Questions for “Serial”, the podcast PDF

Preview

Summary

questions for the serial podcast...

Description

Questions for “Serial”, the podcast Justine Blanchard 1. The first episode begins with information about the podcast's sponsor. Like many types of media, podcast creators make money by selling advertising space. Podcast creators have to think carefully about who they sell advertising space—or in this case, time—to because it can affect the way the listener responds to the rest of the text. Who were the sponsors mentioned at the beginning of the podcast and what are they selling? (You may have to do a bit of research in order to find out who the sponsors are and what they do) What predictions can you make about the nature of the podcast based on the advertisers? The video was sponsored by Capital one saver card. It's a credit card that will help you save money for going out or staying in. Earning unlimited 3% cash back on everyday activities such as dining in or when at the grocery store. I can assume the podcast might speak about something involving money.

2. The episode opens with a recording and music. Describe the recording and the music. Each episode opens with this recording and music. What kind of tone do they set for the podcast? In addition to creating atmosphere, what purpose does the music serve? The music was, in my opinion, very mystery striking. It kind of had an old hip-hop rhythm to it which got me in the mood to listen to what this podcast was going to be talking about; very suspenseful to say the least! In addition to this, there was a quick snippet of a recording; Adnan Sayed, from his correctional facility. It sounded muffled, which led me to believe it is older however it got me further intrigued because it was like information coming from the source.

3. Describe the narrator's style of talking. Is she very formal or informal? Provide an example to support your answer. How does her tone affect the way you respond to the content? In my opinion the narrator's style of talking is very informal. She uses conjunctions of words/ "slang" such as "wanna" which set a more informal vibe as if talking to a friend versus how you would be speaking at a business meeting. Additionally, at the beginning when she says, "Or if you wanna get technical about- and apparently I do", she sets the tone

for how she speaks throughout the podcast. Just here it is evident how "informal" she is--answering her own question, a touch of sarcasm just an overall chill vibe.

4. The narrator, Sarah Koenig, is not the only person you hear speak in the podcast. When does she include other voices and why do you think she might do this? What effect does it have on the narrative and listener's responses to hear more than one voice? Just within 2 minutes, the first "guest" is introduced. In my opinion, this keeps the listener engaged as you're not only hearing the same voice which, as well as keeps the listener excited and focused. Moreover it has a great ability to prove the narrator's point--she stated how hard it is for people to remember events that have happened even when only a few days have passed. She then brings in guests to prove this point.

5. At the center of this podcast is the question of Adnan Syed's guilt. Does Sarah Koenig reveal any bias for or against Syed in this episode? How can you tell? In my opinion she does show some bias towards Syed by hinting that she cares about him; so it kind of becomes evident that she believes he is innocent which leads the listener to believe the same thing. For example, when she is talking about how Adnan was a traditional muslim, so he shouldn't have been dating, Sarah says, "the state used this against him", as if Syed was the victim and that was the only "point of view."This is only one of many proofs that allows me to infer she is kind of on his side therefore implying there is bias.

6. Based on this episode alone, if you had to rule on Syed's guilt or innocence, what would your conclusion be? On what would you base this conclusion? On this episode alone I would rule out Syed as innocent just based on the fact that I think the evidence is too weak. For example when they use the fact that he was hiding his girlfriend, they paint this to fit their narrative; he's a liar, he's deceiving, can't be trusted-that doesn't really prove anything because more than half of teenagers behave this way.

7. How is this medium (the podcast) like other forms of media you've experienced before (e.g., television, movies, blogs, books)? How is it different? I think it's a mixture of a little of everything. For example, the music, the guests, it all reminds me of a youtube video or a come documentary you'd watch on TV. The informal tone and structure remind me of a blog post. It also reminds me of the news--I guess just a little of everything. However where it's set apart is the no visual; in all the examples I've listed there is a visual therefore you'd need to be physically watching. However with this podcast, there is enough detailed audio to compensate for the lack of visuals, therefore you could go for a run, a walk or be cooking while listening....