The Backstory to Great Audio Storytelling, hosted by Rob Rosenthal, for Transom and PRX.
…
continue reading
"To play and to fail and to get to know each other and to celebrate the craft of making audio... What's better than that," Jasmin Bauomy asks. When inspiration struck, Jasmin put together a four-day audio retreat for about a dozen producers from Berlin. She called the retreat "The Ecco" and it yielded some fantastic storytelling.…
…
continue reading
We tell stories in sound for many, many reasons. For our listener's hearts and minds. For community. For self-expression. For the democracy. For listener's ears. Yes. Their ears. On this episode of The Sound School Podcast, Rob relishes the ear catching qualities of work from Delia Derbyshire (BBC), Michel Martin (NPR), and the Making Gay History p…
…
continue reading
Say you're listening to a great narrative podcast. The host has really grabbed your attention and you're pulled in. Then, out of nowhere, the narrator swears. Not once. Not twice. But three times. Including f-bombs. Is that a turn off for listeners? Should narrators swear? Dan Taberski defends his swears in his latest podcast.…
…
continue reading
1
Gaining Access While Preserving Anonymity in Medical Settings
16:48
16:48
Play later
Play later
Lists
Like
Liked
16:48
Patient privacy in medical settings is essential. So, how does a reporter convince a facility to let them in with a microphone and assure anonymity of the patient? Selena Simmons-Duffin has answers. She is a health policy reporter at NPR who recently reported inside a primary care facility that provides standard medical care as well as abortions.…
…
continue reading
There are four kinds of luck. Unlucky. No luck. Lucky. And radio luck. On this archive episode of Sound School, Hillary Frank digs into the *incredible* radio luck she encountered reporting a story about teens and their "robot babies."By Rob Rosenthal/PRX/Transom.org
…
continue reading
David Weinberg pulls off a real radio feat mixing fantasy and reality in his documentary called "Grace of the Sea." In this archive episode, David explores the value of "magical realism" in audio storytelling.By Rob Rosenthal/PRX/Transom.org
…
continue reading
Rob plays "Story DJ" on this episode "spinning" excerpts from several excellent stories you'll definitely want to hear. It's an audio field trip taking you around the world: Macon, Georgia, Wales, Madagascar, Kenya, and a closet at an undisclosed IKEA. Bring your best headphones for this one.By Rob Rosenthal/PRX/Transom.org
…
continue reading
Don't leave an interview entirely to chance. Structure it like a good story. On this episode, Rob dissects an interview on The Daily revealing its effective inner story structure.By Rob Rosenthal/PRX/Transom.org
…
continue reading
1
Tips to Elevate Your Reporting and Storytelling from Ira Glass
56:52
56:52
Play later
Play later
Lists
Like
Liked
56:52
Ira Glass of This American Life is a master audio storyteller. He's equally skillful at laying out the mechanics of creative storytelling and reporting, too. Rob unearthed a presentation Ira made back in 2001 at a radio conference that is signature Ira and brimming with incredibly helpful tips on writing, structure, reporting, and scoring. A good l…
…
continue reading
1
Safety First: Recording with Actors for an LGBTQ Story in Uganda
23:33
23:33
Play later
Play later
Lists
Like
Liked
23:33
It's illegal to be queer in Uganda and incredibly unsafe. Queer people risk violence, eviction, harassment, and arrest. How then does a producer protect the identity of interviewees, especially when someone's voice might be recognized. British freelance producer Mary Goodhart solved this problem and many other safety issues while working on an LGBT…
…
continue reading
1
Shocking, Heartbreaking, Transformative…and Ethical?
