Review of Pop Vultures #14: Salute to Glam Rock (deleted)
Is there some reason that this show isn't on public radio every week, every station? It's really really good--a child of the TAL era of radio, with the great transitions., perfect pacing, and a sound that somehow combines polish and comfortable familiarity (as opposed to fakey intimacy). But I would guess its prime audience would be a few years younger, which is just what we want, no? And it's about a world that older listeners should understand too. It makes listeners work a little bit--it's about five minutes into most shows that you've figured out enough about the subject to feel comfortable. But I like doing that work.
Shabalala has one of the most recognizeable and amazing speaking voices in the world of music, and the producers are wise enough to let us have it essentially unadorned, telling tales of great power. I can't imagine any serious public radio listener (whose interests have expanded beyond classical music) not being enthralled. And after Mandela and Tutu, he may be the great South African voice
Hey, this is great. Why isn't this series on my radio station all the time? This is very thoughtful stuff, and extremely well-done. The sound is lovely, the interviewing is great, but msot of all there's a neat human brain behind it all. Some of the best stuff I've heard in an age.
Hmmm. The framing here is a little questionable--I mean, the bowling isn't really extreme at all. And the pieces are fine but a little predictable--pumpkin firing is one of those inevitable stories that feature reporters get to every year or two. It's done pretty well here, but nothing special. Ditto with pigeon racing. As for spelling, well, many listeners will have viewed Spellbound, the truly exceptional documentary about spelling bees. This take on spelling is okay, just okay. In general, this seems more heavy on attitude than content--if you put pigeons in a truck it's "a pigeon movile home." People "mosey" places. And the bull-riding stuff struck me as condescending. None of it is as offbeat as it really wants to be.
This is a tremendous piece of radio--somehow it manages to take a topic that could easily crash over into sentimentality and make it instead deeply deeply moving, because the narrator has managed to think so clearly about what it all means. In fact, it would be a great piece even if there were'nt a Karmapa involved--he's almost a shaggy dog in this story. I think no listener will complain that this is too long--it's the kind of lovely thing that one wishes were on ATC every night.
Comment for
"Devils and Demons: The Perils of Personalizing Foreign Policy" (deleted)
Review of Devils and Demons: The Perils of Personalizing Foreign Polic (deleted)
The strength of this piece is the original idea of the discussion: should we personalize foreign policy. It's like a good theme from a Chris Lydon show. That said, the execution is a tad dry: the piece doesn't move quite as much through the theme it could have, and the sound is pretty static.
This half hour does one of the things radio should: brings us a mind and a voice we would not otherwise have encountered, and not in an interview format but in performance. In fact, I've often wondered why more things like this don't appear regularly on radio--people would listen with real fascination to this. The only problem is with packaging: in this case, the performance artist tells two stories. They are very different in tone. the second one is much the stronger. It would be wonderful were it longer, so it could carry the whole half hour by itself.
i defy anyone with aging parents to listen to this piece and not be deeply moved, deeply engaged. it is the best take i've heard on a question now becoming ubiquitous. the mterial is so drenched with emotion that the straightforward take of both the narrator and the main subject are much appreciated--it's truly a piece that should appear on everyone's air.
Comment for
"Ed and Dale: Porpoise Hunters" (deleted)
Unless something is wrong with my computer, the first two minutes of this piece sound as if they were recorded in a blender. It gets better after that once you can hear what's going on--but there's insufficient attempt to answer the questions that would occur to any listener. For instance, how endangered are porpoises? Is it not necessary to protect them? More reporting would have benefited this piece.
this is a nifty piece--especially as the reporter draws out the similarities between being the Portland Sea Dog Dog and being a funeral director. The sound is a little weak in spots--you really wanted the noise of the ballgame in the background at some point, for instance. and it tails off a bit at the end--but what a fine short feature!
This is a truly nifty piece of radio--the voices are powerful and specific. it raises a question that pertians generally, and it manages to capture the experience of incarceration without sentimentality. All it needs is some kind of intro to set the scene--explain who is doing the recording and under what circumstances.
The first thing to be said is, I badly want this story not to be true. But it clearly is--a brilliant piece of radio, operating on an onomatopoetic level: that is, it immerses you in a world which is about immersion in a world. Not only that, but it has a wild story to tell as well. If I were going to do anything with it, I'd make it longer--I want to hear the voices of these other people.
Here's the thing--this is quite a good piece (especially the introduction about the 80 million uninsured) but as it currently stands it won't be of any sue to any station outside Oregon. It wouldn't be that hard to repurpose it as a story about one example of the collapse of the larger health care system. And that's what should happen, because this is obvioulsy one of the nation's msot important and underreported topics, and the people doing this piece have the chops to make it a national piece if they choose to.
