PODCASTING
Central Ohioan’s shtick earns him award for comedy
Monday, November 28, 2005
Dean Narciso
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

JAMES D . DeCAMP | DISPATCH
Tim Henson proctors tests by day but records comedic podcasts by night.

Tim Henson’s day job as a proctor at a Worthington testing center requires tact and sensitivity.

He works in a pastel office behind sound-proof glass, overseeing exams given to future securities dealers, doctors and accountants.

"They’re understandably nervous, and they’re focused on their tests," he said.

They also can be ill-tempered, jumpy and rude, and they don’t always abide by the center’s strict rules.

"It’s made me hate people," Henson said, jokingly. "Obviously, I can’t scream at them and pick fights."

So Henson, 25, breaks loose after hours through a podcast.

"I take that anger and frustration and kind of filter it through the microphone," he said during a recent midnight taping of Distorted View.

The 20-minute show, available to anyone who wants to download the audio file to their computer or portable MP3 player, contains news commentary and off-color humor. It reaches 7,000 to 8,000 listeners a day. Henson describes it as "crass, vulgar, childish and inappropriate."

His Web site carries a disclaimer that says the podcast is not suitable for people younger than 18.

He insists that listeners understand that his treatment is parody, not personal.

Henson scours the Internet for bizarre news stories and adds commentary, much like late-night comedians.

"Sometimes I don’t even have to add much to it," he said.

This month, Henson received first place in the humor category at the first Podcast Awards ceremony, in California. Listeners voted during a 15-day period, with one vote allowed per person.

Henson works in the bedroom of his University District apartment. His unassuming demeanor transforms into petulant crank during the typical hour or more it takes him to produce the show.

A recent podcast began with news of a 74-year-old Chicago woman who lost her finger during a purse snatching.

"Thank you sir, you are my hero," Henson said of the assailant.

Part of Henson’s politically incorrect shtick is to denigrate the elderly.

"Times were tough," he says, mimicking an elderly woman. "We made it through the Depression eating stray cats and cigarette butts."

"I’d say he’s in the top 10 of risque," said Jeanette, another Columbus podcaster who didn’t want her full name used, fearing she might lose her job.

"I think that the audience that seeks out podcasts is usually looking for something other than mainstream radio and TV, something other than G-rated content."

A running gag has Henson selling his body parts to support the show. He has received about $200. The buyers get naming rights to the part — not severed limbs — in exchange.

He also has received ceaseand-desist letters, one from the publisher of the "Dummies" self-help books, which he parodied in a podcast about Suicide for Dummies and Slavery for Dummies editions.

Henson had early dreams of being a radio host. While other kids were playing sports or studying in his hometown of Ashtabula, he would be taping dialogue.

His fallback is a technologyeducation degree from Ohio State University, where he has a year to go.

His parents aren’t computersavvy, which is fortunate, he said. "I just don’t think they’d be too pleased."

His boss at Prometric Testing Center has no problem with the show.

"There’s business matters and personal matters," manager Joe Panico said, "and I don’t think they have to cross."

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