series, and has a huge Twitter following. Howard mentored Adam at his last company, so they talk about mentorship. As a media creator, Howard shares why it’s important to focus on who is in your audience, not just how big it is, and he explains the importance of endurance in entrepreneurship. Finally, he stresses why it’s important to focus and stay true to your passions.

This is Jeff's last episode. It's also the one where he passes the torch to Adam Sachs, The Wolf Den's new host and the new CEO of Earwolf's parent company, Midroll Media. They talk about why Jeff started the show, and Jeff offers some friendly advice for taking over the host's chair. Adam shares some of his background running a startup, and as a comedy nerd. Then he tells the story of how and why he joined Midroll Media. Finally, Jeff asks Adam what's next for Earwolf and Midroll.

Scott Aukerman of Comedy Bang! Bang! fame and Earwolf co-founder joins Jeff to discuss a big change: Jeff is moving out of his role as Earwolf and Midroll Media CEO to become Chairman of the company. They talk about the early days of Earwolf, and some of the challenges of being a boss, whether it's running a television show or a podcast network. Of course, they also talk about why Jeff is making this change, and why it's a good thing for the company.

The multitalented Kevin Smith is Jeff’s guest for this episode of The Wolf Den. Kevin says that he’ll always be called “director Kevin Smith,” but the truth is that he’s “done way more podcasts” than films. He tells Jeff why he got started podcasting and decided to build a network, discussing the stories behind Smodcast shows like “Fatman on Batman” and “Hollywood Babbleon.” Then Kevin explains why he thinks TV and movie development people are looking at podcasting for their next deal, and what the future holds for this medium.

Chief Nerdist Chris Hardwick returns to The Wolf Den for the first time in four years. He and Jeff get caught up with everything going on in the Nerdist world, and how Chris keeps on top of having a podcast, a Comedy Central TV show, and being the CEO of a growing media company. Chris shares his views on the state of podcasting and where it's going, and how different platforms require different approaches for media making. Don't miss this episode's bonus video at the Midroll blog: http://blog.themidroll.com/ twd-58-bonus-video/

Public radio producer Alex Blumberg enters The Wolf Den to discuss the entrepreneurial future of audio journalism. Alex is a long-standing producer for This American Life and the co-founder of the NPR podcast and radio program Planet Money. He tells Jeff about the lessons learned in the Planet Money Kickstarter to make a t-shirt so that they could document its production and distribution across the global supply chain. Alex reveals how this opened a door for him, and that he's building a new independent project to create and support innovative narrative journalism. Don't miss the bonus video ( http://blog.themidroll.com/twd-57-bonus-video/ ) where Alex lets us in on what he thinks is the most exciting thing happening in podcasting today.

Ellen Weiss is vice president and bureau chief for E.W. Scripps Company's multimedia news bureau. She joins Jeff from Washington DC to discuss podcasting's new frontiers in journalism. They talk about Ellen's distinguished career in news at NPR and the Center for Public Integrity and how that led to her taking over Scripps' digital newsroom. Then she explains the strategy behind Scripps's acquisition of the DecodeDC podcast--founded and hosted by former NPR correspondent Andrea Seabrook--and reveals what she thinks is the most exciting thing happening in podcasting today.

Though he is rarely heard from on his own, Marc Maron says he considers WTF producer Brendan McDonald, “half of the show.” On this episode of The Wolf Den Brendan steps out of the producer’s chair and in front of the microphone. He tells Jeff how his five-year relationship working with Marc at Air America turned into them creating WTF together, and how their successful collaboration relies on a shared vision. Brendan then shares how producing WTF means he had to become a businessman and entrepreneur, learning lessons along the way, like which responsibilities he should do himself and which are better to be outsourced. Make sure to watch the bonus video http://blog.themidroll.com/twd-55-bonus-video /) where Brendan reveals what he’s most excited about in podcasting, his favorite podcasts, and what keeps him up at night.

Editor & Chief of Slate and Political Gabfest host David Plotz joins Jeff to talk about all of the new changes that have occurred in the world of podcasting. They'll discuss the value and downsides regarding live shows for podcasts, David's current investment in podcasting, and if the business of podcasting is growing. Make sure to go to http://blog.themidroll.com/slate-editor-david-plotz-exciting-thing-podcasting-today/ for the exclusive video from this episode.

