Summary: Blunt reporter Zoe High takes to the streets to unravel some of the prevailing perceptions of the homeless, and spotlights one organization in Portland, Maine that's trying to turn them around.
Not many people are willing to cast a glance at the homeless; however, Zoe High did more than her share to vouch for the homeless in her radio piece. It is basically about what the title states - how people in Portland, Maine view the homeless. Both sides are taken into consideration... the less fortunate, as well as the people who watch and judge them daily. Enunciation and pronunciation are done extremely well in this piece. Her speech is like a river flowing fluidly, with just enough pauses to transition from narration to interviews. It?s like a hook, line, and sinker for me because she didn't have to recast her words. It starts as a question, which really probes into the depths of one's brain: How do you view homeless people? Giving several responses to the question, one can?t help but to visualize each one ? alcoholics, schizophrenia-stricken ones, the ones who rummage through trash. Then she catches me off guard with the interview with the ex-homeless man. Hearing his side, it made me think about how I treat homeless people and my demeanor towards them, as well as what I see as other people?s initial disposition when encountering the poor. A job well done, but, it is very neutral in tone. There could be more emotion, whether it is empathy or anger, just to spark some type of reaction from the reader. And more than neutrality, it is informative. Chronic homelessness is one of the less talked about problems in America and Zoe did an awesome job in presenting this information. A little ambient sound or music wouldn't hurt either, but I would definitely suggest that this piece be played during peak radio hours to get more listeners' attention.
Zoe High's investigation of the perceptions of the homeless is an interesting undertaking on a unique subject.
The narration at the beginning of the piece seems a bit forced. The usage of a vox pop in order to gather the public's opinion of the homeless was key in setting up the rest of the segment. Many of the people in the vox pop stated that homeless people could not find jobs, though some did state that homeless people didn't want jobs. High immediately follows the vox pop with the conclusion that most people believed the homeless were too lazy to get jobs or did not want them. However, this is not an accurate conclusion to gather from the preceding vox pop, considering that a minority of those interviewed stated that homeless were lazy.
The rest of the segment centered on interviewing a former homeless person. High definitely could have included more tape from Steven, as he seemed to know a lot about homeless and why they were without jobs. In a longer segment, including interviews from experts, such as sociologists, would be key.
The segment seemed a bit rushed, but the editing seemed excellent. I definitely felt as if the segment could have elaborated a bit more on why homeless people did not have jobs, besides the one reason, substance abuse, that was mentioned by Steven.
Having seen the many homless people in the portland area I am glad to see someone sticking up for them. Some of thier homless ness is not thier fault. The vox pop was very moving and really portrayed the misconception around homless people. The way that you did the intro was very grabbing.I hope to hear this on the radio soon, as it is winter and is a good idea to get the word out.
As a citizen of Portland, I was glad to hear this issue addressed and analyzed in such a thorough manner. I thought the vox pop intro was effective in engaging the listener and opening up what seems to be a hidden story. Zoe's clear, balanced tone allows the listener to truly hear Mr. LaChance's insights. I hope this airs on Maine Public Radio soon.
Comments for How We See the Homeless
Produced by Zoe High
Other pieces by Blunt Youth Radio Project
Rating Summary
4 comments
KaMeisha Jerae Hodge
Posted on January 16, 2008 at 08:02 AM | Permalink
Review of How We See the Homeless
Not many people are willing to cast a glance at the homeless; however, Zoe High did more than her share to vouch for the homeless in her radio piece. It is basically about what the title states - how people in Portland, Maine view the homeless. Both sides are taken into consideration... the less fortunate, as well as the people who watch and judge them daily. Enunciation and pronunciation are done extremely well in this piece. Her speech is like a river flowing fluidly, with just enough pauses to transition from narration to interviews. It?s like a hook, line, and sinker for me because she didn't have to recast her words. It starts as a question, which really probes into the depths of one's brain: How do you view homeless people? Giving several responses to the question, one can?t help but to visualize each one ? alcoholics, schizophrenia-stricken ones, the ones who rummage through trash. Then she catches me off guard with the interview with the ex-homeless man. Hearing his side, it made me think about how I treat homeless people and my demeanor towards them, as well as what I see as other people?s initial disposition when encountering the poor. A job well done, but, it is very neutral in tone. There could be more emotion, whether it is empathy or anger, just to spark some type of reaction from the reader. And more than neutrality, it is informative. Chronic homelessness is one of the less talked about problems in America and Zoe did an awesome job in presenting this information. A little ambient sound or music wouldn't hurt either, but I would definitely suggest that this piece be played during peak radio hours to get more listeners' attention.
Minhal Baig
Posted on December 31, 2007 at 02:01 PM | Permalink
Review of How We See the Homeless
Zoe High's investigation of the perceptions of the homeless is an interesting undertaking on a unique subject.
The narration at the beginning of the piece seems a bit forced. The usage of a vox pop in order to gather the public's opinion of the homeless was key in setting up the rest of the segment. Many of the people in the vox pop stated that homeless people could not find jobs, though some did state that homeless people didn't want jobs. High immediately follows the vox pop with the conclusion that most people believed the homeless were too lazy to get jobs or did not want them. However, this is not an accurate conclusion to gather from the preceding vox pop, considering that a minority of those interviewed stated that homeless were lazy.
The rest of the segment centered on interviewing a former homeless person. High definitely could have included more tape from Steven, as he seemed to know a lot about homeless and why they were without jobs. In a longer segment, including interviews from experts, such as sociologists, would be key.
The segment seemed a bit rushed, but the editing seemed excellent. I definitely felt as if the segment could have elaborated a bit more on why homeless people did not have jobs, besides the one reason, substance abuse, that was mentioned by Steven.
Great editing and narrating!
connor gervais
Posted on December 21, 2007 at 01:28 PM | Permalink
Review of How We See the Homeless
Having seen the many homless people in the portland area I am glad to see someone sticking up for them. Some of thier homless ness is not thier fault. The vox pop was very moving and really portrayed the misconception around homless people. The way that you did the intro was very grabbing.I hope to hear this on the radio soon, as it is winter and is a good idea to get the word out.
Jen Grover
Posted on December 20, 2007 at 04:27 AM | Permalink
Review of How We See the Homeless
As a citizen of Portland, I was glad to hear this issue addressed and analyzed in such a thorough manner. I thought the vox pop intro was effective in engaging the listener and opening up what seems to be a hidden story. Zoe's clear, balanced tone allows the listener to truly hear Mr. LaChance's insights. I hope this airs on Maine Public Radio soon.