Assignments are due on the Monday of the week they are listed (e.g., the assignments for continental exploration are due on January 27).

Week 0 (January 22, 2020): Introduction

• Michael F. Robinson, “Why We Need a New History of Exploration”, Common-place, vol. 10 no. 1, October 2009.
• Dan Cohen, Bridging the Academic-Public Divide Through Podcasts

Part 1: Reading Stories

Week 1 (January 27, 29): Continental exploration

• Explorers Podcast: Lewis and Clark and the Corps of Discovery, Part 1 (reading response)

• January 29: Library visit! Meet in Fenwick 1014A.

In class this week:

• Instructions from Thomas Jefferson to Meriwether Lewis
• Journals of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, University of Nebraska
• Lewis and Clark Timeline, Monticello

Grade contracts are due on February 3, submitted via email to Dr. Mullen. You’ll also be selecting your topic on February 3.

Week 2 (February 3, 5): Oceanic exploration

• Smithsonian Institution, The United States Exploring Expedition, 1838-1842—make sure you especially read the essay by Nathaniel Philbrick (reading response)

Week 3 (February 10, 12): Polar exploration

• Bruce Henderson, Who Discovered the North Pole?
• Admiral Richard E. Byrd, interview (reading response can encompass both assignments)

In class

• New York Herald, May 21, 1873

Week 4 (February 17, 19): African and South American exploration

• Cradle of Gold: The Story of Hiram Bingham and Machu Picchu (reading response)
• Great Pitches Make Great Episodes, Gimlet Academy

In class

• Hiram Bingham, In the Wonderland of Peru

Week 5 (February 24, 26): Deep-sea exploration

• National Geographic, Ocean Exploration Timeline
• Mark Kaufman, Uncharted Worlds, Mashable (reading response can encompass both assignments)
• The Deep Sea, Neal Agarwal

In class:

• Machu Project
• Ocean Explorer (NOAA)

Week 6 (March 2, 4): Space exploration

• Explorers Podcast, Apollo 11 / The Moon Landing (reading response)
• Due March 4: With your partner, pitch me your idea for the expedition you want to cover, and the themes you want to engage with in your podcast episode. Do this via a 3-minute audio or video recording that you upload to Slack. Convince me that this is interesting!

Week 7: Spring Break!

Part 2: Telling Stories

Week 8 (March 16, 18): Producing a podcast

• How to Start a Podcast
• Topics we’ll cover this week:
  • Setup for our podcast
  • Framing for our podcast
  • Individual tasks for our podcast
  • Working with a partner

Revised grade contracts are due March 23.

Week 9 (March 23, 25): Storyboarding your idea

• Now That’s Good Tape and Putting It All Together, Gimlet Academy
• Draft of storyboard due March 30; bring it to class.
• Topics we’ll cover this week:
  • Telling a story dynamically
  • Integrating primary sources
  • Breaking down the narrative
  • Practicing reading with dynamism

Week 10 (March 30, April 1): Writing the script

• Engaging Episodes: The Power Podcasting Series (read through all the chapters)
• Topics we’ll cover this week:
  • From outline to script
  • Writing for audio
  • Working in your personal style while maintaining professionalism

Week 11 (April 6, 8): Workshopping the script and writing show notes

• First draft of script due April 6; bring a hard copy to class.
• Creating Great Podcast Shownotes
• Topics we’ll cover this week
  • Citations
  • Writing for the public
  • WordPress
  • Taking and giving constructive criticism

Week 12 (April 13, 15): Recording the script

• Topics we’ll cover this week:
  • Talking into a microphone
  • Recording in Audacity
  • Marking up your script
  • Recording with a co-host
  • Creating a style/technical guide for our audio production

Week 13 (April 20, 22): Editing the podcast

• By April 22, have all the sections of your podcast recorded. (You may end up needing to re-record some sections.)
• Topics we’ll cover this week:
  • Using Audacity for editing
  • Transitions between sections

Week 14 (April 27, 29): Final touches

• By April 29, have your podcast edited and ready for critique.
• By April 29, have a draft of your show notes drafted on the blog and ready for critique. (You don’t need to publish it yet.)

Special event: Friday, May 1: Concert with the New Sound Collective!

Week 15 (May 4): Launch day!

There is no final exam in this class. If we need to do a final clean-up on our podcast series, we may push Launch Day back to the final exam time. Your final reflection on the project will also be due on the day of the final exam.