Although sales of audiobooks in 2020 topped $1.3 billion, an increase of 13% over 2019, the ‘manufacturing’ process remains onerous. With “brand-name talent” getting paid over $1,000 per finished hour (PFH) of the audiobook, and the typical two-hour session in the studio only garnering one finished hour, the costs – alongside the timeline – swiftly lengthens. In come the plethora of digital voice technologies covered in this article, each pining after the ‘holy grail’ : “mak[ing] their voices indistinguishable from human voices”. Read full article here
Societal Issues
To curb drug deaths, communities turn to Reddit, texts and wastewater
With drug overdose deaths on the rise, authorities are attempting to curb the epidemic by tracking and sharing information in real time. In one unique effort, a nonprofit in New York City is using drug-testing equipment and stamping or marking habits of dealers to identify drug batches that may endanger users. Other approaches are also being used, such as monitoring drug-related chatter on Reddit and analyzing local wastewater for opioid and other drug levels. With the combination of these efforts, researchers hope to put a dent in the opioid crisis and reduce overdose deaths. Read full article here
Merv
June 1, 2023