This piece is right up my alley--I'm an environmental writer. But it somehow managed to make one of the most interesting subjects of all--the diversity of life on earth--sound more than a little dull. No sounds of other creatures (no sounds at all except a few guys talking); no images; hardly any proper nouns. I can think of a thousand more engaging ways to cover this material--this is the numbing summation of bureaucratic scientists. Their work is extremely noble and important, but it's the role of the journalist to translate it for others.
It's not entirely clear why we're hearing so much from the particular Philip K. Dick fans quoted at such length; still, there is no question that by the end of the piece one would want to go read a PKD novel, if only to find out where this intense devotion comes from. And the spooky sound of Dick in the middle of the piece sealed the intrigue.
This is a brave young woman with a strong voice. It's also a piece that doesn't get very far below the surface; that is to say, one or two stories told in depth would have reached this listener at a deeper level than this mini-history of her addiction. A little more context would also help.
Comments by Bill McKibben
Comment for "Pop Vultures #14: Salute to Glam Rock" (deleted)
Bill McKibben
Posted on November 12, 2004 at 04:45 AM
Review of Pop Vultures #14: Salute to Glam Rock (deleted)
Is there some reason that this show isn't on public radio every week, every station? It's really really good--a child of the TAL era of radio, with the great transitions., perfect pacing, and a sound that somehow combines polish and comfortable familiarity (as opposed to fakey intimacy). But I would guess its prime audience would be a few years younger, which is just what we want, no? And it's about a world that older listeners should understand too. It makes listeners work a little bit--it's about five minutes into most shows that you've figured out enough about the subject to feel comfortable. But I like doing that work.
Comment for "Joseph Shabalala: the leader of Grammy-winning Ladysmith Black Mambazo, In his own words"
Bill McKibben
Posted on November 12, 2004 at 04:37 AM | Permalink
Review of Joseph Shabalala: In his own words
Shabalala has one of the most recognizeable and amazing speaking voices in the world of music, and the producers are wise enough to let us have it essentially unadorned, telling tales of great power. I can't imagine any serious public radio listener (whose interests have expanded beyond classical music) not being enthralled. And after Mandela and Tutu, he may be the great South African voice
Comment for "Hollister"
Bill McKibben
Posted on November 11, 2004 at 10:57 AM | Permalink
Review of Hollister
Hey, this is great. Why isn't this series on my radio station all the time? This is very thoughtful stuff, and extremely well-done. The sound is lovely, the interviewing is great, but msot of all there's a neat human brain behind it all. Some of the best stuff I've heard in an age.
Comment for "B-Side: Extreme Sports"
Bill McKibben
Posted on November 11, 2004 at 09:59 AM | Permalink
Review of B-Side: Extreme Sports
Hmmm. The framing here is a little questionable--I mean, the bowling isn't really extreme at all. And the pieces are fine but a little predictable--pumpkin firing is one of those inevitable stories that feature reporters get to every year or two. It's done pretty well here, but nothing special. Ditto with pigeon racing. As for spelling, well, many listeners will have viewed Spellbound, the truly exceptional documentary about spelling bees. This take on spelling is okay, just okay. In general, this seems more heavy on attitude than content--if you put pigeons in a truck it's "a pigeon movile home." People "mosey" places. And the bull-riding stuff struck me as condescending. None of it is as offbeat as it really wants to be.
Comment for "His Holiness the Karmapa and me"
Bill McKibben
Posted on November 11, 2004 at 09:31 AM | Permalink
Review of His Holiness the Karmapa and me
This is a tremendous piece of radio--somehow it manages to take a topic that could easily crash over into sentimentality and make it instead deeply deeply moving, because the narrator has managed to think so clearly about what it all means. In fact, it would be a great piece even if there were'nt a Karmapa involved--he's almost a shaggy dog in this story. I think no listener will complain that this is too long--it's the kind of lovely thing that one wishes were on ATC every night.
Comment for "Devils and Demons: The Perils of Personalizing Foreign Policy" (deleted)
Bill McKibben
Posted on November 11, 2004 at 08:58 AM
Review of Devils and Demons: The Perils of Personalizing Foreign Polic (deleted)
The strength of this piece is the original idea of the discussion: should we personalize foreign policy. It's like a good theme from a Chris Lydon show. That said, the execution is a tad dry: the piece doesn't move quite as much through the theme it could have, and the sound is pretty static.
