288: Introducing Lights Microphone Podcast

Hello Everybody!

The next 6 weeks of this podcast, we’re doing something a little different. I can’t wait for you to hear what’s to come.

In the Fall 2025 semester, I had the great fortune of teaching my first for-credit course in podcasting. Since I started Talk Paper Scissors in 2019, I’ve informally helped and consulted on a number of projects in the space, but I had never (until now!) planned a full curriculum, thinking through what I would’ve loved to know when I was first starting out.

But this fall semester, I had that great privilege. Nineteen students and I met week after week to move from zero to 100—from the seedlings of an idea through to a full-grown tree ready to bear fruit. In small teams (with some students working individually), 10 unique podcasts were born. They ranged from news shows to one-on-one interviews to roundtables with multiple hosts. From discussions of film, culture, the surreal, classic literature, dating and personal advice, marketing, and mindful parenting—there was something for everyone, from everyone.

Beyond these independent podcasts that students worked on throughout the semester—designing, developing, and distributing them into the world—my vision for this course was also to create a collaborative class podcast, where we could interview podcasters about what they do and how they’ve done it. Very inception… a podcast class wherein the class created a podcast about podcasting. Are you still with me?

And so that’s exactly what we did. A group of six students interested in this podcast-about-podcasting project came together, taking on different roles within the team. The whole class had the benefit of learning from incredible podcasters (both virtually and in person) during the final six weeks of the course. These conversations featured a diverse lineup of podcasts and personalities and gave us all a peek into the world of modern audio storytelling beyond the four walls of the classroom.

And so that’s what you’re about to hear. Instead of creating an entirely new platform for this six-part series, I thought it made more sense to share it through this channel, giving it the opportunity to meet an established audience who already has an interest in the world of creative making.

Introducing: Lights Microphone Podcast — a podcast series about starting a podcast, created by hosts Alex Sein and Shana Wu; audio engineering by Tom Vu; visuals designed by Mili Bhatt; written content by Shrey Patel; and outreach support by Lindsay Buckingham.

These episodes… boy, did they deliver. The overarching theme I’d give them is “inspiration meets action.” There’s such great advice shared, so much passion pursued — and it all comes through in the audio. Objectively, truly, the team created a final product that I hope they are so, so proud of. And here’s the lineup:

The first episode features another student podcast series called Ctrl Alt Narrate. The team debriefs what they made, why they made it, and what they learned along the way about starting a podcast from scratch.

The second episode features podcast composer Nick Thorburn, who composed the music for a teeny tiny podcast in 2014 called Serial. Have you heard of it? Podcast scholars believe it was paradigm-shifting, cracking the podcasting space wide open. A tipping point to regular listenership and a catalyst for so many podcasts that followed. And we got to chat with the guy who crafted the iconic score behind the words. Super neat.

The third episode features video podcaster Javon Martin of 100 Ways to Make $100K. High energy and high impact, Javon came for my job in the best way possible—with a big conversation from a big heart.

The fourth episode features a podcast producer at Buzzsprout (a top podcast hosting platform) and the Dreamful Bedtime Stories podcast. Jordan Blair is her name. She helps us better understand what it takes to grow a podcast.

The fifth episode features Winnie Liao of the podcast English, Listen Up! She shares her journey of multilingual podcasting—what to consider when speaking to multiple audiences at once, and what it takes to break into new geographies.

The sixth and final episode features most of the 19 students in the class, reflecting on the semester, unpacking the creation of their podcasts, and thinking about where they might take them next. Students hear each other’s trailers for the first time and offer authentic reactions to the podcasts they’ve worked so hard to create. This was one of my very favourite classes, and I’m thrilled it was recorded because students in the class became the guests in the final episode of the podcast about podcasting for the class about podcasting. Are you still with me?

Lights Microphone Podcast drops tomorrow and continues every Tuesday for the next six weeks, right here in this space. I can’t wait for you to hear it.

This forthcoming student work is from DG 8010: MDM Podcast Lab in the Master of Digital Media program at The Creative School at Toronto Metropolitan University. 

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Music:

New Shoes by HoliznaCC0 is licensed under a CC0 1.0 Universal License.

Talk Paper Scissors Theme Music: Retro Quirky Upbeat Funk by Lewis Sound Production via Audio Jungle

Boat Origami Photo: Boat Origami Photo by Alex on Unsplash

Lights Microphone Podcast Art: Mili Bhatt