RESOURCE GUIDE Listen Up: Media Options for Sharing Out Your Oral Histories Table of Contents A. Podcast-related organizations
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B. Examples of oral history in radio, podcast, and other audio formats
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C. Websites for publicly sharing podcasts
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D. Recording devices
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E. Editing software
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F. Tutorials for podcasting and other skills
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G. Story structure
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H. Customizable websites
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I. Oral history blogs from a classroom
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J. Additional resources
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PODCAST-RELATED ORGANIZATIONS MAKING WAVES
Making Waves is an educational youth radio initiative that empowers teens to share their true stories. The program guides high school and college students through the process of creating radio journalism pieces by building their skills in writing, interviewing, editing and voicing. In the spirit of programs like Radio Rookies and NPR Youth Radio, Making Waves provides students with a forum to share perspectives that are relevant to the community at large. Ø http://www.makingwavescomo.org/ STORYCENTER StoryCenter creates spaces for transforming lives and communities, through the acts of listening to and sharing stories. Since 1993, they have partnered with organizations around the world on projects in StoryWork, digital storytelling, and other forms of digital media production. Their public workshops support individuals in creating and sharing stories. Ø https://www.storycenter.org/ THIRD COAST INTERNATIONAL AUDIO FESTIVAL Based in Chicago, the Third Coast International Audio Festival (TCIAF) curates sound-rich audio stories from around the world and shares them with as many ears as possible - via radio, podcast, public events, annual conference and this website. Operating year-round, Third Coast offers producers and listeners a multitude of ways to celebrate audio storytelling. Ø http://thirdcoastfestival.org/ YOUTH RADIO Youth Radio’s mission is to launch young people on career and education pathways by engaging them in work-based learning opportunities, creative expression, professional development, and health and academic support services. Partnering with industry professionals, students learn to produce marketable media for massive audiences while bringing youth perspectives to issues of public concern. Ø https://youthradio.org/ RADIO ROOKIES Radio Rookies is a New York Public Radio initiative that provides teenagers with the tools and training to create radio stories about themselves, their communities and their world. Since 1999, Radio Rookies has been conducting workshops across New York, in predominantly under-resourced neighborhoods, training young people to use words and sounds to tell true stories. Upon completion, the Rookies' documentaries air on WNYC on WNYC's Morning Edition and All Things Considered. Ø http://www.wnyc.org/shows/rookies
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EXAMPLES OF ORAL HISTORY IN RADIO, PODCAST, AND OTHER AUDIO FORMATS
StoryCorps: StoryCorps’ mission is to preserve and share humanity’s stories in order to build connections between people and create a more just and compassionate world. Ø https://storycorps.org/#popular-stories Stagg VOW: Amos Alonzo Stagg High School in Palos Hills, Illinois, has an annual oral history course for seniors. They recently began recording podcasts documenting short student oral histories. Ø https://soundcloud.com/staggvow Ø http://www.staggvow.com Densho: A grassroots organization dedicated to preserving, educating, and sharing the story of World War II-era incarceration of Japanese Americans in order to deepen understandings of American history and inspire action for equity. Ø http://archive.densho.org/main.aspx Ghetto Life 101: Teenagers LeAlan Jones and Lloyd Newman created a 30-minute radio broadcast documentary in 1993, exploring the lives of residents on the South Side of Chicago. Ø https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mYuC_3lJCFE First Days Project: The First Days Project shares stories of immigrants and refugees first experiences in the United States in video format with a written transcript of the interview. Ø http://www.firstdaysproject.org/
WEBSITES FOR PUBLICLY SHARING PODCASTS SoundCloud: Free, popular site for sharing audio files. Ø https://soundcloud.com For students and teachers more involved in coding and establishing a regular show, these sites involve setting up an RSS feed or require approval from Apple: Stitcher: https://www.stitcher.com Blubrry: https://www.blubrry.com Miro: http://www.getmiro.com
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RECORDING DEVICES TASCAM: Records in .wav (“wave” files) onto SD cards and uses batteries. Ø http://tascam.com Marantz: Records in .wav (“wave” files) onto SD cards and uses batteries. Ø http://www.us.marantz.com/us/pages/home.aspx
Your smartphone: You can record using your own smartphone with a pre-installed app, such as Voice Memo for iPhone, or other free applications available in the App Store or Google Play.
EDITING SOFTWARE Audacity: A free, open-source, cross-platform audio software for multi-track recording and editing that can be used on several operating systems. Ø http://www.audacityteam.org GarageBand: Free for Mac and other Apple devices. Ø https://www.apple.com/mac/garageband Adobe Audition: Professional software that is subscription-based with discounts for students and educators. Ø http://www.adobe.com/products/audition.html Hindenburg: Professional radio editing software that is subscription-based with discounts for students and educators. Ø https://hindenburg.com
TUTORIALS FOR PODCASTING AND OTHER SKILLS Lynda: Over 5,000 courses available online to learn about a variety of different skills. Ø https://www.lynda.com Skillshare: A community marketplace for learning new skills, including video-based courses and inperson workshops in major cities. Ø https://www.skillshare.com
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STORY STRUCTURE
There are many different ways to tell someone’s story. After making a chronological timeline, you can decide to keep it in chronological order, or present it in a more dynamic format, such as the “e” structure. Below are two visual examples of story structures as created by Making Waves:
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CUSTOMIZABLE WEBSITES
The following are popular websites that have both free and paid options with a variety of templates that can be customized depending on the focus of your project. Blogger: http://www.blogger.com Google Sites: http://sites.google.com Wix: http://www.wix.com/ Weebly: http://www.weebly.com Wordpress: https://wordpress.com/
ORAL HISTORY BLOGS FROM A CLASSROOM Imaging Home – CCSF Oral History Project: Dr. Steven Mayers at City College of San Francisco updates this blog at the end of every semester with narratives written by his students based on oral history interviews they have conducted during the school year. Ø https://ccsforalhistoryproject.wordpress.com/ Seeing the World, Through the Eyes of Immigrants – Oakland Tech: Matt Colley at Oakland created this website to share the oral history interviews conducted by his 9th graders. These narratives tell the stories of immigrants from all over the world and what brought them to the U.S. Ø http://matthewcolley4.wixsite.com/oralhistoryproject Live Oak Oral Histories: The eighth graders at Live Oak School in San Francisco conduct their own oral history project every year as part of their humanities course, and their interviews are uploaded and shared on this site. Ø http://www.liveoaksf.org/historyproj/
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ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
Oral history can be shared in a variety of formats. Above, we have outlined resources for starting your own podcast or building your own website. Other ways of sharing oral history include: A theatrical production: Voices from the Storm The Advanced Drama class (OakTech Rep) at Oakland Technical High School created a play adapted from Voices from the Storm, weaving together the stories of thirteen Hurricane Katrina survivors into one expressive narrative. You can download the script at: Ø http://voiceofwitness.org/education/student-work/oaktech-rep-voices-from-the-storm/ A photo documentary: Displaced in Colombia Voice of Witness and the Magnum Foundation brought together oral history and documentary photography to explore contemporary first-person stories of people impacted by the decades-long violence in Colombia. Ø http://voiceofwitness.org/education/curricula/displaced-in-colombia/
Sample release forms, rubrics, and other guides for the oral history project itself can be found in: The Power of the Story: The Voice of Witness Teacher’s Guide to Oral History Ø http://voiceofwitness.org/education/curricula/the-power-of-the-story/ Our past webinars and resource guides, especially “How to Plan Your Oral History Project” Ø http://voiceofwitness.org/education/webinars/
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