How to choose an interesting topic for media content? (Before working on it)

wgrigg said:

Hi everyone, I would like to know your opinions or personal experience in selecting topics for media content.

The main direction I want to launch is Twitch streams with an educational component. We'd discuss a single topic during each broadcast. Having spent seven years studying and working in the field of psychology, I believe this will be mutually beneficial: it offers me valuable practice in public speaking and audience engagement, while helping the audience gain a better understanding of the theoretical and practical perspectives behind various phenomena.

However, I’ve hit a wall when it comes to planning topics for these weekly streams. I’ve come up with the first one – the phenomenon of escapism – but beyond that, I’ve reached a point where I’m no longer sure what might actually be considered "interesting" anymore.

I would be very grateful for any topic suggestions you might have, or for advice on how you go about selecting such topics in your fild of work )

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wgrigg said:

Hi everyone, I would like to know your opinions or personal experience in selecting topics for media content.

The main direction I want to launch is Twitch streams with an educational component. We'd discuss a single topic during each broadcast. Having spent seven years studying and working in the field of psychology, I believe this will be mutually beneficial: it offers me valuable practice in public speaking and audience engagement, while helping the audience gain a better understanding of the theoretical and practical perspectives behind various phenomena.

However, I’ve hit a wall when it comes to planning topics for these weekly streams. I’ve come up with the first one – the phenomenon of escapism – but beyond that, I’ve reached a point where I’m no longer sure what might actually be considered "interesting" anymore.

I would be very grateful for any topic suggestions you might have, or for advice on how you go about selecting such topics in your fild of work )

Click to expand...

nigelyong said:

I make content and build software, and the thing that worked best for me when I ran out of topic ideas was mining comment sections. Pick 3 or 4 established psychology channels and read the comments under their most viewed videos, because the questions people ask there, like 'can you explain why this happens when...', are real demand you can answer more narrowly than they did. Put those questions in a spreadsheet and count how often each one repeats; anything that shows up five or more times is a safe topic for a stream. Since you like narrow topics, you can also end every stream by asking chat what they want covered next and keep a running backlog, so the audience helps plan the next month for you.

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greymon said:

Check the comment sections on big psychology YouTube channels. People constantly ask follow-up questions there that never get answered, which gives you ready-made stream topics.

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Jacveion said:

I think the best approach is to test topics before committing to a full stream. Pick a few psychology-related questions, create short posts or polls around them, and see which ones generate genuine discussions.

Also, don't focus only on trending topics, choose subjects where you can offer a fresh perspective or practical examples.
Audience curiosity and engagement can help you decide what deserves a full episode.

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