Searching for The Alternative Truth
Dr Mei Ling Doery always knew as a doctor that she preferred healthy people to sick ones. Her impressive background and medical experience is now being leveraged by PodcastOne in the series The Alternative Truth.
Doery is a research qualified medical doctor with a Bachelor of Medicine & Surgery, Bachelor of Medical Science, and Masters of Public Health from the University of Melbourne. She sat on the board of VicHealth from 2006 to 2011.
She explains on her website: “I have dedicated my life to studying the human condition. I am driven by the pursuit of understanding what makes us tick and the constant quest to align capital (human and financial) with long-term human empowerment. This drive has powered me to speak around the world – from Melbourne to London, Sydney to Seoul, Shanghai to Los Angeles and back again.”
Episodes of The Alternative Truth offer listeners a mountain of information from a wide range of specialists, with Doery handling the interviews.
“I still have a lot to learn too,” she told Mediaweek. “I have spent 20 years in medicine and I grew up in a medical family – my dad is a professor of clinical medicine and my mum is an intensive care nurse.
“The aim of the podcast is to bring in people who have opposing views on the same issue. We usually try and have a traditional expert and then a new pioneer.
“My broad interest is how can we usher in the future of health. The thing that exploded my brain was how on one hand we have the traditional medical system full of rigour, science, clever and good intentions. On the other hand we have a burgeoning field of alternative health where people are migrating en masse because they don’t feel heard or met by the old system.
“The things that ail us now are not necessarily the things the old system is designed to address.
“The intention behind the podcast is to try and have an empowering conversation. Not for me to tell you what I think, but to bring people in who have specific expertise and who approach problems from different angles and who can explore that tension.
“If you’ve actually had cancer you will find that the hospital is not going to meet all your needs. Equally if you have ever been an insomniac, or overweight or have a skin problem, sometimes a naturopath can’t get you there.
“I’d like to equip people with information straight from the horse’s mouth so they can make better choices.
“That is a journey I have been on. I want people to be more in charge of their health. I think we should be reappropriating doctors for a much more inspired purpose rather than digging trenches for chronically ill people.”
One of the podcasts sees Doery interview an organic beauty pioneer who makes all her products out of plant-based materials. There was also an interview with a dermatologist on the same episode. “Both of them blew the mainstream beauty industry out of the water and said people are wasting their money.”
PodcastOne has so far published five episodes, with Doery telling Mediaweek there is plenty more to come. “The aim is to release a new episode nearly every fortnight.”
Future episodes will investigate buying organic and asking does energy healing actually work?
Listen to The Alternative Truth here.
NewsCast: News Corp reveals its podcast plans
This week News Corp Australia revealed a portfolio of podcast series called NewsCast, each with commercial partnership opportunities.
While NewsCast has announced 20 new consumers podcasts, News Corp Australia executive chairman Michael Miller told Mediaweek its content agency Suddenly has had over 100 commercial podcasts.
“Our podcasting expertise is not just The Teacher’s Pet. It started a few years ago with Bowraville, we also had My Father The Murderer and now we have Who The Hell Is Hamish?
“Australians are great consumers of podcasts and there are different models that will evolve. The international reputation of Australia is that commercially we are behind in how we leverage podcasts to advertisers.”
Miller indicated that News Corp will continue to publish sponsored podcasts that are free to consumers, some will be freemium and some will be available under a subscription model.
News Corp’s SuperFooty amongst best of AFL audio
As the 2019 AFL season begins this week, there are plenty of AFL podcasts amongst the iTunes list of the most popular sports podcasts.
Topping the charts this week is the new-look AFL podcast Superfooty from News Corp Australia.
The podcasted is hosted by Herald Sun reporter Lauren Wood who is joined by Herald Sun chief football writer Mark Robinson and columnist Jon Anderson plus the podcast’s big off-season recruit Brian “BT” Taylor.
Other AFL audio making a mark includes Hump Day with Scotty and Swanny, which teams former players Scotty Cummings and Dane Swan in a podcast hosted by Ralph Horowitz.
New this year is In The Game With Damian Barrett, a sports reporter best known for his work on Triple M, The Footy Show and on Crocmedia’s The Sounding Board podcast. Barrett left the Nine TV show last year and now is on staff with AFL Media. His new podcast features interviews with football’s most influential figures.
