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WBEZ is looking for great material for a series we’re calling Race: Out Loud. Here’s the idea: What would it sound like if people said what they really think and feel about race, about ethnicity? What if they really talked about how it shapes them, their lives, and attitudes? What would we hear, if we listened?

This is a call for all manner of stories and ideas—in as creative an approach or production manner as you can imagine.  Think original. Think things we haven’t heard.  Things we don’t talk about.  And don’t limit yourselves to black and white—this is race, ethnicity in our time. Between races, ethnicities.   Within races.   We’re dealing here with Chicago and metro area.  But if you have some wild and wonderful idea beyond, try us.

A few examples of ideas already bubbling from reporters:  Nightlife: why don’t we play together?; Code words; What conversations do you have with your own race that you’d be squeamish having with people not of your race?

Multi-media. Video. Blog.  Music. Non-narrated stories. Investigative.  Stretch yourself and our listeners.

If you want to participate but don’t have an idea—let us know.

Otherwise, here’s the deal:  Deadline for written pitches [a brief description of the content and form of your idea] is Monday, April 2. 

 Send pitches and questions to: ccahan@wbez.org or nmoore@wbez.org 

 Thanks,

Cate and Natalie, WBEZ

Hi there freelancers!

We haven’t been too frequent on our calls for pitches—but hopefully that’s a trend we’re turning around…Below are a few topics for shows we’re working on.  Please send us any ideas you have for sound-rich reported pieces.  We pay $250-$300 for a piece ranging from 6-12 minutes—not standard pub radio rates we know, but you get to do a longer piece, which can bring its own satisfaction.  We also are open to altered reversions or previously aired material. 

We are not really interested in interviews (unless they are amazing), or stories with more than minimal phone tape.  We also are not looking for super time sensitive stories because of our production schedule.  Think not ‘what’s happening this week’, but maybe ‘what’s happening this season,’ or ‘this year’—we step back, take a bigger look at issues and how the relate to larger trends.

If you are not familiar with our program, please surf around our site a bit and check out the pitching guidelines:

http://www.radioproject.org/production/submission-guidelines/

In particular, note this:

Does the story:

-Link grassroots issues and human realities to national or international trends?

-Give listeners a historical, political, or social context of major national and international events?

-Shed light on social and economic inequities?

-Explore any alternatives or solutions?

Please submit story ideas to pitches@radioproject.org

Let us know what the story is about, who the voices will be, and if there is a time/date peg.

Thanks,

Andrew Stelzer

Producer

Making Contact

www.radioproject.org

1. Prison Guard Unions

At least one piece for this show will come from California, where the Prison Guards union has tremendous strength.  But we also want stories from other parts of the country.  How do these unions affect public policy around drug laws, sentencing laws, prison expansion and other spending priorities?  How about their campaign contributions?  Local stories that connect to the national picture are ideal.

2. Coal:

The U.S. is a world leader in both the production and consumption of coal. From mountaintop removal to clean coal technology, the increased demand for energy continues to drive new gimmicks to extract this fossil fuel, regardless of the impacts to our health and environment. We want segments that delve deeply in this industry, the ramifications on communities and how activists are responding.

3. Population Justice:

A new movement called “population justice” has emerged recently, which intersects the work of reproductive and environmental justice activists. We seek segments that show what activists are doing to combine these two historically independent movements to advance the needs of both women and the environment. One idea could be about local communities enacting family planning services and how that shapes a woman’s decision to have children, and the impacts on the environment.  

4. Freshwater:

We are especially looking for stories from the Eastern United States (this particular show must all be US stories, not international).

We want to examine both problems and solutions.  Some angles we are particularly interested in are:

–Hydrofracking (not the basics-we’ve covered that previously, but maybe zeroing in on a particular local struggle or evolving angle of the national situation)
–the intersection between fresh water and energy—consumption and pollution of water by both ‘dirty’ and ‘renewable’ energy sources  

 -the intersection between drinking water and food.

 -water infrastructure

–Drinking water contaminants and citizen action to clean up our act:

5.   We also are open to segment ideas related to the 2012 election—both the conventions and the election itself.  We haven’t determined any particular show topics yet, but think big picture, not horse-race or ‘news of the week’: Voting rights, militarization of the convention cities, redistricting, how Occupy interfaces with the election?

Again, send your story ideas to pitches@radioproject.org

Making Contact

www.radioproject.org