Research Process- Bits and Pieces

I decided to convert my mini-language lesson podcast idea into something more narrow. My podcast series will deal with “Customs that you need to know if you’re traveling to Taiwan”. The title is subject to change and a lot of cutting, but the content is final.

Why Taiwan?

I’ve never been there. So I won’t have any preconceived notions of what’s the right thing to do. I’ll be depending on actual research to find content. So far, I’ve found this good website which has helped me search. This gave me a cursory overview of existing customs. I still need to find credible sources from the library that deals with the topic.

I also have a Taiwanese friend, who I can ask for personal opinions and for any Taiwanese voice clips.

Why customs and not language?

The customs reflect certain ideals that you need to follow so that you don’t insult anyone during your trip.

Plus introducing a custom for certain situations is definitely easier and makes more sense.  

There’ll still be bits of language in there- mainly just to give an authentic feel when I introduce the situation where the custom must be used.

Possible format

I listened to The Lowdown Podcast. While it’s not exactly a great example and a bit long, it did give me some ideas of what I need to talk about/use in my own podcast.

1. A huge chunk of my podcast will be an acted out scenario that demonstrates the do’s and don’t for a certain custom. If I use an authentic Taiwanese speaker, the change in voice will keep it from being too monotonous

2. I’ll add in other tidbits of information like

-         How did this custom come about? A brief look at the history.

-         Why is it so important? Is there some sort of religious significance?

-         What do you do if you have done a mistake? This will include what phrases to use to apologize.

3. Interview – question people to see what they would do in the situation? What would people want to know?

Breakdown of podcast series

1-     Gift giving customs

2-     Business customs

3-     Dining customs

Tools/ Resources 

I came across www.archive.org that allows you to download different kinds of audio for free. You can search for sound effects here, in the Open source Audio section. My favourite part of the site has to be the 78 RPMs & Cylinder Recordings- even if it has nothing to do with my topic. 

 

Filed under  //   podcast   research  

Interview? Of Course I did!

(download)

Here's a link to Tiffany's brainstorm blog entry in case you're interested:

Recording Process

We booked one of the study rooms on the top floor of the library. When we got to the library room Tiffany and I spent a few minutes going over our questions and answers. We then did a practice run of what our interview would sound like. It went great and we were eager to record.

I placed the recorder on the table and pressed record.

We heard the beep and I started talking. I didn’t make it past “Hello my name is…”. Yes, I forgot my name. We laughed. And then I forgot where we were. We laughed some more. And somewhere along the way I forgot what I wanted to ask- even though I had some points jotted down in front of me. You see where I’m going with this?

But we persevered and got through the first run. We played it back and found a lot of long silences, thoughtful hmms, joyful aha!s and tons of laughter. It helped us realize what worked and what didn’t.

We gave the recording another try.

I remembered my name and questions- but it felt too awkward. Our voices were too stiff and it sounded like we were complete strangers.

The third attempt was a huge success- perfect conversation tone, minimal laughter. But the people in the room next to us got noisy during this particular recording and ruined it.

Thankfully our fourth attempt went off without too much trouble.

Editing Process

Listening to yourself on audio during the editing process is just too odd for words- especially when you have to hear yourself say the same thing over and over again.

First I listened to the interview searching for any awkward pauses and long umms and ahhs. Not that many, so then I decided to look at our conversation- did we repeat phrases while talking? I removed those repetitions to make the conversation more fluid.

I also added some pauses in between places where we seem to interrupt each other. After all the content was edited, I decided to work on sound quality. Noise reducer was really helpful. I cleaned it up as best as I could- but at some points it sounds as though I have echoes.

But you can still some voices in the background, from people outside the room- that sound like low EVPs if you listen carefully.

I tried listening to it on different computers- but there’s only so much I can pick up after listening to it so many times. So if you guys hear some problems that I may have overlooked, I’d love to know about it.

Filed under  //   interview   podcast  

Podcast Possibilities- A brainstorming session.

1- A day in the life of… 

A pod cast that follows someone around for a day (or a certain period of time during the day) and then highlights major events that occurred – like tripping down the stairs or something bigger. It would work as an observational mode. I could interview the person I’m following.

