Podcast Summary: Consider This from NPR

Episode: Why This Episode Wouldn't Work in Print
Date: November 1, 2025
Host: Sacha Pfeiffer
Guests: Frank Langford, Laura Sullivan, Ann Powers

Episode Overview

This episode of Consider This explores why certain storytelling forms excel on the radio but fall flat in print. Drawing on their own experiences moving from newspapers to NPR, veteran journalists discuss how audio uniquely captures emotion, character, and immediacy—and why some stories just demand to be heard.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Print vs. Radio Storytelling (00:00–01:47)

• Writing for the Ear vs. Writing for the Eye:
  Sacha Pfeiffer opens with the idea of the "NPR driveway moment"—radio that is so compelling listeners can’t turn it off. She and her colleagues, who began as print journalists, quickly discovered that writing for radio demands different skills than writing for print.

  • Quote:
    "I thought the writing would be the same. But instead of my story appearing in print, I just read it out loud. I immediately learned that a great newspaper story does not automatically make a great on air story."
    — Sacha Pfeiffer (00:18)

  • Ann Powers notes:
    "When you read a newspaper story, I mean, it's a nightmare on the radio. It's just this... lead in, it's long, it's really involved." (00:46)

• Simplicity and Conversation:

  • Radio stories must be shorter and simpler, often mirroring natural speech.

    • Frank Langford:
      "We had a certain kind of orthodoxy of writing imposed upon us that it's not the way anyone ever speaks." (01:10)
      "I was completely liberated to write as I would speak." (01:16)

2. Radio as a Theatrical Experience (03:02–04:56)

• Immersive Audio Scenes:

  • Frank Langford compares radio to theater or film, creating scenes that make listeners feel present.

    • He gives an example from his reporting: the difference between describing an elephant being tagged in South Sudan (in print) versus playing audio of the elephant snoring (on radio).

      • Memorable Moment & Quote:
        "The elephant, she's at least 30 years old, is snoring." (04:23)
        "You know what we do if she wakes up? You run." (04:29)

  • The sound transports listeners, conveying tension, location, and emotion better than print can.

3. Conveying Emotion Through Sound (04:56–06:04)

• Non-verbal Storytelling:

  • Sacha describes reporting on a bombing survivor whose joyful laugh with her service dog became central to the story—something that print couldn’t fully express.

    • Quote:
      "...if I was still writing for a newspaper, I couldn't convey the joy and delight of that laugh. So there's something about radio where you can bring something that you're a little limited with in print." (05:48)

• Ann Powers adds:
  "It's true. Radio, you get to bring the whole scene into it and all the characters become what's happening... It brings the whole thing to life." (05:49)

4. Interviewing for Audio, Not Text (06:04–08:09)

• Letting Silence Speak:

  • In print, reporters might constantly interject ("mhm", laughter); in radio, this can ruin the tape.

    • Ann Powers:
      "You gotta let them finish their thought. And you can't go, uh huh huh, through somebody's talking..." (06:20)

    • Frank Langford:
      "As a radio reporter, you're best if you're like Marcel Marceau, a mime..." (06:41)

  • Conversational Storytelling:

    • Shorter, real-time dialogue is more effective in radio.

    • Illustrative Example:
      Frank shares audio of British citizens talking about the Queen—revealing their personalities through their voices (07:19).

• Core Questions in Radio:

  • "And then what happened?" and "How did you feel about that?"—simple prompts that elicit natural storytelling.

    • Ann Powers:
      "...everything in an interview that I do is somehow some version of those two questions." (07:47)

• Building Rapport:

  • Frank contrasts a rapid-fire AP interview in Somalia with his more conversational approach, yielding deeper, more personal insights (08:17).

5. Making "Boring" Material Work in Audio (09:15–10:33)

• Adapting Print for Radio:

  • Ann discusses a story about historical markers—how their dry, text-heavy style seemed ill-suited for audio.

    • Solution:
      She overwhelmed the listener by reading out a long, random list—making the monotony itself memorable and effective.

      • Ann Powers:
        “What if we just read these giant paragraphs listing all of these signs... by just overwhelming the listener with them." (09:35)

    • Sacha Pfeiffer:
      "It was this blizzard of random historical markers that you read. And it was a huge block of text, but it worked really well on the radio." (10:25)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On writing for the ear:
  "I felt that I was completely liberated to write as I would speak. And I'm always thinking, if I'm having a pint in a pub with somebody or what's the first thing I'm going to tell them? What's the story?"
  — Frank Langford (01:16)

• On radio’s power:
  "You can bring something that you're a little limited with in print."
  — Sacha Pfeiffer (05:48)

• On the core of radio interviews:
  "There’s really only two questions in radio that we use ad nauseam: ‘And then what happened?’ and ‘How did you feel about that?’"
  — Ann Powers (07:47)

• On improvising with difficult material:
  "In that one particular instance, I think it helped people understand what we were talking about."
  — Ann Powers (10:33)

Important Segment Timestamps

• 00:00–01:47: Print backgrounds lead to insights on radio writing differences
• 03:02–04:56: The immersive, theatrical nature of radio; sound versus description
• 04:56–06:04: How audio conveys emotion print cannot
• 06:04–08:09: Radio interviewing styles; capturing true conversation
• 09:15–10:33: Adapting "un-radio" material (historical markers) for sound

Summary

Filled with laughter, practical examples, and honesty, this episode shows that radio—and, by extension, podcasting—is a unique, living form. Beyond chasing facts, it’s about creating scenes and capturing emotion in real time, letting listeners experience the story through voices, pauses, and sound. Effective radio journalism, as the guests emphasize, isn’t just reporting; it’s performing, listening deeply, and inviting the audience to feel as well as know.