Ed. Note: The New Tech City intern took on a huge challenge. She taught her dad how to listen to podcasts, and lived to tell this tale. 

Unsurprisingly, I love podcasts. I listen to them on long runs, while walking to work, and getting around on the subway. My dad walks about two hours a day, so I introduced him to podcasts a while back, and he, too, fell in love. There was just one problem: He’d only listen when I presented him with a screen where all he had to do was hit play.

It’s understandable, I guess. Not all parents are technologically savvy enough to get the audio they want to hear.

But it’s really not that hard. So I decided it was time. I sat down with my dad and did not place a single one of my fingers on his screen. Yes parents, this post is for you. So grab your iPhone and follow along (Android users, you can go ahead and scroll to the bottom) . You’ll soon have more audio than your ears can handle.

STEP 1: The App       

Now it’s important to remember this was my dad’s first time doing this all by himself, so I kept things as simple as possible.

“Alright dad, go to the 'Podcasts' app. It’s purple,” I said, hoping this would be a task he could manage.

It took a bit – there was a lot of scrolling and a few not-so-pleasant grumbles of frustration – but finally he found the Podcasts app that comes automatically downloaded on the iPhone. He tapped it open.

STEP 2: The Choice     

“I don’t know what this means,” he said, a bit angry that it had taken him five minutes just to find the app.  

I tried to calm him down, and reminded him that if he just took the time now, he’d be able to listen to all his favorite shows whenever he wanted.

“This is your home screen, where all the shows you like will go,” I said. “This is the fun part, when you get to choose the episodes you want to listen to.”

I had him hit the search button and type in the shows he likes. I looked away for a minute, and he’d already found New Tech City and Radiolab. All I did was sit back to watch as he hit the cloud icon next to each episode he wanted to download (he didn’t want to commit to subscribing to any shows yet, despite my reassurance that he could always unsubscribe, and they’re free). The man is one of simplicity; he only wants a few options on his iPhone at a time.

 “This is great. I can search ESPN, get Mike and Mike, and any one I want. I just hit the cloud?”

“Yup.” I had to admit I was in shock. My dad had transformed from confused to conqueror with ease. And he was asking some really great questions.

“What if I want to find out what the episode is about before I start listening?”

“Just hit that "i" next to the title (it looks like this:

 He was happy. And he’d done it all by himself, so I was too.

STEP 3: The Listen    

“Alright Hannah, now I just want to start the thing. How do I do that?”

I explained that all he had to do was click on the episode, and it would start playing. He could pause it, rewind it, and change the volume.

“Oh wow, look at that. This will be great. Very cool. Perfect for the gym or something. Instead of just walking I could be listening and learning.”

“Exactly Dad. And now you’ll never need my help again.”

He chuckled. But I was confident. I got up and we high-fived. I was about to leave my smiling, now somewhat tech-savvy dad to his listening when he stopped me.

“Hey Hann, how do I find out about other podcasts?”

What more could I have asked for. I sat back down. We were going to need a few more minutes.

Got an Android? 

There’s no need to fear; it's still just as easy. Rather than using the Podcasts app, we recommend downloading Stitcher or WNYC's app to listen to all your favorite podcasts. In no time, you'll be streaming just as much audio as Hannah's dad (We dare ya. He got through the first eight episodes of Serial in one day). 

Hannah is happy to report this activity really worked. Here’s a text she got from her dad the very next morning after their little session: