Smith discussed how colorism depicts visual associations with skin tones. This poses a challenge because audio-only formats only give way to testimony and research. He references historical and contemporary art such as Nina Simone's “Four Women” and Spike Lee's “School Daze” to depict early appreciation of colorism.
“How do we express that in sound and in the audience experience?” Smith said. “We try to not only talk about what people are going through, but to show that everyone is listening. [to] what are we talking about? What I used was music. The music tells how a woman's skin is “too dark” and her “arms are too long.” ”
Webster-Bass says he understands “the relationship between investigative reporting and the power of sound” and how those two dynamics of journalism shine brightly in the podcast world. “Professor [Hannah-Jones] It opened up the world of investigative reporting,” Webster-Bass said. “Participating in this project helped me understand how investigative reporting and audio recording are connected.”
Her “Queer Seminar” episode took on the challenge of telling a balanced and thorough history of the Black queer community, as coverage of homophobia caused emotional weight. “Personally, I cried,” Webster-Bass said.
“It was hard to hear, to experience, to know what the Black queer experience was like,” she said. “We thought that the light at the end of the tunnel is the creativity of the Black queer community and all that they have to offer. That's why we decided to end in the ballroom. is.”
Deanna Hayden, a third-year doctoral student in the Department of Communication's Cultural and Media Studies program, served as Hannah Jones' teaching assistant. Her students expressed their gratitude to her by pointing out how important thorough research and the use of historical instruction are to successful storytelling. “When we decided to involve our students in a project of this scale, it helped us understand where their stories were and grounded our research as scholars and communication scholars. We have laid the foundation for telling complete stories about individual topics.”
New York Times bestselling author and poet Jason Reynolds was one of several black authors in the audience. “When we talk about the black continuum, the only way we talk about it is through stories,” he said, calling Hannah Jones' work and Howard University “pillars” of black American thought. “While the HBCU circuit is an important part of our culture, it is important to us that we are known as the Mecca. [The 1619 Project] Let's talk here. ”
At the end of the event, Hannah-Jones surprised junior Karise Hilton, a writer for the podcast project, with a Spotify 2024 Next Generation Scholarship valued at $10,000 for the 2024-2025 academic year.
“I am so grateful for this scholarship,” Hilton said. “It was my first time taking this class and it was very challenging, but very rewarding.”
