Media to Deliver Research Findings

This guide provides resources and tips for faculty, students, and staff who are creating video or audio content to share findings from a project. Whether you are recording an academic lecture, producing a podcast for a class project, or preparing a video explainer, the information here will help you plan, record, and polish your work.

Use the navigation menu on the left to explore the different stages of the production process, from planning your project to sharing the final product.

Tip: Understanding your audience is as important for media production as it is for live presentations and your project itself. With media, you can allow more personality to show, so let your voice, sense of humor, and way of talking lead the video, as an element to find an audience, but do remember that your professor is likely the first audience member you are creating content to view. After your class is over, you might continue making content to share your knowledge, passion, and research interests with new audiences.

The Three Stages of Production

Professional media projects, large or small, follow a structured creation process. Understanding these stages will help you organize your workflow, save time, and create a higher-quality product.

The production process can be broken down into the following three sequential stages:

1. Pre-Production: This is the planning phase. Here, you will develop your idea, write a script or outline, gather necessary resources, and schedule your recording. Careful planning is the most critical step for a smooth project and begins while you are researching and writing your paper. If you plan your media content alongside your larger research goals, you can work more efficiently to capture your key results in your video/podcast.
2. Production: This is the recording or filming phase. You will set up your equipment and capture the audio and video content according to the plan you developed during pre-production.
3. Post-Production: This is the editing and finalization phase. You will assemble your recorded clips, edit them for clarity and impact, add titles or graphics, mix audio, and export the final file for sharing with your professors or stakeholders.

Sources for Media Production and Audience Research

Explore the Mass Media Complete database for journals, books, and articles dedicated to media studies. Media studies are the disciplines that research production practices, audience effects, and the outcomes of multi-media across education, social, and cultural landscapes.