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10/27/14 Call for Pitches

We’re looking for pitches from freelancers on several themes. If you feel
you have a story that fits or a new idea, please let us know!

We’re also always interested in pitches on any of our regular beats:
prisons, poverty, corporations’ undue influence, reproductive health,
climate change and the environment.

We are currently seeking pitches on these themes:

 Guns

We’re looking for stories that bring new perspectives on guns and gun
violence. These could be personal stories, for example, you could focus on
an ex-NRA member who now opposes guns, or a 60s radical who still advocates
their use. They could also be more investigative/ explanatory pieces.
Perhaps a look at ALEC involvement in crafting gun policies or a look at
the international arms trade. We’d also welcome other pitches related to
guns, maybe the economics of gun manufacturing or creative community
responses to gun violence.

 

Coffee Shop Workers

Starbucks workers are in the news for attempting to form their own union.
We’re looking for a report on how workers in coffee shops are organizing
for wage increases or better working conditions.

 

The state of long-term caregiving

By 2030 the number of senior citizens is expected to double to 72.1 million
<http://www.agingstats.gov/main_site/data/2012_documents/docs/entirechartbook.pdf>
. As more seniors move into older age brackets the demand for a younger
generation of workers and family members to help with day to day life will
grow.

We’re looking for stories that have a fresh perspective on providing
long-term caregiving to seniors and disabled people. Stories that explore
the quality of care, conditions in the workplace, the effect on care
recipients and givers, and the availability of supportive services in a
community or lack thereof. What are the race/class/gender dimensions of
people in this workforce?

We’d also be interested in stories from the perspective of elders who are inventing new senior care arrangements based
on communal models and multigenerational living arrangements.

 

Five Years after Deepwater Horizon BP Oil Spill

Considered the worst in U.S. history, back in 2010 oil spilled into the
Gulf of Mexico for 87 days. 5 years later, what are the effects of the
estimated 176 million gallons of oil that spewed into the Gulf? Has BP
really taken responsibility, and what has happened since? We are also
interested in stories about BP in other parts of the world. What is this
company’s global environmental legacy? Where are other communities battling
this particular oil giant? How has BP worked to regain their public
reputation since 2010 (this might be a story about their PR effort)

Specifications

Making Contact is an award-winning
<https://www.radioproject.org/aboutus/honors-and-awards/>, 29-minute weekly
magazine/documentary-style public affairs program heard on 130 radio
stations in the USA, Canada,  Australia.

Amplifying voices and perspectives rarely heard in mainstream media, Making Contact
focuses on the human realities of politics and the connections between
local and global events, emphasizing positive and creative ways to solve
problems.

This call for pitches is for segments of about 8 minutes(unless otherwise
noted), and we pay $450 per story of this length. but we also occasionally
take longer pieces (12 or 26 minutes).

As with any pitches you send us, please check out our show and read our
guidelines before you pitch.
https://www.radioproject.org/production/submission-guidelines/

Consider the following. 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?

Send pitches to pitches@radioproject.org. Please be detailed but succinct,
and include a description of your idea, narrative/story arc, interview
subjects, scenes, and sounds/ambi. If you’re pitching to us for the first
time, please include a brief bio and relevant audio clips.

We look forward to hearing from you! Laura Flynn, Jasmin Lopez, Andrew Stelzer & George Lavender
Making Contact core producers

+++

 

2/14/14 Call for Pitches

Making Contact is an award-winning, 29-minute weekly magazine/documentary-style public affairs program heard on 140 radio stations in the USA, Canada, South Africa, and Australia.  Amplifying voices and perspectives rarely heard in mainstream media, Making Contact focuses on the human realities of politics and the connections between local and global events, emphasizing positive and creative ways to solve problems.

We are seeking pitches on these themes:

  • Coffee
  • Restorative/Transformative Justice
  • Low Wage Workers Movement

Coffee

We’re collaborating with Green Grid Radio on a show about coffee. Whether it’s about the public health impact of one of our favorite drinks, the damage coffee farming causes the environment, the effects of caffeine in oceans and rivers, the trash coffee culture leaves behind, or what civet coffee is, we want to hear your coffee pitches. (We’re already covering the Fairtrade USA/ Fairtrade International split) HURRY! PITCHES FOR THIS SHOW MUST BE RECEIVED BY 2/7

Restorative/Transformative Justice

We already have a piece on restorative justice in high schools.  We’re looking for something in the criminal justice system, or somewhere else surprising. Key to pitching stories for this show is access.  Do you have access to the participants? Even better, can you be there to record some of the encounters which are part of the restorative justice practice? We want to bring the listener there and show them how it works, not just tell them about it.

Low Wage Workers Movement

The last year has seen an upsurge in low wage workers organizing; either with unions, or on their own. We’re particularly interested in profile-esque pieces of some of the organizers/participants in this emerging movement, especially those who weren’t previously active or activists. Where is this movement for wages and respect headed? Can it raise wages and respect on the job for all American workers? What does its emergence mean for unions? These are some of the questions we would like to explore in this show.


We are also planning shows on reproductive health, gentrification, squatters, and prison/criminal justice issues. We also invite pitches to mark 50 years since 1964 and the Freedom Rides. We will send out a more details call for pitches in the future on these, but if you have an incredible story you are following on any of those topics, let us know.


Specifications

This call for pitches is for segments of about 8 minutes, and we generally pay $450 per story, but we also occasionally take longer pieces (12 or 26 minutes).

 As with any pitches you send us, please check out our show and read our guidelines before you pitch.

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

Consider the following. 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?

Send pitches to pitches@radioproject.org. Please be detailed but succinct, and include a description of your idea, narrative/story arc, interview subjects, scenes, and sounds/ambi. If you’re pitching to us for the first time, please include a brief bio and relevant audio clips.

 

We look forward to hearing from you!

Andrew Stelzer, George Lavender,  Jasmin Lopez and Laura Flynn

Making Contact Producers