This is What Makes Top Audio Storytelling

Going in to this term, I had absolutely no experience with audio story telling. As a journalism student at the University of Oregon, I feel as if I am constantly conditioned to be a good storyteller. However, there is a huge difference between print, video and audio. Without a visual aid, or the option to glide your eyes back across the page if you miss a key point, the audio world can seem extremely daunting. In Top Audio Storytelling, we covered the technical side of podcasting, as well as the factors that make audio content engaging to an audience. We listened to many different genres of audio that served various purposes. This class gave me the tools and the confidence to feel comfortable analyzing audio, as well as creating my own.

One of the key points I took away from this course overall is that absolutely anyone can make audio. Of course, not everybody has access to a studio complete with soundproof walls and editing equipment. That being said, most people today have a smartphone with audio recording capability. This piece of technology that we often take for granted is one of the easiest ways to produce your own podcast. Arguably, the best part of podcasting is the user-friendly convenience that it presents. Not everyone can produce a television show out of their home, but we learned that some people have become immensely successful doing just that with podcasting. In class we had the chance to listen to former U.S. President Barack Obama be interviewed by Marc Maron for his WTF Podcast, which he produces out of his garage.

Some important technical tips we learned about audio include but are not limited to…

· Prepare a script! Even if you choose not to use the entire thing, having an outline available can guide your podcast in the right direction

· Interview your subjects before you record them. This way, you will know what to expect and can be more selective about the questions you ask them so you can get the most valuable answers.

· Pay attention to natural sound! Professor Kim Fox, who teaches at the American University in Cairo, reminded us that finding specific sounds to fit the mood of your piece could really bring it to the next level.

We covered a wide range of genres and styles of audio in this class. We listened to serious stories about tragedy, uplifting pieces about life changes, and even a popular comedian, Ricky Gervais, talking about a monkey going to space. Just like other forms of media, audio can come in many different shapes and sizes. However, with each different genre comes a new approach or format. For example, you aren’t going to format a story about murder in the same way you would conduct a roundtable style comedy show.

Some of the formats we discussed include…

· A classic interview: In this style, an interviewer is speaking to a subject who experienced the specific event they are covering. They are asking the important questions, but allowing the subject to be the most central part of the story. In some cases, you may even want to edit the interviewers voice out.

· A monologue: This worked for our historical piece, where one person reads from a pre-written script and tells the story himself or herself.

· The Story corps style: In this format, the subject tells their story in their own voice without prompting from an interviewer. This can be extremely powerful, especially if the person is a descriptive and clear storyteller.

· The Roundtable style: Just like Rickey Gervais and his comedian friends, this style provides for a lot of wiggle room. Anything can happen when three people speak about different subjects and riff off of each other.

Audio storytelling may have a lot in common with other forms of media production, but in many ways it stands alone. For example, the content needs to be much more carefully laid out than with visual media. A person relies on only one sense to keep them engaged, so the content must keep up. To combat this issue, it is crucial to keep it attention grabbing. Some ways to do so are the use of descriptive language, an exciting passionate voice or voices to tell the story, and music or other sound effects to add depth.

Many people use “in between” time to listen to podcasts. This means tuning in at work while checking emails, while walking to and from a destination, while driving, making breakfast, or doing other mundane, day-to-day tasks. A certain type of podcast appeals to these people. This kind of podcast is clear and focused so one won’t get lost while doing more than one thing at a time, but it is also rich and interesting so that it keeps a listeners attention amidst all of the other things they are doing.

In conclusion, I was able to take a lot from this course. I now feel educated on the topic of audio storytelling, and I am able to use this knowledge as a listener and a producer. I feel comfortable analyzing a podcast, as I now know what to look for. I can recognize the choices made in creating it, and why they were made. I also now feel as if I am able to create my own podcasts. I hope to continue my audio storytelling journey, as this has been one of my favorite methods of getting a point across, with so many options and ways to go about it. Even if I do not go in to a career based upon audio, I now know how much I really like podcasts and will keep exploring them and creating my own.