Inside the Podcast Studio: ‘Sidedoor’
Smithsonian’s Sidedoor has an entire network of museums to use as its podcasting playground — and it doesn’t let this opportunity go to waste. The whole purpose of the podcast is to tell the stories of objects and research in the museum’s vaults that can’t always be told through a museum exhibit. Host Tony Cohn and series producer Justin O’Neill propped open their side door to give us an inside look at their podcasting process and their studio space.
On the Podcast
Tell me about how you got the idea for Sidedoor. What was the inspiration?
Cohn: I was riding the D.C. Metro to work one morning while listening to Freakonomics. I started thinking about why I loved the show and realized it came down to good storytellers, good storytelling and some sort of “aha” moment that made me see the world in a different way. I realized those were sensations I experienced every day at the Smithsonian, we just weren’t talking about that on a podcast. It was a total lightbulb moment that took off from there.
What makes Sidedoor unique?
Cohn: The Smithsonian is made up of 6,200 passionate, smart people: everyone from a cellphone curator who visits Papua New Guinea to understand how technology is impacting human relationships, to a brewing historian at the National Museum of American History who helps us understand how beer history is American history, to an astronomer at our observatory in Cambridge turning the night sky into a musical instrument. Those are the stories we get to tell on Sidedoor. That’s what makes us unique.
Tell me about your team. What’s the overarching team dynamic? Who fits what role?
Cohn: We have the best team. It’s why I smile every morning on my walk to work. I think that also translates to the general tone of the show. Justin O’Neill is our series producer and podcast-producing-warrior — on a day-to-day basis, he’s on the ground making sure the trains are moving and the heavy lifting (and scripting and editing) gets done.
Stacia Brown is our associate producer and is really a jack of all trades, helping the editing, scripting and pre-production process move smoothly. Jason Orfanon’s our executive producer, leading the editorial process and is our golden ear as content starts coming out of the oven. Gabe Kosowitz leads distribution for the show, working closely with PRX to secure sponsor spots and other logistical needs and also serves as an editorial advisor.
Jess Sadeq heads up the advertising, social media and press outreach team for the show, along with Sarah Sulick and Hannah Ostroff (don’t forget to follow the show on Twitter). Greg Fisk is our incredible designer and creates graphics for our website, social media channels and anything else we throw his way.
I guess I’m the professional talker. I get to conduct the actual interviews, as well as odds and ends throughout the editorial, promotion and distribution process.
While we each have marching orders, the team is highly collaborative. In the fast paced environment of creating Sidedoor, no one is afraid to get their hands dirty and pitch in wherever they’re needed.
Where do you get your story ideas — do Smithsonian experts pitch stories to you, or do you come up with episode topics and find stories in the museum’s vaults that fit your topics?
Cohn: Typically, the editorial team, led by Justin and Jason, comes up with the story ideas. These ideas can start with a collection item or piece of research, but we always come back to the person who can tell the story behind it. It’s that Smithsonian expert who makes the story sing. Before launching the first season, we would approach the various museums, research centers and zoo about different story ideas. Since the show has been released, there’s been tons of internal enthusiasm for it throughout the Smithsonian. We’ve started to get pitched to by staff members, which has been really great.
What’s your favorite technique to bring life to episodes about events far in the past?
O’Neill: Whenever possible, I like to be able to give life to the person by finding a primary document, so we can hear their words and their perspective on whatever they faced in their life. This is a real strength for the Smithsonian, because there are so many historical documents here that can help reanimate someone, and instead of speculating on how they felt about beer, or winter or whatever it is that people faced, they can tell us themselves.
How do you think the podcast can change a visitor’s experience of the Smithsonian?
Cohn: People tend to think of the Smithsonian as a physical destination. And we are, and our museums are some of the best in the world. But Sidedoor is a way to experience the Smithsonian in a way you can’t in a physical visit — a cheetah conservator breeding cubs out at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Center in Front Royal, Virginia, or a researcher working to preserve the world’s oldest wine cave in Armenia. There’s just so much to learn from the Smithsonian. I’ve been here almost five years and, still, every day I learn something new about this amazing, vast, curious place. I’m hoping Sidedoor can be another way visitors (and non-visitors!) of the Smithsonian can experience that magic.
On the Space
Where do you do your work — a studio, in the field, at home? Can you walk me through that space?
O’Neill: Most of Sidedoor’s editorial process happens in my cubicle at work. It’s a standard 4 foot by 5 foot space with stitched cloth walls, which I use as a bulletin board. We also share mixed audio/video studio space with a team of videographers, but that space is fairly busy throughout the day.
I do a lot of script writing, reading and thinking at my desk at home, as well. I have a wide windowsill with a lot of plants that I futz over while I think through script problems. It’s a quiet distraction that gets me moving without asking much attention.
Do you have a thinking or reflection space — somewhere you go outside the studio to gather creative inspiration?
O’Neill: My front porch. The dog park. Long road bike rides. The subway. The gym. My wife and friends will tell you that I’m a bit of a space cadet outside of work — I’m often mulling over parts of a story that are bugging me, or I don’t quite know how to solve, regardless of where I am. I also play hockey in a men’s league, which really helps turn my brain off for a few hours each week.
Cohn: Hmmm … this is hard. The gym is definitely up there. When I’m working out, sometimes incredible ideas just pop up out of nowhere. Also, while traveling. I love backpacking, and exploring new places allows me to gain new perspectives and get creative juices flowing.
Do you conduct your interviews in-studio, or do you go to scientists’ labs or curators’ offices to conduct interviews?
O’Neill: It’s about 50/50 — a lot of our interviews happen in various museums, curators’ offices or wherever our Smithsonian experts find themselves working. We bring the audio back to my cube for most of the editorial process. But whenever possible, we’ll bring our interviews to our studio.
Cohn: We’ve done interviews on boats down on Florida’s east coast, next to orangutans and pandas at the National Zoo and with renowned artists standing next to their exhibits at the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden. Lots of interviews also happen in our recording studio in D.C., but I love getting to go into the field whenever possible.
What type of equipment do you use to record Sidedoor?
O’Neill: We record our interviews using a Zoom H6 recorder, and we have a few different mics we’ll use depending on the circumstances: a Rode NTG-2, a Sennheiser ME-66 for field recording and a Rode NT1 studio mic.
On Podcasting
Why do you produce a podcast instead of a broadcast radio show?
O’Neill: When you have a small team, podcasting gives such an advantage, because we don’t have to fit stories to meet segment lengths. Our stories are just as long as they need to be. We still try to keep things tight, but we can indulge with the odd detour that we couldn’t if we were producing for air, just because we find it fun or interesting.
What do you think the future of the podcasting industry looks like?
This is a tough question because it changes so much each year, but it seems that a few networks are producing the majority of strong content. It’s hard not to think podcasting will go the way of TV, with a few networks producing the most visible content — the best independent shows will survive, or perhaps they’ll partner with other indies to create their own networks. This helps shows start to solve the problem of connecting with advertisers, as well. I think we’ve seen “peak podcast” in the number of shows being produced, but podcasts will continue to improve each year as more creative, innovative producers enter the field.
New episodes of Sidedoor drop biweekly, on Wednesdays. Listen to the most recent episode and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts.