35:38
35:38
Play later
Play later
Lists
Like
Liked
35:38
There's a moment in this episode when Rob is gasping and holding his hand to his chest. Why was he so astonished? Listen to his conversation with Jess Shane as they dissect the ethics of her Radiotopia documentary "Shocking, Heartbreaking, Transformative."By Rob Rosenthal/PRX/Transom.org
…
continue reading
Deadlines, production meetings, staff management, show scheduling... in any given day, there's rarely time to pause and consider the craft of audio storytelling. Of course, PRX and Transom hope Sound School provides an easy opportunity to do that. On this episode, we'd like to introduce you to another podcast with the same mission: Sound Judgment h…
…
continue reading
Have NPR's news magazines occasionally been sounding more radiophonic lately? Rob thinks so. He's collected a handful of satisfying moments of writing, production, and reporting from several reporters: Daniel Estrin, Avery Keatley, Andrew Limbong, Barbara Moran, Ari Shapiro, and Andrea Shea.By Rob Rosenthal/PRX/Transom.org
…
continue reading
"Ums." You're supposed to cut them out, right? But what if the "um" means something? Talia Augustidis noticed her boyfriend "ummed" when he was lying and she thought "radio story." Talia takes a deep dive into the importance of not cutting out all the "ums" as well as the backstory to her piece for the BBC's Short Cuts called "What's In An Um?"…
…
continue reading
1
Revisiting: Should I or Shouldn’t I — Recording in Stereo
19:28
19:28
Play later
Play later
Lists
Like
Liked
19:28
One of the top three questions Rob often hears when he's teaching is, "Should I record in stereo?" Rob says mono is usually the way to go. But on this archive episode of Sound School, former NPR engineer Flawn Williams evangelizes about the value of stereo recordings, and he brought along several sound-rich examples.…
…
continue reading
In the tsunami of serialized documentary making over the last decade, what happened to the short story? Where are the one-off curious and creative sound portraits or essays or found sound or audio postcards or.... ? Last year Transom commissioned a dozen short stories as part of "Small, Random, and Meaningful." Rob features his three favorites.…
…
continue reading
1
For the Love of Radio, Get Out of the Studio!
18:29
18:29
Play later
Play later
Lists
Like
Liked
18:29
In honor of World Radio Day this week, The Sound School Podcast is celebrating with a story that exemplifies the power of radio to evoke striking images — a story reported from a remote hillside in Slovenia.By Rob Rosenthal/PRX/Transom.org
…
continue reading
Katz Laszlo says writing and tracking for herself is complicated enough. But it's an even greater challenge writing for and tracking with the two co-hosts of The Europeans podcast. Katz lays out how she and the hosts wrangle it all on the latest Sound School.By Rob Rosenthal/PRX/Transom.org
…
continue reading
It's a brave thing to share the outtakes from a tracking session. All the blemishes are right there. But, Martine Powers and Rennie Svirnovsky from audio team at The Washington Post have graciously done just that. Hearing how they work as tracking partners is a real gift for anyone who wants to perform better in the mic booth.…
…
continue reading
1
Revisiting: Goldstein on Writing, Fonts, and The Goldstein
41:49
41:49
Play later
Play later
Lists
Like
Liked
41:49
While there were many great podcasts released in 2023, no one will remember the year as a good one for the people who make podcasts. There were far too many layoffs and cancellations including a show dear to our radio hearts at Transom, Heavyweight, hosted by Jonathan Goldstein. In honor of the show and Jonathan's remarkable writing, Rob revisits h…
…
continue reading
Rob takes himself to task on this episode. He felt the beginning of the last episode of Sound School was so boring, he rewrote it. Compare the old version with the new version be sure to tell us at Transom which is the better open.By Rob Rosenthal/PRX/Transom.org
…
continue reading
Theo Greenly reports for a public radio station in the far-flung Aleutian Islands in Alaska. When he started, about two and a half years ago, he thought he'd hit the ground running reporting in-depth, documentary-style pieces. Instead, he learned he really needed to get his bearings first and just report the news. His stories about how to report --…
…
continue reading
Fiction should stay in its corner, non-fiction in its corner. Or so Rob thought until he heard producer Pippa Johnstone seamlessly and effectively mix the two in her memorable podcast "Expectant," where Pippa explores a remarkably uncomfortable question: In a time of climate change, is it okay to have children?…
…
continue reading
1
Interview Strangers on the Street, Make a Podcast
20:19
20:19
Play later
Play later
Lists
Like
Liked
20:19
Catherine Carr has turned vox into artful conversation with a deceptively simple question: Where are you going? That's also the name of the podcast she makes (a recent British Podcast Award winner) where she interviews strangers about where they're going and so much more.By Rob Rosenthal/PRX/Transom.org
…
continue reading
Studs Terkel is considered by many to be a patron saint of documentary radio journalism. It's been 15 years since his death. On this archive episode of Sound School from 2012, Rob talks to Syd Lewis who worked with Studs for 25 years. The show also includes a lengthy excerpt from "Working With Studs," a Transom Radio Special produced by Syd, Jay Al…
…
continue reading
Rob acts as a story DJ on this episode, featuring excerpts from stories he’s recently found pleasing to the ear. His "playlist" includes work from "More Perfect," the BBC Radio 4 podcast "Seriously," "The Shortwave Radio Archive," and "That Intimate Feeling." Drop a needle on the episode and press play.…
…
continue reading
What do radio producers Phoebe Judge (Criminal), Zoe Chase (This American Life), Greg Warner (Rough Translation), Matt Kielty (Radiolab), Emily Kwong (NPR) and dozens if not hundreds of others you've heard on your favorite podcasts and radio shows have in common? Salt. They're all graduates of the Salt Institute for Documentary Studies in Portland,…
…
continue reading
This year's Third Coast Festival winners and finalists produced incredible work. It got us thinking about winners from previous years. So, we dug up this fantastic interview with Rachel Matlow who won a "Best New Producer" award in 2016 for their thoughtful and creative story "Dead Mom Talking."By Rob Rosenthal/PRX/Transom.org
…
continue reading
1
So You STILL Want to Start a Podcast, Eh?
