Mercury in Retrograde
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Oh, the weather outside is weather
This week, Vocal Fry Principal (and designer of this newsletter) Katie Jensen said to me, “Everyone gets one big tech fail a year.”
Last Friday, a file I thought I’d sent to a client never actually went through. I was away from my computer all weekend (10/10, highly recommend) so when I realized what had happened, I told them I’d send over the file as soon as possible. When I returned home Sunday evening, I turned on my air conditioner. And then my roommate turned on her air conditioner. And then we blew a fuse. Can’t turn on the computer, can’t send the file.
All of which is to say, being prepared in the face of a tech failure makes the fall a lot softer.
My first lesson learned is to always check to make sure I get that sweet, sweet WeTransfer confirmation before abandoning my computer for the weekend.
But also, I think we can learn something from our silly little hunks of plastic that keep us cool. When we overload the circuit, we blow a fuse, and everything shuts down. People are like that, too!
There’s a line about sleep in Burnout by Emily and Amelia Nagoski that has stuck with me since reading it back in December.
They say that our brains and bodies need us to spend about 42 percent of our lives resting, and that, “we’re not saying you should spend 42 percent of your time to rest; we’re saying if you don’t take the 42 percent, the 42 percent will take you.”
So, as we toggle back and forth between heat waves, and rain storms, and gorgeous almost-summer days, make sure to find pockets of rest where you can. I also recommend staggering your AC usage with your roommate if your outlets are all on the same breaker.
I know it’s going to be a frustrating day when I see “unpaid internships” trending on Twitter.
It’s a discourse that erupts almost quarterly, and always seems to involve established journalists talking about how they had to pay their dues, so why shouldn’t this cohort of emerging journalists?
I see a similar logic applied to student loans. “I had to pay off my loans, why should today’s students have theirs forgiven?”
What frustrates me about this line of thinking is that it assumes cycles of oppression and unfairness must go on forever. I suffered, and you should, too. But if we want things to change in our industry, we have to actually make those changes happen.
Skye Pillsbury wrote about The Wild World of Audio Internships for Hot Pod, and it’s worth a read. It’s not news to anyone that a standard of unpaid internships acts as a barrier to entry to the industry. If you don’t have another means of financial support, whether that be family or grants or whatever, an unpaid internship won’t be feasible. You can’t eat mentorship for lunch.
So what does an actually equitable internship look like? Pillsbury points out companies that pay living wages to their interns (what a concept!), like Pineapple Street Studios and Dustlight Productions—Dustlight pays a flat fee of $8,000 for a four-month apprenticeship at 20 to 25 hours a week, and Pineapple pays $20/hour to their interns and apprentices. As more companies get bought up by even bigger companies, I wonder what kind of impact those acquisitions will have. I wonder if this is where unions might make a difference.
Gimlet unionized in 2019, after they were acquired by Spotify (that union drive got a lot of attention earlier this year during the Test Kitchen debacle). Part of the reason for unionizing was to make their workplace more inclusive, and to pay people like contractors and interns better. Unionizing in the podcast landscape is still pretty new (although public radio like NPR and CBC are unionized). But I do wonder whether a more unionized workforce would lead to better paid internship and entry-level jobs.
With that said, check out the Freelance Solidarity Project — they’re looking to collect rates to create a comprehensive database of what different orgs pay.
jobs hot from the fryer
Hey French Fries! Montreal’s CJLO is hiring a Station Manager and Program Director. Application deadlines are June 18, and the jobs start in July/August. This is an English-speaking job, but being bilingual is an asset.
JAR Audio is looking for an audio recordist and editor! They’re based in Vancouver, B.C., but work remotely.
If you saw last week’s newsletter posting for CBC’s The Sunday Magazine hiring a producer/director and thought to yourself, “if only I had a few years more experience, I could apply for this job!” then you’re in luck!
They’re ALSO hiring for an associate producer. This is a full-time, permanent position.
The Narwhal is hiring for a director of operations and impact. They’re looking for someone to help create an inclusive culture and grow the impact of their journalism.
Among their advertised perks are 4 weeks of vacation… to start. Practically European of them. Apply by June 16.
hey freelancer!
Bakau Consulting is hosting a seminar on An Anti-Racist Approach to Media Literacy, faciliated by Cicely Belle Blain, founder of Black Lives Matter Vancouver. On the event page, they write: “In Canada, 70% of the media is controlled by just 4 companies. In Gaza City, two major news outlets were bombed. In 2020, millions of black squares on Instagram drowned out actual Black liberation content. How does this shape what we see about the world? Whose stories are most suppressed by the realities of mainstream media?” The seminar takes place on Wednesday, June 23 from 4:00 to 5:00 p.m. EDT, with a suggested donation of $15 to $25.
Hey music producers (and wannabe music producers)! Femme House is launching a free production boot camp this July, called She Is The Producer. From their site: “We teamed up with She Is the Music to develop a free, immersive production bootcamp designed to even the playing field. This month-long course is suited for everyone of all skill levels and will cover everything from getting started, to finding creative tools that suit your workflow, to finessing and finishing your tracks.” Sign up here.
If you’re looking to add to your roster of things you can do for money, Wudan Yan and Jenni Gritters of the Writers' Co-op are running a workshop on breaking into content marketing on Tuesday, June 29 from 4:00 to 5:00 p.m. EDT. Tickets are $20, and features content marketing pros Kelly McSweeney and Rina Diane Caballar. If you haven’t listened to their podcast on the business of freelancing, I HIGHLY recommend it—they’re full of practical, actionable advice that I found so valuable when I started freelancing.
What we’re listening to
If you find yourself missing live theatre, The Factory Theatre in Toronto has produced a series of audio plays called You Can't Get There From Here. It features five original works by Anusree Roy, Matthew McKenzie, Yvette Nolan, Keith Barker, and Luke Reece. Something I miss about live theatre is that feeling of immersion in a story—like you’re eavesdropping on a stranger’s juicy conversation and getting a peek into their world. With this series, they’ve done worldbuilding through textured, rich sound environments, so I get that same immersive feeling. A good listen for anyone who’s bummed about another (IRL) Fringe-less July.
What’s happening at Vocal Fry?
Last week on Well Said, we heard from Lisa Genova about her new book, Remember. You may be familiar with Genova’s debut novel, Still Alice, which became a devastating movie starring Julianne Moore.
In Remember, her first non-fiction book, she explains why we remember, why we forget, what Alzheimer’s actually is, and most importantly, how we can prevent it.
On the Vocal Fry blog, Cormac O’Brien writes about the LGBTQ2S+ Canadian podcasters who inspire listeners with their stories and give unaltered, direct access to important and sensitive conversations. He writes: “Whether they’re illustrating the nature of gender identity in Canada, sharing their personal stories, or breaking down queer media and culture, these LGBTQ2S+ podcasters are using the power of their voices to bypass a mainstream media that has so often ignored them and going straight to the public themselves.”
O’Brien speaks to podcasters about their shows and how the medium lends itself to personal, impactful stories about identity.
We want to hear from you! What are you looking for in your podcast news? Let us know on Twitter, Instagram, or by email at info@vocalfrystudios.com.
Thanks to Emily Latimer for editing this newsletter, and to Katie Jensen for designing it.
We’ll see you again on June 18. Until then, here’s an update from associate producer Sabrina Brathwaite’s dog, Blue.
Yours in friends and fries,
Michal
