This piece represents an impressive and diverse collage of the people attending "The World Can't Wait" protest. The passion and energy present at such gatherings as well as the eloquence of the protesters were both readily apparent throughout the story--energy and eloquence surfaced by the producer's thoughtful and well-phrased questions. The listener occasionally has difficulty hearing the interviewees over the sound of the protest; watching and editing for this could improve the piece.

This heart-wrenching piece personalizes all of the coverage of Hurricane Katrina that mainstream media has produced since the disaster. The introduction, with its skillful use of music and its vividly specific script, captures the listener's attention immediately. The intensely visual nature of the entire story, with all of its details and nuances, represents the greatest strength of an excellent piece. Some variation of sound within the piece, either through music or voicing, would enhance the overall quality. Still, this story deserves a place in any show covering Katrina's aftermath.

I was impressed by this relatively personal approach to a very complex, divisive issue as well as by the eloquence of the producer and her interviewees. With excellent use of sound and flawless transitions in between the various components of her piece, the producer holds the listener?s attention throughout the story. Finally, her use of bias and her justification thereof add honesty and richness to an already notable piece.

This piece, relevant to a number of current issues, including the new exit examinations and the issues surrounding immigration, makes excellent use of both sound and music. The producer skillfully weaves narration, pieces of interviews, and sound clips from her graduation and surrounding events into one coherent, moving story. The personal anecdotes which illustrate the enormity of the producer?s accomplishment make the story both engaging and powerful.

I liked both the idea behind this piece, jumping from one confession to another, as well as the diversity of voices featured and ideas expressed. This diversity of comments holds the listener's attention up until the final speaker's words, the surprise and strength of which make the voxpop almost poignant. The transitions between speakers, however, are not always smooth; some narration could add fluidity and depth to some great actualities.

What struck me most about this piece was the brilliant use of sound--the sounds of the crowd at the beginning that immediately set the scene, the use of music that complemented the discussion taking place, and the sound, which seemed to echo that used at the beginning, that closed the story gracefully. This skillful execution enhanced a topic--the friction between youth and police that sometimes erupts into violence--already rich in emotion. Addressing this topic by interviewing a police officer created an excellent balance between informational and emotional content. Although the piece flows fairly well, using narration instead of the actual interview questions might make the story move even more smoothly.

For someone like me with my many preconceived notions about the violence of heavy metal music, this piece represents well the perspectives of both the artists who create and the listeners who love this music; the story presents a very positive, convincing argument for the genre. Particularly creative is the montage of voices that opens the piece. The use of heavy metal for transition music also adds to the depth and flow of the piece. For the most part, the narration works well, although it could be improved by editing the script to make it more succinct and by reading more smoothly. Overall, however, the piece leaves even the most skeptical listener with a better sense of the motivation behind creating and listening to this genre.

"El Americano Dream," immediately catching the listener's attention with its bilingual, almost mocking title, attempts to convey the story of migrant farm workers in America. Having read in my Spanish class this year the novella Cajas de Cart?n, which tells the story of a Latin-American migrant worker family, I could immediately place this piece in context. Narrated by a bilingual youth who conducted some of his interviews in English and some in Spanish, the piece includes elements of tragedy, commentary, and critique as well as narration. The cuts in Spanish, however, could be translated in order to clarify them for listeners who only speak English. In addition, smoother narration would add to the flow and power of the piece. Finally, although the music adds to the beginning of the piece, it should be faded later on.

This incredibly moving piece, infused with emotion because of the highly personal topic and the openness of the producer, definitely warrants a place on the air. The mix of narration, conversation, music, and sound from the funeral itself creates a very dynamic piece, both in content and in audio. For improvement, I would suggest smoothing the transitions or making sure the whole piece is in chronological order; although bringing the listener to the funeral itself, then giving some background information, and then returning to the funeral has the potential to be very effective, the result was slightly confusing.

After all the public service announcements and sex ed warnings that I have listened to in the past couple of years regarding the serious consequences of teen pregnancy, this piece provides a very nonjudgmental view of the topic--a matter-of-fact examination of the effects that motherhood had on two different high school students. The piece allows the listener to draw his or her own conclusions based on the stories presented. In addition to making the piece nonjudgmental, the producers' decision to eliminate unnecessary narration smoothes the flow of the piece. By moving back and forth between the two mothers' voices and thus juxtaposing their experiences, this method draws connections between the girls as much as it illustrates their differences and also allows the girls themselves to create the scenes for the listener. The final effect of the lack of narration is an added universality; instead of telling the story of two specific, completely described young women, the piece offered a less distinct description and, so doing, in some ways conveys the story of many teen mothers. In order to perfect the piece, the producers could shorten some of the music segments, which, although relevant, are quite lengthy and thus detract from the flow and overall effect.

Almost everyone has an opinion on God, whether or not they believe there is one, and the creator of this piece successfully captures a number of very thoughtful, interesting perspectives from teenagers of various religions. An important piece in a culture full of negative images of teens, it still needs some editing before broadcasting. Although the narration successfully introduces and groups quotes, it does not add to the depth of the piece, which might work better as simply a montage of voices. (In fact, the first couple minutes, which contained no narration, were for me the most powerful ones.) In addition, the sound quality of this piece needs improvement; various mike sounds and poorly mixed music detract from the overall effect. Still, the fascinating quotes showing a variety of views on who God is and his or her role in our lives deserve airtime and I’d love to see this piece edited, remixed, and ready to air.

This incredibly moving piece left me ready to cry, reminding me of how little time we truly have to make our lives worthwhile and meaningful. Captivating and thoughtful, the narration begins by painting a picture of Rogelio’s early life—including anecdotes to which any listener can identify—and discussing his increasing involvement in gang life. The daring narrative technique of representing Rogelio with five different voices creates an effect which, if less skillfully executed, could have appeared trite or confused the listener, but is ultimately very effective and moving. Through this unique use of narrative, the addition of relevant music (although the placement of the music does, at times, break the flow of the narration), and a very compelling and original script, the story successfully addresses the complexity of issues surrounding gangs and their role in individual members’ lives, as well as death and its effect on loved ones. This thoughtful narration merits inclusion in any show that deals with inner city problems or violence, particularly youth or gang violence. Rather than offering any answers, the piece leaves the listener struggling with the questions that arise over the course of the narrative.