19:15
19:15
Play later
Play later
Lists
Like
Liked
19:15
It's unusual for a producer to share a work in progress. It's rarer still to do it twice. Nina Porzucki updates Rob on the progress of Bird Talk, her comedy podcast in-the-making and the steps it took to make her second pilot funnier and more engaging.By Rob Rosenthal/PRX/Transom.org
…
continue reading
1
Going Behind the Mic On Climate Change Reporting
31:08
31:08
Play later
Play later
Lists
Like
Liked
31:08
Rebecca Hersher, a climate science reporter at NPR, offers excellent tips on reporting on climate change. But, at the heart of Rob's interview with her is something more philosophical: the role of hope in climate change reporting.By Rob Rosenthal/PRX/Transom.org
…
continue reading
1
Revisiting: Sound Art Meets Poetry Meets Cicadas
22:13
22:13
Play later
Play later
Lists
Like
Liked
22:13
Summer means cicadas. Those crackly, buzzy bugs that drone and drone in the heat like a live electrical wire spewing sparks. Mair Bosworth and Fiona Benson took that sound and crafted "Magicicada," a stunning "sound poem," as they called it, marrying Mair's stellar recordings and sound design and Fiona's nuanced poetry.…
…
continue reading
Get your headphones on for this episode! Rob dives into three remarkable examples of scoring. He features examples from the Serial/NYT series "The Retrievals," scored by Phoebe Wang, "My Mother Made Me" from PRX's Radiotopia Presents scored by Ian Coss, and The Atlantic's "Holy Week," scored by David Herman.…
…
continue reading
Rob's a fan of the "radio art" style of audio storytelling from Europe but often, after listening, he finds himself scratching his head. "What was that about?!" He wonders if the problem isn't the storytelling but his American ears and the way he listens. Alan Hall, of Falling Tree, the English production company, helps him listen in a new way.…
…
continue reading
1
Revisiting: Avoiding Pesky Sound Problems
13:04
13:04
Play later
Play later
Lists
Like
Liked
13:04
No matter how good you are recording in the field, you're going to encounter challenges. Rob Byers does an incredible job explaining how to avoid and fix those problems on this archive episode of Sound School from 2017. At the time, Rob worked at NPR. He's now the Technical Director at Criminal. His recording tips are invaluable. And so are the res…
…
continue reading
1
The Best Audio Storytelling According to Pushkin
28:20
28:20
Play later
Play later
Lists
Like
Liked
28:20
Pushkin Industries released a "Best Of Audio Storytelling: 2022" but instead of putting it out as a podcast series, it's an audiobook. Does it matter? Julia Barton at Pushkin says no. On the latest Sound School, Julia talks about tearing down audio silos, and discusses a handful of stories from the collection, including selections from Radiotopia, …
…
continue reading
The Sound School Podcast launched 15 years ago this month. But it was called Saltcast back then. And for the first episode, Rob featured once of his absolute favorite student-produced stories - one that he played in classes for years as an excellent example of documentary audio storytelling. To celebrate the show's 15th anniversary, Rob dusted off …
…
continue reading
Antonia Cereijido has her ear to the ground. It's her job as Executive Producer at LAist to listen to what everyone is putting out. Rob asks her what grabbed her ears lately? She tells us about two recent series: the second season of LaBrega, the Puerto Rican experience in eight songs, and Sold a Story: How Teaching Kids to Read Went So Wrong.…
…
continue reading
A light went out recently. The bright light of Chris Brookes — a sorcerer of audio documentary and sound art. When Rob heard the news, he immediately started work on this remembrance featuring excerpts from several of Chris' distinctive productions — stories where Chris' clear, authorial voice, his fingerprint, is evident and inspiring.…
…
continue reading
What's the value of a non-narrated story for the listener? "It's direct," says NPR's Quil Lawrence. The characters in the story are "talking straight to the listener." He says this is especially important in an audio obituary. So, in a recent remembrance he produced, he made sure to get out of the way of the tape.…
…
continue reading
