A word in your ear

Podcasts provide listeners with information at a convenient time of their choosing, Yang Yang reports.

With the words quarantine and self-isolation entering our everyday lexicon, more imaginative methods of communication are taking hold. On March 21, Chinese publishing brand Imaginist announced that it is going to launch a podcast, Naive Cafe. In China, boke, or podcast, in a broad sense refers to audio programs on all kinds of online audio platforms.

Apart from publishing books, Imaginist has been planning and hosting cultural events, including a literary prize and a life festival. It already runs several popular podcasts. Which begs the question, why another? Ye Ying, who is in charge of the Naive Cafe podcast, said in the announcement that they want to use "a new media form" to convey knowledge and ideas.

Imaginist had planned to launch a physical cafe in Beijing, a space offering books, coffee, exhibitions and salons, which was to open this spring. The novel coronavirus outbreak, however, has delayed the opening, so a podcast becomes the ideal way to "transcend the limit of time and space" for people to gather at audio parties to share interesting stories and explore ideas, Ye says.