In a Manner of Speaking

The podcast is back! After a 12-month hiatus, Paul returns to "In a Manner of Speaking" for episode 91 (July 2026). In this episode, he discusses yod, the linguistic term for the "y" sound one hears in words such as "you" and "yes."

Join Paul Meier and his past guests for this retrospective of the first eight years of the podcast. Paul will be taking a hiatus and plans to return in 2026, so, for this last episode of 2025, let us reminisce. To watch the video version, go to the webpage for this podcast episode at PaulMeier.com/In-A-Manner-of-Speaking.

For the June 2025 episode, Paul and his guest, voice/dialect coach and IDEA Senior Editor Sarah Nichols, discuss the relationship, or lack thereof, between voice coaches and sound designers in the theatre, with particular emphasis on the use of microphones. Visit the podcast page at PaulMeier.com/In-A-Manner-of-Speaking for more free information related to the topic.

The May 2025 episode tackles artificial intelligence, or AI. Paul's guests are speech-to-text specialist Michael McAuliffe and dialect coach Tanera Marshall, who worked on "The Brutalist." Paul, Michael, and Tanera, plus co-producer Cameron Meier, discuss AI in the context of human speech in general but especially acting and singing. For free extras and more info, go to the May 2025 podcast page a...

For the April 2025 episode, Paul discusses rhoticity, the use of the letter R in speech. For more information, visit the page associated with this podcast episode at PaulMeier.com/In-A-Manner-Of-Speaking.

The March 2025 episode of "In a Manner of Speaking" is the first to feature a playwright. Paul Meier discusses how playwrights hear their characters voices with Pulitzer Price-nominated James Still. 

Paul's February 2025 podcast episode is his first to focus on the speech of inanimate objects, specifically puppets. But as you will see from this month's guest, accomplished "Sesame Street" puppeteer Spencer Lott, they can be just as animated as any human. Spencer and Paul discuss puppetry and specifically the art of voicing the characters.

For the January 2025 , Paul and his guest, distinguished Cambridge zoologist Arik Kershenbaum, discuss, in a first for this podcast, the speech of non-humans. Why do animals "talk"? For extra free content, make sure to listen to the podcast at PaulMeier.com.

Renowned singing and voice teachers and authors Gillyanne Kayes and Jeremy Fisher return to the podcast for December 2024 to discuss Jeremy's new book, "Just How Boring Are You?" which examines how to be a better podcast guest. For more information, visit the page devoted to this episode at PaulMeier.com/In-A-Manner-Of-Speaking.

Linguist Karen Burgos returns to the podcast for November 2024 to discuss American and British dialects in popular song. She and Paul are joined by podcast co-producer Cameron Meier to examine dialect trends in music from the first decade of the 20th century to today.

Actor, director, and voice/dialect coach Jacqueline Springfield returns to the podcast for October 2024 to discuss voices of the Civil Rights Movement in the United States. Paul and Jacqueline analyze snippets of 11 speeches, from Booker T. Washington in 1895 to President Barack Obama in 2016, looking at dialect, content, and style.

Podcast regular David Crystal is back on "In a Manner of Speaking" to discuss his new website, TraceThatPlace.com, which allows users to explore the story and sound of place names on the road signs and railway stations of Britain." Visit the September 2024 podcast page at PaulMeier.com/In-a-Manner-of-Speaking for more information.

On the August 2024 episode of "In a Manner of Speaking," Paul discusses dialect coaching with IDEA Associate Editor and successful dialect coach Joel Goldes. They focus on two of Goldes' many projects: "Come from Away" and "The Woman King." Visit the August 2024 podcast page at PaulMeier.com/In-a-Manner-of-Speaking for more information.

For the July 2024 podcast, Paul, Barrie Krenik, and Cameron Meier discuss the old Transatlantic dialect of American speech, focusing on its use both in real life and in Hollywood films. For extra free information related to this topic, visit the podcast page at PaulMeier.com/In-a-Manner-of-Speaking.

For the June 2023 podcast, Paul welcomes celebrated Danish-American actor Lukas Hassel, who has forged a unique path to success in film and television. Joined by podcast co-producer Cameron Meier, they discuss Lukas's career and the challenges of performing in a second language. For more info about Lukas and extra free content, visit the podcast page indexed at https://www.paulmeier.com/in-a-manne...

The May 2024 episode focuses on African-American English, which Paul discusses with American Dialect Society President Patricia Cukor-Avila. Paul and Patricia principally listen to and analyze historic Black dialects in the United States, from Colonial days to the early 20th century.

For the April 2024 podcast, Paul explores loudness, or the lack thereof. Just as he examined extremes of pitch and speed in past episodes, Paul discusses extremes of volume, looking at world records for loudness while reflecting on the rarity of true silence.

Welcome to the March 2024 episode of "In a Manner of Speaking," in which Paul discusses folk linguistics with dialectologist Dennis Preston, professor emeritus at Oklahoma State University and former president of the American Dialect Society. To learn more about the topic and Professor Preston, and for extra, free content, visit the podcast episode page at PaulMeier.com/In-a-Manner-of-Speaking.

The February 2024 episode of "In a Manner of Speaking" is all about the American Dialect Society, which was founded in 1889 to study English and other languages in North America. Paul's guest is Betsy Evans, the new executive director of the society. For more info, visit Episode 73 at PaulMeier.com/In-A-Manner-Of-Speaking.

Paul begins 2024 with a discussion about the fundamental nature of the core topic of this podcast: the word. Specifically, he discusses the concept of the word itself, with Victor Boucher, professor of linguistics at the University of Montreal. For more information about Victor and this topic, visit the podcast page indexed at PaulMeier.com/In-A-Manner-Of-Speaking.

For the last podcast episode of 2023, Paul talks to Paul Saenger, curator of rare books, emeritus, at Chicago’s Newberry Library, about the history of silent reading and the evolution of inserting (or not inserting) spaces between words. For more information about this podcast, visit the December 2023 podcast page at PaulMeier.com/In-a-Manner-ofSpeaking.

In this, the 70th episode of Paul Meier's "In a Manner of Speaking" podcast, we learn what Colonial American English might have sounded like. Paul examines this fascinating and understudied topic with Karen Burgos, a freelance linguist, independent researcher, and founder of Ace Linguist. For extra free content on this topic and all of Paul's podcasts, refer to the main podcast page at PaulMeier.c...

For the October 2023 episode of "In a Manner of Speaking," Paul Meier discusses the connection between orality and literacy with Professor Brian Ott, an expert in the field of rhetoric and media. They discuss many topics related to rhetoric and the oral tradition throughout human history.

The September 2023 episode of "In a Manner of Speaking" features a trip through time:  a conversation between Paul and renowned linguist David Crystal about the history of the English language. David traces the development of English from the Roman occupation of Britain to the spread of Modern English around the world. Visit the podcast page at PaulMeier.com/In-a-Manner-of-Speaking for extra free...

For the August 2023 episode of "In a Manner of Speaking," Paul talks to Jill Purce, the doyenne of harmonic overtone chanting, which is often called polyphonic overtone singing, or singing two or more notes at the same time. Paul and Jill discuss all aspects of this unique art. Visit the podcast page for this episode at PaulMeier.com/In-a-Manner-of-Speaking for lots of extra free content.