“We [white people] tend to have blind spots about the way it all works.”

March 2, 2017 11:38 AM

The Scene On Radio podcast, produced and hosted by John Biewen at Duke’s Center for Documentary Studies has often looked at race over the past two seasons. (More episodes listed inside.) Beginning in 2017, the podcast has started taking on nothing but that one, central issue:

• “Movement Time”, an interview with historian Tim Tyson on the murder of Emmett Till.
• “Turning The Lens (Seeing White, Part 1)”, on the job of seeing whiteness as a white person.
• “How Race Was Made (Seeing White, Part 2)”, on the creation of “race”, featuring interviews with historians Nell Irvin Painter and Ibram X. Kendi.

Other, earlier episodes in which race has featured include but are not limited to:

• “Contested”, a six-part series examining the notion that sports fandom can unite us across race and gender divides.
  • “Sports, the Great Uniter?” “Friends and Basketball”
  • “The (High School) Mascot Wars”
  • “An Athlete Inside and Out”
  • “A Level Playing Field?”
  • “What Men Talk About When They Talk About Sports”


• “Hijabis”, in which two young Muslims talk about wearing the hijab.


• “El Nuevo South”, on how Siler City, NC is adjusting to now being 50% lantinx.


• “Emmett and Trayvon”, on Mike Wyatt’s one-man play, Dar He, about the killing of Emmett Till and the parallels with the killing of Trayvon Martin.


• “Prince and Philando and Futures Untold”, an audio essay by Stacia Brown on her relationship to the present as an African-American mother.

posted by Going To Maine (4 comments total)

This sounds like a great project and I'm downloading some episodes now.

I keep coming across signs that universities are doing all kinds of cool things like this, and I wish they had greater visibility. Thanks for highlighting this, Going to Maine!
posted by kristi at 12:49 PM on March 2, 2017

I've been following Stacia Brown ever since a friend pointed me to this blog entry. She's pretty amazing.
posted by janey47 at 4:18 PM on March 2, 2017

Just what I needed at the right time and yet THERE IS NO TIME.

Um, thanks.
posted by allthinky at 4:37 PM on March 2, 2017

Thanks, subscribed to the podcast.
posted by dorothyisunderwood at 12:40 AM on March 3, 2017