How this could work

- it’s interesting if I find the right person. Maybe someone with a fun job/hobby.

- I’d probably have to follow the person for more than one day to get my information.

- Some potential people- a secretary, vets, transit bus driver?

- maybe I could follow my group project for one of my other classes? We’re doing a re-design project and we have weekly meetings.

How this would fail

- how strong would a podcast be if it was just filled with observations of what a person does. Even though we’d hear audio of the person- it seems rather odd.

 

2- The Artist’s corner

A podcast that deals with digital art and artists. It could be a mix of observational and participatory with interviews. Seems to follow the idea of the first idea in a way.

How this could work

- could include commentary about equipment used to produce digital art i.e) Programs like photoshop

- Could observe how an artist creates part of an art piece- would people be interested in that?

How this would fail

- without a co-operative subject it could end up being just a commentary of different products that are used.

- Just commenting on what an artist does when they’re creating something wouldn’t be strong as using actual visuals.

(Edit: Added new idea that came along)

3- Learning a new language

A podcast that's almost like a mini-language course- one language per podcast most probably. Or at least a few essential phrases to survive when you need help in a foreign place.For instance:

"Does anyone here speak english?"

"Are there any english TV stations I can watch?"

"This tastes funny. Is this really chicken?"

"There's a huge spider in my room, I'd like a different room please."

"Look over there! A three-headed monkey."

And many more for various situations, obviously.

How this could work

- I could ask native speakers of different languages to participate by giving the correct pronounciation and translation.

-I could also give tips on certain etiquette in different places. For instance different hand signs may mean different things in different cultures.

- Pick up lines in different languages would be amusing.

- I could ask country-specific/stereotypical questions and get those translations. Eg: Something about wine and snails in French.

How this would fail

- could I squeeze helpful phrases within a few minutes without making it seem too rushed?

Filed under  //   podcast  

Huzzah! Some thoughts about “Secondary Orality”!

Walter Ong states that secondary orality, created by electronic technology, is more deliberate and self conscious since it interacts with writing and print.

What exactly does he mean by that? Does he mean that people who use electronic devices to record their message are careful about what they say?

Since secondary orality is not completely oral, I think that people are forced to think about how their message will be received. The ability to have the message recorded in its entirety on different places in different forms may cause people to second guess what they say. Sort of like a post for a class discussion- where people have to think out something that has to be suitable/smart enough.

At least that’s what I figure from Ong’s sentence.

But then again there are people out there, who are unafraid to speak their mind and record their thoughts in blunt terms.

Are their messages deliberate? Probably. Well, they’re probably not all that self-conscious. Maybe they want to stand out as people who are unafraid and unwilling to censor their thoughts for the world.

 

Filed under  //   secondary orality   walter ong  

Participatory Documentary mode

I chose to look at Arna’s Children- a biographical documentary of Arna Mer Khamis’s attempts to help Palestine children find a constructive outlet during Israeli occupation. The documentary traces the lives of a few children who were under Arna’s care in her theatre program from the 80’s -90’s.

In the above clip we see Juliano Khamis, the director of the documentary and son of Arna Khamis, interacting with the kids filmed in the documentary. Khamis’s screen time includes him teaching acting lessons to the kids.

Fast forward to a few years and we hear him interviewing the children who have grown up and taken on very different roles in life.

The documentary does slip into observational mode, when the camera captures the natural interaction of Arna with the children. Even though there is a narrator directing you, the voice blends in with the visuals so it doesn’t really stand out.

Filed under  //   participatory mode   Arna's children   documentary  

Epic First Post!

Well, I suppose that does sound better than 'Introductory' post. It'll have to do.

Anyway, welcome fellow Wri380-ers, to this wonderful space of nothingness. For now, at least. I'm hoping to fill this space with loads of ideas, thoughts and colourful bits of things. So definitely come back for more late night typings.

In future posts I'll try

- to stay away from the word 'epic' in my titles. I shall only use it in dire circumstances like when going on an adventure to save the world or something.

- to keep my thoughts clear, readable and un-sloppy

- not to call you guys Wri380-ers?

Pearl.