All the way from Portland, Paul Riismandel of RadioSurvivor.com joins Jeff to discuss many important things in the world of podcasting. They’ll talk about the sustainability of podcasting, the discoverability of podcasts, and the difficulty of building an audience. Happy New Year!

Deputy Editor of Fast Company and podcast enthusiast David Lidsky joins Jeff all the way from New York for a special episode of the Wolf Den that we hope will get some press! David gives us a quick history of business media, tells us how Fast Company’s audience has evolved through digital consumption, and explains how important press is for new small businesses. David then offers Jeff some free advice on press strategies for Earwolf & The Mid Roll and finds out how he played a major role in Earwolf's birth.

It’s the triumphant return of Peter Moses who once again interviews Jeff about all the things that have changed with Earwolf since they talked almost 2 years ago. They’ll discuss the early days of recording in a roach infested studio, some of the surprises from Earwolf’s growth, how the podcasts themselves have expanded over the years, Earwolf branching out into TV, and how The Mid Roll connects the best podcasters with the best advertisers. It’s all very exciting!

General manager of Nerdist Industries and all around good guy Chris Fealy is here to squash any thoughts of there being any sort of Nerdist vs. Earwolf rivalry. He joins Jeff to discuss expanding a podcast network into different mediums which include television, a YouTube channel, a live performance space behind a comic book shop, and possibly airplanes. Chris also shares the importance of curating shows that maintain a nerdy sensibility, gives his thoughts on the The Mid Roll , and offers Jeff some tips for his 30 day sabbatical.

It’s been 16 months since the last episode but The Wolf Den is back with Slate.com’s Andy Bowers. He’s here to discuss the mood of podcasting, how radio will survive with the increasing amount of audio on demand choices, and finding a balance between having fun & running a business. Happy podcasting!

This week's The Wolf Den is short but sweet! Get an update on the status of this podcast, a look back at Earwolf 2011, an announcement of a cool future episode, and several other business announcements that might be of interest. We'll see you in a few weeks!

Drew Droege treated us to Glitter in the Garbage for a year here on Earwolf. Now he joins Jeff in The Wolf Den to discuss his life in the south, the mistakes he made as a young artist, the relationship between comedian and businessman, and the fallacy of the "breakout star." Drew is smart, funny, and his Chloe videos are to die for so enjoy! Thank you to everyone who supported Earwolf and listened to The Wolf Den in 2011. See you next year!

One of the most successful podcasting networks is Kevin Smith's SModcast. After we had so much fun and learned so much with Bagged and Boarded's Matt Cohen, it was a no brainer to invite David Kahn to The Wolf Den. He is in charge of advertising and finances for the network and he joins us this week to discuss how to build a network and how to keep it financially secure. Don't forget to use the Earwolf Amazon link to do any last minute holiday shopping, and we'll see you next week!

Greg Behrendt and Dave Anthony have a podcast called Walking the Room that is considered by many "a podcaster's podcast." They leave their closet to join us in The Wolf Den to talk to us about the way the podcast has changed their careers, how listening to podcasts will change your life, and how a primarily guest-less podcast can find an audience. Plus, we get into the "fight" that didn't really happen between Dave and Jeff. Thanks to everyone who has used our Amazon Affiliates link to do their holiday shopping!

There seems to be a connection between podcasting and graphic design. There are so many amazing artists out there who make podcast art. Joel Watson from HijiNKS ENSUE has given us two popular show logos and he is here on The Wolf Den to tell us about his history in the graphic design/web comic history, share his advice for merchandising, and explain how you can work in the web comic industry and sustain your life. Inspiring message, nerdy or niche industry, economic advice, this it must be The Wolf Den!

Since we're so thankful for all you wonderful listeners, we decided to put together a last minute The Wolf Den with everyone in the office. You'll hear both our wonderful engineers, Cyrus and Dustin, our tech wizard Shahruz, our financial guru Dave, our special guest visitor Caleb Bacon, Jeff of course, and me, Caroline! We talk about our Thanksgiving plans, share our Earwolf nightmares and tell you all what we're thankful for. We hope you have a great Thanksgiving and we'll be back with a much more professional show next week!

