The Power of Story, the Sound of the Other

Sue Schardt, executive producer of Margin Media, is passionate about the power a single story has to bring positive change to those listening. Schardt was recognized in 2018 by the National Federation of Community Broadcasters (NFCB) with the “Michael Bader Lifetime Achievement Award,” with NFCB President Sally Kane citing Sue Schardt’s particular contributions through Localore and her work with independent talent to reach new corners of local communities by experimenting with new ways of producing stories.

Localore: Finding America draws on many story-forms common to public media platforms – social/digital, television, radio, short form documentary, and live events. The production partnered with scores of public media stations, local community groups, and non-profits nationwide to collaborate with the Localore production units, making stories “with and for the people” to capture a wide spectrum of American diversity.

One 2016 production based in New Orleans (NOLA) led by Eve Abrahms was “Unprisoned: Stories from the System.” It featured a series of podcasts, radio programs, and live events over the course of a year. One live event, produced with Bring Your Own Story (BYOS), showcased nine storytellers, including formerly incarcerated individuals and family members of returning citizens. It drew an audience of 300 and included those connected to the storytellers as well others from the wider NOLA community who’d had little exposure to the impact of prison culture – this in a town sometimes referred to as “the world’s incarceration capital.” According to statistics at the time of the event, approximately 60 percent of the people in New Orleans are African American, and African Americans make up about 85 percent of the local prison population.

Sue Schardt cited as inspiration for her remarks that evening “The Sound of the Genuine,” a 1980 commencement address delivered by the Reverend Howard Thurman’s to the graduates of Spelman college. Schardt said, “ Stories make us human. The act of sitting across the table from another person – meeting them eye to eye – the act of standing up on a stage to share what is burning in your mind, that comes from the deepest part of you, is an act of courage. Each time you do this is a demonstration of your power. There is power in this because, when you choose to tell a story out loud, to have to overcome the fear you may have in committing this act, you are bearing witness to what it is to be a human being. You are demonstrating what is it to be alive in the world, and you are making it possible for another person to see themselves reflected in your experience. It is an act of helping; an act of healing.”

The full script of Reverend Thurman’s “The Sound of the Genuine” is here [linkto: http://www.dailygood.org/story/1846/the-sound-of-the-genuine-howard-thurman/]

The full transcript of Schardt’s remarks are located here [linkto: https://marginmedia.org/the-sound-of-the-other-in-you-nola/]

For the latest on Sue Schardt and Margin Media, go here! [linkto: https://marginmedia.org/]