Silence Is Worth Your Time

Silence Is Worth Your Time

Author: Rob Rosenthal/PRX/Transom.org April 7, 2026 Duration: 23:13
Back when I worked at radio stations, people joked "Silence is bad juju." We're not supposed to include much, if any, silence in audio stories -- for broadcast or podcast. Noam Hassenfeld went the opposite direction and embraced silence -- lots of it! -- on a recent episode of Unexplainable, the science podcast from Vox. Noam explains how he craftily deployed silence in his storytelling on this episode of Sound School. 

Ever wonder how your favorite audio stories are actually put together? Sound School Podcast pulls back the curtain, offering a rare and detailed look at the craft behind compelling narrative audio. Host Rob Rosenthal, drawing from his work with Transom and PRX, doesn’t just play finished pieces; he breaks them down with the producers and editors who made them. You’ll hear the early drafts, the interview clips that didn’t make the cut, and the pivotal editorial choices that shaped the final story. Each episode feels like a candid workshop, dissecting the techniques of pacing, scoring, and interviewing that transform raw tape into emotional journeys. This isn't about abstract theory-it's a practical, behind-the-scenes examination for anyone curious about the how and why of audio production. Whether you're an aspiring creator or simply a dedicated fan of the medium, this podcast provides an invaluable education in the meticulous, often unseen, work that goes into great storytelling. Tune in for honest conversations about what works, what doesn’t, and why the process itself is as fascinating as the finished product.
Author: Language: en-us Episodes: 100

Sound School Podcast
Podcast Episodes
Revisiting: Two From the Road in Nashville [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 25:19
Here's your New Year's resolution: Attend a Transom Traveling Workshop. That's right. You know you wanna. The year 2026 is the year to give yourself a treat -- a little radio self-love. For inspiration, here are two stel…
It’s Magic [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 15:56
If you're just beginning in audio storytelling or have some experience under your belt, you could toil alone making and making and making stories hoping to get better. And that might be the exact right thing for you. But…
Revisiting: We Need More Words to Describe Audio Stories [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 23:33
When you limit language, you limit thinking. When you limit thinking, you limit creativity. When you limit creativity, audio storytellers wind up making the same thing over and over and over again and that's not good. In…
Seeking Small True Things [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 32:53
Audio reporter Samantha Broun says young people are "full of life, complicated, passionate, confused, and they want to talk and want to be heard." That's why Sam offers them her curiosity and her caring ear for her proje…
Revisiting: Hang A Picture In Front of the Microphone [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 14:04
Susan Stamberg sang her own song at NPR. Her writing and her voice, you could always tell it was Susan behind the mic. She died at the age of 87 in October. In honor of Susan, we present this archive episode of Sound Sch…
When Funny Points to Truth [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 24:49
Neena Pathak produced a very touching story about grieving the death of her father. She says the humor in the story wasn't uncouth. It was how she captured the truth.
Revisiting: Fill Your Notebook with Color Notes [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 15:16
In this archive episode from 2018, legendary NPR reporter and raconteur John Burnett answers a perplexing question "How to make an immigration story visual when no mics are allowed in the courtroom?" Answer: Fill your no…
Host Sits Down With a Reporter [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 15:30
"Host sits down with a reporter." That's a good way to describe how Radiolab stories are produced. Same with "two-ways" on NPR. You can hear those approaches everywhere. But, how else can a "host sit down with a reporter…
Writing Like TV in a Podcast [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 28:05
Writing like it's a television drama complete with instructions for a camera operator. That's an unusual maneuver for a podcast. One I'd never heard before. Neither had Susan Burton until she wrote that way herself in th…
Fill Your Pockets With Endings [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 22:01
NPR's Robert Smith says when he's writing and gets to the end of a story he has empty pockets. He's used all the good stuff and left nothing for the end. To combat that problem, Robert studied endings from some of his fa…