How Did This Get Made? has been on a roll lately. They've had guests like Lexi Alexander, director of Punisher: War Zone, Greg Sestero from The Room, and just performed a live show at Largo with Damon Lindelof and Superman's Jack O'Halloran. As we approach the one year anniversary of HDTGM? we have Paul Scheer on the show to talk about his podcast, Eardrop , and how he balances a busy career in television and film and an active online presence. Please do check out Eardrop and tell us what you think in the forum!

The Chris Gethard Show is just the latest crazy, hilarious, original project from Chris Gethard. Chris has spent the last few years dreaming up some of the coolest comedy projects to come out of New York City. He's used his brilliance to bring Diddy to the UCB, treat a depressed comedy nerd to the time of his life, travel cross country using only Twitter as a map, and is now broadcasting weekly out of Manhattan Neighborhood Network every Wednesday. Learn more about Chris and how his work ethic propels him this week on The Wolf Den.

According to Ben Gigli of 5 Second Films, making friends with your fellow content providers is imperative to having success online. We took that advice before he even gave it and had him on The Wolf Den to discuss Youtube monetization, understanding content platforms, and the impossible task of predicting merchandise success. Joining him is Dave Mancherje, our financial guru, who helps us understand Amazon Affiliates, AdSense, and everything else intimidating to industry newcomers.

Jimmy Pardo came to Earwolf to record Who Charted? and we couldn't let him leave without a good solid brain-picking on the world of podcasting. His show Never Not Funny played (and continues to play) such a important role in the growth and development of podcasting as an industry and the story of his career is beyond fascinating. Pardo fans, podcast hosts, potential entertainers and practically everyone else can find something inspiring in Jimmy's story. We hope you enjoy.

Steve Heisler has a life that I'm sure many Earwolf fans envy: He writes about comedy for The AV Club, Vulture and Variety, he produces comedy for the Just For Laughs festival, and he performs comedy of his very own! If you aspire to create a career for yourself in comedy production, you'll want to hear Steve's story and his advice for other freelancers. Please visit our store or consider making a donation , and if you have any plans on shopping on Amazon, use our affiliate link on Earwolf !

The week Jeff once again breaks the mold of what The Wolf Den is by podcasting all by himself (and with a little help from our brilliant engineer Dustin and our financial miracle worker Dave). We'd like to give you a once over of where Earwolf is right now: What our problems are, how we're trying to fix them, and what that means for our future. We love all you listeners and always welcome feedback, so don't hesitate to email [email protected] lay it all on us! Thanks

When we relaunched Earwolf.com, we added a section called Yourcast that would allow podcasters to advertise on our site. For this week's The Wolf Den, we've asked two of our Yourcast users (Jacob Munford from Lobstercast and Cameron Buchholtz from CB Radio) to tell us about their experiences using the service and to teach us about the unique struggles of running a podcast outside of Hollywood. Enjoy, and be sure to peruse Yourcast for what might be your new favorite podcast!

Earwolf Challenge Epilogue

Jeff has used his skills of deceit and trickery to get a truly wonderful guest for the week: Peter Kafka from All Things Digital. This guy has worked for Forbes Magazine and a major Wall Street banker and guess what? He's a podcast geek! Jeff and Peter hop all over the place from the potential uselessness of graduate school to the issues plaguing iTunes and Netfilx. Too many issues are covered for me to list, so listen in and learn something!

Hopefully most of you have visited Funny or Die since Monday and know about our new partnership with them. If you haven't, this episode will answer a lot of questions. Even if you have, you'll learn from Dick Glover, President of Funny or Die, how the partnership came to be, how the website itself came to be, and what it's like to work for such a popular comedy entity. This is the guy who made ESPN.com back in '92, so he's got amazing amounts of insight into the digital world and where it is headed. I'll give you a hint: QR codes and hoodies.

Cracked.com is one of the internet's most popular comedy locales. Jack O'Brien is the mastermind behind this magazine-turned-website and he's here on The Wolf Den to talk web analytics, book publishing, flashbulb memory and more. Learn a bit about the impending FunnyOrDie partnership and get a quick tease of what you can expect from Earwolf in the coming month. Thanks for all the activity in the forums, and as always you can email [email protected]

Todd Jackson is a comedy writer and entrepreneur who hopped from Cracked Magazine to Comedy Central before creating the comedy website Dead-Frog . He joins Jeff on this unusual episode to discuss 9/11, strange-sounding networking advice, and the potential relationship between our two websites. This isn't your typical The Wolf Den, but then again what IS a typical The Wolf Den?

