Teen podcasters craft new series about New York City’s food culture
With support from audio professionals, 12 public high school students created original narrative podcast episodes in The Bell’s three-week Summer Youth Podcast Academy.
Summer Youth Podcast Academy students pose for a group picture after conducting person-on-the-street interviews in the Financial District. Photo by Zoe George
By Zoe George
For the seventh year, 12 New York City high school students participated in The Bell’s annual Summer Youth Podcast Academy, which took place from July 27 to August 14.
This immersive program offers public and charter school teens the opportunity to gain hands-on podcasting experience while receiving mentorship from professional podcast producers, editors and engineers. Over the course of three weeks, participants reported, produced and edited their own original podcast episodes. This year’s prompt was to profile an individual working in the city’s famously diverse and vast food industry. Students whipped up stories about the rebirth of a popular Brooklyn diner, one chef’s struggle to maintain a beloved soul food restaurant in a gentrifying neighborhood and lots more.
Episodes will be published once a day on The Bell’s Summer Youth Podcast Academy feed starting Wednesday, Sept. 23, and concluding Thursday, Oct. 8.
Listen on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts.
Week 1: ‘Vox pop’ interviews and a CondE Nast career day
The Summer Youth Podcast Academy kicked off in high gear with an engaging workshop on “What Makes a Good Story,” taught by Columbia Journalism School professor and veteran podcaster Joanne Faryon.
Students pose for a selfie with a vox-pop interview guest. Photo by Zoe George
The following day, students learned how to use Zoom H5 recorders from Good Studio owner David Herman and podcast producer Vanessa Handy. Then, they hit the streets around Bowling Green to put their new skills to the test, conducting “vox-pop” interviews—quick conversations with tourists and workers in the area.
Pictured from the left: Shoaa Khan, Lucas Phildor, Zoe George, Evelyn Naula and Christian Rojas Linares. Photo by Taylor McGraw
As the students prepared for their interviews with local restaurant owners, caterers, baristas and more, they had the chance to speak to others who were recently in their shoes. Several past program participants returned for an alumni panel, where they spoke about their time in the Summer Youth Podcast Academy and imparted their wisdom to the group. They reassured the teens that nerves are normal and shared their own experiences overcoming setbacks.
Student journalists visit Condé Nast headquarters. Photo by Mira Gordon
To cap off an action-packed first week, students had the special opportunity to visit the headquarters of Condé Nast, one of the world’s most influential media companies. Alongside summer interns from the Youth Journalism Coalition, they listened to Condé Nast’s executive director of people, Janice Mehos, speak about various career paths in the media industry and participated in a Q&A with The New Yorker writer Ruby Cramer and editor Nimal Eames-Scott. They also competed in an activity to see who could come up with the most compelling story pitch.
Week 2: Putting podcasting skills into practice
Students assemble their breaking news stories. Photo by Zoe George
Week 2 began with a hands-on audio editing workshop where students worked in teams to create mock breaking news segments in under half an hour. After scripting narration on strips of construction paper and cutting out quotes from a press release transcript, they lined up the pieces across a table and presented their stories to the full group.
After familiarizing themselves with assembling audio and “cutting tape” through this activity, students explored these same practices in Hindenburg Pro, an audio editing platform that generously provided in-kind support to the academy.
Later that week, “This American Life” producers Zoe Chace and Diane Wu led a workshop on “Writing for the Ear,” highlighting storytelling techniques from one of the most celebrated narrative audio studios in the business. As students polished their scripts, they also met individually with audio professionals who volunteered as mentors and editors throughout the program.
Teen podcasters practice field reporting at a food festival in the Financial District. Photo by Zoe George
Students had another opportunity to put their podcasting skills into practice when the group visited a neighborhood food festival the following day. The teens interviewed food vendors and customers and recorded reviews as they sampled the fare. They also made a brief visit to Kitchen Arts and Letters’ “New York Food Stories” pop-up and spoke to the employees about how cookbooks tell rich stories about culture and community. Upon returning to The Bell’s office, students had under an hour to assemble short podcast episodes using the tape they had gathered in the field. The resulting pieces were equal parts hilarious and heartwarming.
Week 3: Recording at NPR and an uplifting listening party
Students recorded their episodes at National Public Radio’s New York Bureau. Photo courtesy of The Bell
As the third and final week of the Summer Youth Podcast Academy commenced, participants put finishing touches on their scripts and learned techniques for recording narration with the Council on Foreign Relations’ podcasting director, Gabrielle Sierra.
They recorded their episodes the following day at National Public Radio’s New York Bureau. It was inspiring to sit in the same seats as professional audio producers and hosts as they brought their stories to life.
After assembling and adding “scoring” to their episodes with guidance from engineers Peter Leonard and Erica Huang, the podcasts were ready for the spotlight.
Shoaa Khan and Zoe George emcee the seventh annual Summer Youth Podcast Academy listening party. Photo by Allison Millewski
The Summer Youth Podcast Academy concluded with a listening party hosted at The Bell’s office and emceed by the program’s college assistants, Shoaa Khan and Zoe George. Each student presented a 3-minute clip of their episodes—covering everything from family pizzerias to keto-friendly bakeries—and reflected on favorite moments from the program.
In a moving finale, friends, family members and volunteers shared shoutouts with the students, praising them for their hard work and creativity.
An ‘enlightening’ experience
Looking back on the program, Summer Youth Podcast Academy participants shared an appreciation for the skills they acquired and connections they made.
Participants pose with “paper plate awards” celebrating their achievements. Photo by Allison Millewski
“I definitely learned so much more about the industry, what it takes, and how to really just like thrive in it … which I'm grateful for,” Brayden Tom said.