Munira Kaoneka first started as a blogger in Tanzania. But she says sometimes you need to shout so she started a podcast, “The Kaya Sessions." A couple of years later, after taking a workshop on narrative audio storytelling and reporting, she's at a crossroads: continue her path to engineering ("the sensible choice for a proper African child," she …
…
continue reading
Rob takes a hard listen to three podcasts -- You Didn't See Nothin', Lights Out, and Noble Champions. He then tosses out darts for work that caused him to ask "Why'd you do that?!" and laurels for work that's just plain crushing it. Rob opens this episode with a note about Transom.org. Transom is dreaming up a new project and could really use your …
…
continue reading
1
Think of a Radio Station (or Podcast) as a Musical Instrument
25:37
25:37
Play later
Play later
Lists
Like
Liked
25:37
Steve Junker says he thinks of a radio station as a musical instrument -- a pipe organ, to be specific. It's capable of making all kinds kinds of sounds. But, he thinks public radio stations tend to only play a couple of notes - including WCAI in Falmouth, Massachusetts where he's the Managing Editor for News. In an effort to play a couple of other…
…
continue reading
In this episode, Rob turns the mic on himself to mark the 10th anniversary of meeting his birth mother for the first time. He also features the positively stunning portrait of an adopting mom in "Dear Birth Mother," a Third Coast award-winning doc from Dan Collison and Elizabeth Meister at Long Haul Productions.…
…
continue reading
1
Studs Terkel Meets Brian Eno in the Woods
17:44
17:44
Play later
Play later
Lists
Like
Liked
17:44
It's good to look beyond your borders for inspiration. That's what this episode is about. Brian Harnetty is a sound ethnographer. And quite a bit of what he does resembles the work of radio and podcast producers. But he departs from us with his unique approach to audio storytelling. A meld of composition, fieldwork, oral history, and archive record…
…
continue reading
Three great new podcasts raised production questions for Rob. Why use sound effects in All There Is With Anderson Cooper? Why were the interviews for Bjork’s Sonic Symbolism podcast recorded so poorly? Those questions and more on the latest Sound School Podcast.By Rob Rosenthal/PRX/Transom.org
…
continue reading
John Scott Dryden takes a very unique approach to sound design for the fiction podcasts he produces -- he records on location. For "Q&A," the first season of Mumbai Crime from Radiotopia, everything was recorded in Mumbai. The result is a podcast that sounds more organic, less manufactured in a studio. John explains why on this episode of Sound Sch…
…
continue reading
The vast majority of stories are told by one narrator. But not at NPR's Planet Money. They regularly have co-narrators. Why? Why have two narrators when one will suffice? Reporters Erika Beras and Sarah Gonzalez have the answer.By Rob Rosenthal/PRX/Transom.org
…
continue reading
1
Caves and Bears and Neanderthal Flutes - Stories from Slovenia
26:10
26:10
Play later
Play later
Lists
Like
Liked
26:10
What's the best way for reporters to break out of their boxes and think creatively? Give them an unusual assignment and send them out into the world with microphones. That's just what happened during a week-long workshop Rob taught with 10 reporters in Slovenia. Hear the results on this episode of Sound School.…
…
continue reading
Rarely do reporters turn the mic on themselves to divulge the challenges in their own lives. So, when they do, it’s surprising — and refreshing. Stephanie Foo's personal essay, "The Favorite" is an excellent example. In this archive episode, Stephanie provides sage advice for anyone thinking of turning a mic toward themselves.…
…
continue reading
1
Story Dissection: When the Lede Gives It All Away
18:35
18:35
Play later
Play later
Lists
Like
Liked
18:35
The opening to a story, especially a long series, requires a dance. How much do you give away? How much do you hold on to? On this episode of the Sound School Podcast, I offer two examples: one that didn't hook me because it gave away too much, another that made me eager to hear the whole story. Find out what I think works and what doesn't.…
…
continue reading