Podcast Fundamentals Workshop

When

August 9, 2021 - August 23, 2021

6:00 pm - 8:00 pm

This workshop will teach critical skills needed to report, produce, script and edit podcasts. The course is administered by Northwestern University Medill School of Journalism in partnership with MVJ, and takes place virtually in three two-hour sessions – August 9, 16 and 23 from 6 pm to 8 pm EST. Participants will have the opportunity to produce their own podcast segment, taking an original idea from a pitch to a final product, with instructor supervision at every step. Those who complete the workshop will receive a Certificate of Completion from Medill and MVJ signed by Professor Matthew Orr and Producer Jon House.

Matthew Orr is an assistant professor at Northwestern University Medill School of Journalism. He teaches video and multimedia journalism in Medill’s Washington D.C. program. Orr is an award-winning reporter and filmmaker with 20 years of experience in the field. He has dedicated his journalism career to finding ways to create engaging, enlightening, entertaining and provoking stories that resonate with viewers on an emotional level and transport them deep into the lives of others. He has had the privilege of producing work across varying platforms at organizations with the highest journalistic standards. Before joining Medill, Orr was the director of multimedia and creative at STAT, a media company at the Boston Globe that tells compelling stories about health, medicine and scientific discovery. While at STAT, Orr led a multimedia team that won numerous awards, including three Online Journalism Awards, three Webby Awards, a National Headliner Award and a George Polk Award. At STAT, his work ranged from short Facebook videos that garnered millions of views and several online video series, to short and long-form documentaries that have appeared at national film festivals and on broadcast television. Prior to STAT, Orr was the first full-time staff video journalist at the New York Times and spent 13 years as a senior video producer and reporter. He wrote, produced, filmed and edited breaking news, live video, social videos, feature stories, online series and documentaries. His projects included “The Debt Trap” about the 2008 mortgage crisis; “Breakdown,” an investigation of animal abuse in the horse racing industry; “Portraits Redrawn,” profiles of families affected by the September 11th attacks; and “The Last Word,” advanced obit video interviews with prominent personalities that publishes upon their death.

Professor Orr of Northwestern University Medill School of Journalism

Jon House, Producer of Sword and Pen Podcast

Segments produced by workshop participants will run as part of special podcast episodes on MVJ’s show, Sword and Pen. Session 1 will cover Pitching, Interviewing, and Scripting. Session 2 will cover Recording, Editing, and Distribution. Session 3 will give participants a chance to present their work.