Lance Arnold and Andrew Simoncelli, two mass communications professors at Nicholls State University, and long time friends, recently launched a podcast that showcases lists of their favorite pop-culture creations.
The pair debuted their very first episode of “The Top and Bottom List” podcast on Feb. 14, and several listeners quickly immersed themselves in the podcast.
They are sharing updates on their social media platforms to promote the podcast. “The Top and Bottom List” has its own social media account on Facebook where listeners can interact with the pair and initiate discussion with one another. Listeners can also connect with the podcast on Instagram, YouTube, Amazon and Spotify.
Simoncelli said that they are already experiencing listener engagement online through social media. Listeners are exclaiming in agreement or debate at the potential top and bottom Mardi Gras songs picked for this weekend’s podcast topic, the pair said.
The podcast was born out of a deal between students and a professor. Lance Arnold told students in his podcasting class that he would begin a podcast alongside them. Arnold and Simoncelli are deciding whether the podcast will continue past this semester.
“It depends on the audience demand,” Arnold said. “We have a good number of hits so far. On social media, we have a good number of followers. The podcast is still in development, and it’s going to be an ever-growing thing.”
The camaraderie and charisma that Arnold and Simoncelli enhance in each other are the elements that entice listeners the most. Even when disagreeing about item rankings, the pair’s contrasting opinions add dimensions and color to their conversations.
Arnold and Simoncelli engaged in a jovial conversation about the many possibilities the podcast presents for them to discuss. They exchanged conversations about ranking murder mysteries and Miley Cyrus songs while having a glimmer of humor in their eyes.
Instead of ranking the murder mysteries, Arnold suggested, “We could just solve the murders.”
(Something Arnold has done, but that is a story for another time.)
“Is that going to require work on my part to solve these? I’m just going to go to Wikipedia,” Simoncelli bantered.
Ultimately societal relevance drives the decision of which lists they select to cover.
“We are trying to be topical,” Simoncelli said.
The precise day of origin of their friendship cannot be pinpointed. Simoncelli began working for the Mass Communications department in 1999, one year before Arnold started at Nicholls. This permitted for at least two decades’ worth of friendship.
The friendship grew, according to Arnold, through their experience at the seventh International Conference on Communication and Media Studies in Ireland.
The pair recounted their experience traveling to Ireland and presenting material on their chosen topic; a study of where Generation Zeta is receiving their news. Their contagious energy spread across the listeners. Simoncelli recounted that as a result, the crowd directed most of their questions to them.
Many in the audience excluded their attention from those representing Harvard to ask their pressing questions of Simoncelli and Arnold.
They described how the ability to present themselves in a meaningful and entertaining way tends to grasp people’s attention. Simoncelli and Arnold agreed that they prioritize being understood conversationally over the idealization of scholarly language.
“We held our own. People had a lot of questions and feedback. It shows people that Nicholls State University can compete with anybody,” Simoncelli said.
“I think presenting together really helped too because the way we are talking right here is the way we present; as a team,” Arnold added.
