Lisa Portolan Phd Thesis Podcast Film Event Direct

Dr. Lisa Portolan’s PhD thesis, titled "Intimate Media: A New Phenomenological Approach to Understanding Intimacy in the Digital Age" (awarded by the University of Technology Sydney), provides a foundational framework for understanding how digital platforms reshape personal connection. Her work specifically focuses on the podcast medium as an intimate space—arguing that the audio-only, headphone-based, and conversational nature of podcasts creates a unique form of parasocial intimacy.