“It's very motivating. It makes me want to read more, be more curious, and ask more questions,” Nadiyah Washington said.
Reflecting on the visit to Condé Nast, Lucia Fajardo said, “This field trip … has really been an enlightening one for me … It's been really nice to meet all of these professionals who know a lot about what it's like being in this industry, and it's really made me think more about what I want to do within journalism and the different aspects of it.”
The unique learning experience the Summer Youth Podcast Academy offers is enabled in large part by the involvement of numerous industry professionals who lend their time and expertise to the program.
“Every time I come back I’m just in such complete awe of everybody in this classroom,” said award-winning podcast producer and summer workshop leader Kristen Meinzer. “I think, oh my gosh, this is the next president of the United States, or this is the next editor-in-chief of The New York Times, or this is somebody who’s going to make the world better.”
Producer Vanessa Handy left the program feeling refreshed. “As the media landscape changes rapidly and I sometimes find myself disenchanted with the podcast space today, it was inspiring and heartening to see these students engage with the medium of audio with curiosity,” she said.
Meet the team
Ishna Ahmed is a junior at Richard R. Green High School of Teaching in Manhattan’s Financial District. Ishna keeps herself busy as an organizer for the NYCLU TAP program, a part-time tutor for elementary and middle school students, and a part of her school’s teaching internship program for its 10th-grade. Outside of work, Ishna spends her time baking sweets with her mom, binge-watching sitcoms or scouring for her next read at Barnes & Noble.
Thema Awoumbeng is a senior at KIPP NYC College Prep in the South Bronx. She is a member of her school's student council, game design club and wrestling team. She’s also the manager of the boys' soccer team and is the founder of the journalism club. When she's not busy with schoolwork and her many other responsibilities, she enjoys spending a whole day with her friends, going downtown, trying new foods, doing whatever comes to mind and ending it all with a sleepover. Alternatively, she’ll buy Chipotle and stay in bed on her phone or laptop watching her favorite shows.
Jacob Chase is a senior in a dual enrollment program at George Westinghouse High School and The Brooklyn STEAM Center in Brooklyn. He’s currently studying video production and video journalism at the STEAM Center. Jacob's always doing his best to be a key part in the betterment of his community as he takes part in many leadership programs including My Brother's Keeper and The Leaders of Tomorrow.
Alyssa Cheong is a senior at John Adams High School. She's a founding member of the Restorative Community and Justice Club at her school. She helps out with school events, whether during or after school. During her free time, she likes to draw, hang out with her friends or little sister, and cook. One of her favorite shows is “South Park,” which she often watches to relax after a long day.
Jaila Eames is a junior who goes to Vertex Partnership Academies in the Bronx. She loves to draw, write, create stories, listen to music, play video games (“Ace Attorney” being her favorite) and play guitar in her spare time. When she’s in school, she tries to be hardworking and respectful.
Lucia Fajardo is a junior at Stuyvesant High School in Manhattan. She is an active member of her school's newspaper, orchestra, yearbook, and honor society. When Lucia isn't procrastinating or binge-watching TV shows, she loves to read, travel, watch Broadway shows and try new food spots around New York City.
Zoe George is a freshman journalism major at the University at Albany and a recent graduate of Bard High School Early College Manhattan. In high school she participated in The Bell's P.S. Weekly internship and Summer Youth Podcast Academy. She is involved in club cheer and crochets in her free time.
Clarke Greene is a senior at Bard High School Early College in Manhattan. She is a member of her school's student union, Black Student Association and step team. She also works as the Smart Scholars intern at Bard Manhattan. When Clarke isn't studying or packing for a conference or event, she loves playing Roblox with her friends and watching Love Island or Big Brother.
Shoaa Khan is a junior at Lehigh University studying psychology and learning sciences. When she’s not in class, you can usually find her running the South Asian Student Association as president. After spending two wonderful seasons with The Bell as a high school student, she couldn't stay away and came back to support as a program assistant.
Khamani Mitchell is a junior at the Brooklyn Institute of Liberal Arts (BILA). He's a member of his school's news publication The BILA Wave. He is also an active member of the Youth Journalism Coalition (YJC).
Shai Parchi is a senior at LaGuardia High School. He is a member of his school’s technical theatre program and varsity soccer team. When he isn’t playing sports or doing schoolwork, he hangs out with friends, travels and spends time with his brothers.
Venice Tineo is a senior at the High School for Construction Trades, Engineering and Architecture, where she majors in engineering. Venice is currently in the theatre program and National Honor Society and has been cheerleading since her sophomore year. When she isn’t busy doing schoolwork, she loves to indulge in her favorite K-pop groups like Cortis, Lngshot and Newjeans, and she loves to learn dances and sing.
Brayden Tom is a freshman at Vanderbilt University. He’s dedicated to exploring how different fields connect with each other and loves to improve his skill set. He has worked at the zoo, voiced his school’s daily announcements and presented his independent projects at Google. When he’s not exploring new industries, he’s in the kitchen learning to make better coffee.
Nadiyah Washington is a senior at Brooklyn Prospect High School. She is an active member of her school's newspaper team, girls' basketball management, climate environmental club and book club. When Nadiyah isn't busy doomscrolling or doing homework, she loves to eat Chipotle, go to the gym or rewatch “Gilmore Girls.”
The Bell's mission is to equip students with the tools to tell impactful stories today and the skills to thrive in the media careers of tomorrow.
The Summer Youth Podcast Academy is supported by the Spotify Studios Union. Episodes were produced using Hindenburg Pro.