Matt Cohen is one of very few full-time podcast producers. In addition to hosting his own show Bagged and Boarded, he produces Mohr Stories and has a long-standing relationship with SModcast. He joins The Wolf Den to discuss the relationship between podcasters, the economics of internet connections, the difference between Earwolf and SModcast fans and so much more. Listen in, and don't forget about those iTunes reviews!

If you haven't asked yourself this question yet, you will after listening to this episode! Part political activist, part social media innovator, and one-hundred-percent hilarious, Baratunde joins Jeff this week to discuss the evolution of entertainment platforms, the creative mindset, and the power of The Thank You Economy. This is a guy who is funny enough to work for The Onion, but is sincere and thoughtful enough to create of one of the only non-ironic or cat-based " viral videos " that I can think of! When you're done listening, go to Baratunde's website to learn about the million other things he's created that we didn't have time to address.

The Wolf Den is finally back! In exchange for the several week absence, we have a great episode for you all featuring Jeff Rubin of Collegehumor, Nerd Alert, The Jeff Rubin Jeff Rubin Show and more. He explains the complicated (yet awesome) science of "enhanced podcasts" and sheds light on the podcasting community on the east coast. There is an economy lesson stuffed in here as well regarding the expenses and complications of selling tee shirts. Sorry once again for the break, and enjoy!

Jeff is back once again from his apartment to give us all a quick run down of Earwolf news. Topics of the day: The Earwolf Challenge, our FunnyorDie partnership, and our forthcoming advisory board. Of course, it wouldn't be The Wolf Den without "Preachy Jeff" and his advice for young entrepreneurs looking for mentors. Thank you to everyone who has been so supportive of Earwolf. We're excited to keep growing and evolving!

For the first time, Jeff records an episode from his apartment and without guests. He monologues about trying to survive a rough week at Earwolf, why you should pursue your passion and how to afford titty bars. He also plays messages from listeners about what they like about Earwolf and what can be improved. He even discusses his thoughts on inappropriate laughter in lactation rooms. Enjoy this weird episode.

It seems like every time you click refresh on the Nerdist website there is new cool stuff happening. What started as a blog and transitioned into a podcast is now a television pilot, a live performance space at Meltown Comics, a podcasting network, and even a book! Chris Hardwick is here to try to discuss all of that as well as his partnership with Geek Chic and the economic difficulties of doing a podcast live. We even get Chris' opinion on our new Earwolf Live App and a stellar suggestion for a new, simpler term to replace "download." Listen to the episode and, as always, let us know what you think over on the forums!

We love all our Earwolf listeners and are impressed by their contributions to the network as fans. This episode celebrates those listeners by speaking to three of our biggest superfans: Dustin Martian, Julia Hays, and Mike McCawley. They all started listening at different times, for different reasons, and with different preferences, but they all make our jobs at Earwolf so much easier. Learn who your fellow listeners are and how they've developed relationships not only with Earwolf, but with each other as well. We'd love to hear your Earwolf stories in The Wolf Den forums!

It took us long enough, but we finally have Earwolf hosts on The Wolf Den! Those hosts are Randy and Jason Sklar of Sklarbro Country, our sports-themed comedy show that comes out every Friday. You might underestimate their awareness of download numbers and Twitter follower count, but as you'll learn, these guys put a lot of time and effort into their show (sometimes to the detriment of their personal lives). Learn why they love doing Sklarbro Country, even when it affects their travel plans, job offers, and patience. You'll also learn how Chris Cox (Tiger Woods, Jerry Jones, Sam Elliott, etc) got involved and why we all love him so much. Leave your shouts of "HENDERSON!" in the forum thread for this episode!

Now that the dust has settled and we've all taken a few naps, we're ready to discuss Earwolf 2.0! The bulk of the Earwolf team is in the studio with The Plop List's Joel Mandelkorn to talk through the new Earwolf: What we're proud of, what we want to improve, and our plans for the future. Take this opportunity to get acquainted with the Earwolf staff and explore Earwolf beyond what you've seen so far. Let us know what you think in the forums!