Comment for "Invisible Ink: Stranger Still"
Bill McKibben
Posted on November 10, 2004 at 06:21 AM | Permalink
Review of Invisible Ink: Stranger Still
This half hour does one of the things radio should: brings us a mind and a voice we would not otherwise have encountered, and not in an interview format but in performance. In fact, I've often wondered why more things like this don't appear regularly on radio--people would listen with real fascination to this. The only problem is with packaging: in this case, the performance artist tells two stories. They are very different in tone. the second one is much the stronger. It would be wonderful were it longer, so it could carry the whole half hour by itself.
Comment for "Mom's Good Move"
Bill McKibben
Posted on November 03, 2004 at 10:41 AM | Permalink
Review of Mom's Good Move
i defy anyone with aging parents to listen to this piece and not be deeply moved, deeply engaged. it is the best take i've heard on a question now becoming ubiquitous. the mterial is so drenched with emotion that the straightforward take of both the narrator and the main subject are much appreciated--it's truly a piece that should appear on everyone's air.
Comment for "Ed and Dale: Porpoise Hunters" (deleted)
Bill McKibben
Posted on November 03, 2004 at 06:59 AM
Review of Ed and Dale: Porpoise Hunters (deleted)
Unless something is wrong with my computer, the first two minutes of this piece sound as if they were recorded in a blender. It gets better after that once you can hear what's going on--but there's insufficient attempt to answer the questions that would occur to any listener. For instance, how endangered are porpoises? Is it not necessary to protect them? More reporting would have benefited this piece.
Comment for "The Mascot"
Bill McKibben
Posted on October 15, 2004 at 06:18 AM | Permalink
Review of The Mascot
this is a nifty piece--especially as the reporter draws out the similarities between being the Portland Sea Dog Dog and being a funeral director. The sound is a little weak in spots--you really wanted the noise of the ballgame in the background at some point, for instance. and it tails off a bit at the end--but what a fine short feature!
Comment for "A Picture of Freedom from Behind Bars"
Bill McKibben
Posted on October 15, 2004 at 06:06 AM | Permalink
Review of A Picture of Freedom from Behind Bars
This is a truly nifty piece of radio--the voices are powerful and specific. it raises a question that pertians generally, and it manages to capture the experience of incarceration without sentimentality. All it needs is some kind of intro to set the scene--explain who is doing the recording and under what circumstances.
Comment for "A Disturbance in the Force"
Bill McKibben
Posted on October 14, 2004 at 06:03 PM | Permalink
Review of A Disturbance in the Force
The first thing to be said is, I badly want this story not to be true. But it clearly is--a brilliant piece of radio, operating on an onomatopoetic level: that is, it immerses you in a world which is about immersion in a world. Not only that, but it has a wild story to tell as well. If I were going to do anything with it, I'd make it longer--I want to hear the voices of these other people.
Comment for "The Fraying Safety Net"
Bill McKibben
Posted on October 14, 2004 at 05:44 PM | Permalink
Review of The Fraying Safety Net
Here's the thing--this is quite a good piece (especially the introduction about the 80 million uninsured) but as it currently stands it won't be of any sue to any station outside Oregon. It wouldn't be that hard to repurpose it as a story about one example of the collapse of the larger health care system. And that's what should happen, because this is obvioulsy one of the nation's msot important and underreported topics, and the people doing this piece have the chops to make it a national piece if they choose to.
Comment for "RN Documentary: Biodiversity"
Bill McKibben
Posted on October 14, 2004 at 05:16 PM | Permalink
Review of RN Documentary: Biodiversity
This piece is right up my alley--I'm an environmental writer. But it somehow managed to make one of the most interesting subjects of all--the diversity of life on earth--sound more than a little dull. No sounds of other creatures (no sounds at all except a few guys talking); no images; hardly any proper nouns. I can think of a thousand more engaging ways to cover this material--this is the numbing summation of bureaucratic scientists. Their work is extremely noble and important, but it's the role of the journalist to translate it for others.
Comment for "TOE/Saint Phil"
Bill McKibben
Posted on October 13, 2004 at 06:46 PM | Permalink
Review of TOE/Saint Phil
It's not entirely clear why we're hearing so much from the particular Philip K. Dick fans quoted at such length; still, there is no question that by the end of the piece one would want to go read a PKD novel, if only to find out where this intense devotion comes from. And the spooky sound of Dick in the middle of the piece sealed the intrigue.
Comment for "Heroin and Me"
Bill McKibben
Posted on October 13, 2004 at 06:15 PM | Permalink
Review of Heroin and Me
This is a brave young woman with a strong voice. It's also a piece that doesn't get very far below the surface; that is to say, one or two stories told in depth would have reached this listener at a deeper level than this mini-history of her addiction. A little more context would also help.