Mobilizing knowledge in a unique way

What started as an idea to examine one of the most controversial topics in Canadian public discourse, free expression, has grown into a podcast with thousands of downloads, featuring some of the top legal and academic minds in Canada.  

Now in its second season, the Free Expression podcast, created and hosted by Dr. Dax D’Orazio, a Research Associate with the Centre for Teaching and Learning that’s housed in the Department of Political Studies. The project blends academic insight with current affairs and tackles several important questions, including: Why is free expression so important for democratic societies? When can a state or community legitimately restrict expression? And why has debate about free expression become so polarized on university campuses and in society more broadly?

“I’m hoping this podcast provides a bit of inspiration for others, especially early career scholars if they want to try something a little different in regards to knowledge mobilization,” Dr. D’Orazio explains, who is also a Research Affiliate with the Centre for Constitutional Studies at the University of Alberta.

The first episode of season one dropped in August 2022 and seven episodes have been released for season two, with four more slated for release over the next few weeks.  

“The first season, to my surprise, was very successful. The first season alone had more than 15,000 downloads which is almost unheard of for an academic podcast, especially one specifically focused on Canadian law and politics,” Dr. D’Orazio says. “The decision to do another season was easy because we were getting lots of listeners and we have a never-ending list of people that we want to sign up as guests. Most of them are academics, mostly in the legal community, but also straddling the border between law and politics. They are influential voices within the debates about freedom of expression.”

Dr. D’Orazio says he’s also using the podcast as a valuable teaching resource. “For example, one episode in the first season explains, in an accessible manner, how freedom of expression if protected within Canada’s constitutional framework. Podcasts are one of the vastly growing ways the public gets their information. They are also a resource for teachers to be able to find new and eclectic ways to impart information to students. Slowly but surely, this will become another way that students learn.”

He adds there might be a perception that popular podcasts are not up to scholarly standards, but the academic world is starting to experiment with different ways of mobilizing knowledge. Accordingly, academics can adjust their teaching practice to meet the realities of today’s informational environment and the students that find themselves within it.  

“I’ve never had a student tell me they didn’t enjoy listening to a podcast episode as part of their course or part of their learning. It doesn’t replace peer-reviewed scholarship including reading academic books and journal articles. But it’s definitely a welcome addition to learning for contemporary undergraduate students.”

Dr. D’Orazio adds that, for scholars, there might be a perception that their impact will only be measured by academic publications. “Based on the response I’ve received from the creation of this podcast series project, there is a lot of interest, not just in the academic community, in different types of knowledge mobilization, and the academic world has a lot to contribute.”