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One day, there will be a slow news day. Today is not that day.
If you’re looking for reliable sources on what’s going on in Ukraine, Nieman Lab assembled some here. We are certainly not the experts, so we’ll only share information about where you can hear from people who are.
Today I want to talk a bit about boundaries. A few of us subscribe to Clare Wiley’s excellent newsletter, The Audio Storyteller. This week, she published a Q&A with UK-based podcast producer Sarah Myles about how she publicizes her personal working boundaries on her website. This is a genius idea, since it sets expectations with clients from the get go. She includes rates, but also boundaries around communication and time off.
One that stuck out to me in particular was the following:
“As I work across several genres of podcasts, I take half an hour of cognitive switching time when going from one project to another.
This shouldn’t be revolutionary, but to me, it is!
I, too, switch between projects constantly, both within Vocal Fry and in my work outside. Moving from one project to another always feels so challenging, and the concept of blocking in half an hour for cognitive switching between tasks is so appealing. When we talk about how to avoid burnout, this is the kind of strategy that protects our precious, squishy brains.
I also loved this Twitter thread from Angela Sterritt. She talks about a podcast she listened to where the host and producers worked with psychologists for months before interviewing a survivor of war, and how the same care should be taken before interviewing residential school survivors.
Interviews, especially interviews with people who have endured trauma, can be inherently extractive. For me, this has always posed a moral conundrum: when I’m working on a show or an article that deals with something personal and sensitive, how do I share that story without causing further harm, or damage? The podcast she references is I’m Not A Monster.
Finally, you have until the end of February to watch any panels from the Hot Docs Podcast festival that you missed. And February is a short month! Monday is the last day. Watch the sessions here.
The Walrus is hiring a digital producer to cover parental leave! The job is based in Toronto, but can be done remotely from anywhere in Canada. Compensation is $45,000-$50,000 with a full benefits package, and applications are due by Friday, March 11.
BNN Bloomberg is hiring a few positions, including anchor/reporter (deadline March 4), digital broadcast journalist (deadline March 8), and reporter (deadline March 8). Note that only the digital broadcast journalist position has remote eligibility, the other two are full-time in the Toronto office.
CTV Winnipeg is hiring a news writer to work 25 hours a week. This is a unionized position! Apply by March 9.
If you have ever had the pleasure of being a passenger in my car, you’ll know that I love to switch between all the Top 40 stations in an attempt to hear as much Dua Lipa as possible. Do you have what it takes to be a Top 40 morning show co-host? Virgin Radio 94.5 in Vancouver is hiring one — apply by March 2.
Lots of bigwig jobs at CBC Podcasts this week. These are all, as one would expect, full-time, permanent positions.
First up, they’re hiring an executive producer for investigative and longform podcasts. That application is due EOD March 2.
They’re also hiring an executive producer for information, entertainment and talk. Applications are due EOD March 3.
Think you have what it takes to dance with the Dragons? CBC is hiring an associate producer on Dragon’s Den for a full-time contract position that runs from March through November. Applications are due by EOD February 28.
CBC Vancouver is hiring two full-time, temporary associate producers assigned to digital. One of these contracts ends in September 2022, and the other goes until June 2023. Apply by EOD March 8.
CBC is hiring a full-time, permanent reporter/editor in Thunder Bay. Apply by EOD March 10.
Antica Productions in Toronto still has job postings up for roles that span all levels of experience: production assistant, researcher, associate producer, producer, and senior/executive producer.
The RRSP contribution deadline for 2021 is Tuesday, March 1. This is mostly a reminder to myself. Check your contribution limit by looking on last year’s notice of assessment, or by calculating 18% of last year’s income in box 15 of your T4.
Way, way back in September, you might recall a CBC job posting for a podcast producer for a new weekly world news podcast. Well, that podcast has come to fruition: Nothing is Foreign is hosted by Tamara Khandaker ( former host of The Decibel from the Globe and Mail and Wait, There’s More from Global News) and produced by Joyita Sengupta and Adrian Cheung.
A caveat: I’ve known Joyita since we were babies (by which I mean: about 22-years-old) and worked with Tamara when she hosted The Decibel. Each week, they zoom in on a different place — so far, they’ve covered El Salvador’s pivot to using Bitcoin as legal currency, how U.S. actions in Afghanistan are affecting the everyday lives of Afghans still in the country, and crucially, this week, they talk to reporters on the ground in Ukraine.
They pack a lot into the sub-30 minute runtime, giving crucial context for complex situations and speaking to people on the ground who can give a sense of what’s actually going on there. Despite the short runtime, the conversations get surprisingly deep into the issue, and I emerge feeling like I’ve actually learned something. Hello, value add!!! If you’re looking for local perspectives on world news with a Canadian lens, this is a great show to add to your weekly listening.
Episodes drop every Thursday.
Our very own Katie Jensen was a guest on BetaKit (edited by our very own Kattie Laur, though this is not a Vocal Fry show) talking about what the Joe Rogan situation over at Spotify can teach us about tech platforms.
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Thanks to Emily Latimer for editing this newsletter, and to Katie Jensen for designing it.
We’ll see you again on March 4. Until then, here’s an update from producer Max’s cat, Cynthia.