Our primary job with The Wolf Den is to inform our listeners about who we are. So who better to have as a guest than one of our smart, funny listeners? Natan is a graduate student at DePaul University and when he asked for help with a project we gave him one condition: We tape it and send it out! Hear what Jeff thinks of our listeners, competition, and brand as he is interviewed by a genuine fan.

Each week on The Wolf Den we learn more about the state of digital media as it pertains to comedy and podcasting. This week we have guests from the world of music to talk about the unique struggles of their industry. Yotam Rosenbaum and Joey Flores are the creators of Earbits, an internet radio station that aims to advertise smarter than it's competition. Learn how Earbits came to be, how Y Combinator got them where they are, and why they deny the the myth of the "dying music industry." Check out our newly redesigned Earwolf website to find new merch, new apps, new shows and more.

We're back this week with Matt Belknap. While he discussed the origins of AST and Never Not Funny last week , we learn this week about the growth of podcasting since his involvement. The ever divisive issue of podcast monetization comes up and Matt and Jeff discuss some of the more basic elements of building a show. Pay close attention to the announcements to hear about the special features you can anticipate on version 2.0 of the Earwolf website.

AST, or A Special Thing, is quite enigmatic in that it's a message board, a comedy news site, a record company, and the original internet home of many podcasts. Over the last ten years, Matt Belknap has turned his hobby for comedy and desire for articulate dialogue into a life for himself and has helped the career of many comedians at the same time. Learn this week how Matt cultivated his message board (and when it will get back to looking great), began his own record company, and essentially turned podcasting from a barren wasteland into a burgeoning business with Never Not Funny. Marc Maron interrupts the proceedings with a big announcement about his show WTF, leaving lots more behind-the-scenes Belknap for next week. See you then, and feel free to pass the time until then by writing an iTunes review.

John Cabrera is the filmmaker and musician responsible for the web musical The Homes . So what does he think about this new media age? Jeff and John discuss the waning desire for tactile media, the evolution of web content, and the relationship between internet films and indie music. Comment and tell us what you think about all this: Do you still hang onto your physical books? Do you think the difficulty of web navigation will affect the progress of new media? Oh, and if you're interested in helping Earwolf prepare for the new website launch, volunteer here .

In sixteen episodes of The Wolf Den one question has been left unanswered: Who is Jeff? This week we take time to learn who Jeff is, how he became part of this industry, and why he no longer follows the Cubs. You'll also get to know Intern Peter who is a vital part of the Sklarbro Country/Earwolf team. Stay tuned to the end if you are curious about Project Tippy Toe, or the newly renamed Comedy Bang Bang. There is a lot happening at Earwolf right now, and The Wolf Den is the best way to keep up with it all.

Last week Paul F. Tompkins cited The Superego Podcast as one that inspired him. This week Superego's Matt Gourley joins The Wolf Den to discuss what it means to be "the comic's comic" of podcasting. If any of you listeners have wanted to start a podcast but thought you couldn't, Matt is proof that if you care enough you can figure it out. The episode is so packed full of valuable podcasting information that we gave you extra content after the closing theme. Check out Superego and whatever you do DO NOT submit an iTunes review (for us, that is).

This episode of The Wolf Den is dedicated to the listeners worried about the show being too funny. Our guest is the famously somber Paul F. Tompkins who is here to discuss his role as a leading Gateway Guest (among other things) in the least humorous way possible. Paul takes questions from Twitter while pointing out it's many flaws, and Jeff discusses his dreams for the website, the network, and his tennis career. Now go check out his Ford Focus internet campaign and try not to leave snarky correct-y comments on them!

You can't talk about podcasting without talking about Jesse Thorn. From terrestrial radio to television, Jesse has turned a hobby for podcasting into a means of livelihood and has been a major source of positive attention towards the industry. Jesse joins us this week to talk about the results of our marketing survey and contribute knowledge about marketing integration, building a network, and serving one's listeners. Oh, did I mention that he's also hilarious? This episode not only provides a look into the future of Earwolf and podcasting, but to the whole world of media and how it can be sustained financially.