News Beat describes itself in lofty words, “if Hamilton and 60 Minutes gave birth to a podcast”, and well, I couldn’t agree more. It’s a tough measure — and even tougher to execute on — but News Beat manages to balance and intertwine both music, current events, and social justice issues. In a short-form podcast, News Beat seamlessly blends insights from political pundits, academics, and activists with spoken word, hip-hop, and other music.

Episodes typically hover around 30-45 minutes and publish roughly once per week. As the podcast name likely suggests, they cover any and all social justice news from Guantanamo Bay, to poverty, to MLK, to race riots, and more.

Discover Pods was fortunate to meet Jed Morey, Executive Producer of News Beat, to discuss what goes into making such a ambitious podcast, where they fit in the larger conversation, and the challenges they face as indie podcasters. See below for our Q&A.

Listen: Apple Podcasts | Stitcher


Discover Pods: How’d you get into podcasting?

MOREY: Our path to podcasting was circuitous but logical in retrospect. We launched News Beat a little more than one year ago but our team has been together for several years. We began in journalism in 2002 as publishers of an alternative weekly newspaper. In 2017 we sold the publication and a core group of veteran investigative journalists split off to form News Beat. Prior to the publishing business, we were actually in terrestrial radio so our true roots are in broadcasting but it’s journalism that pumps through our veins.

DP: In your own words, why should listeners tune in to News Beat?

MOREY: Having been in journalism for fifteen years, we knew we wanted to take a fresh approach to connecting with our audience. We are natural storytellers with a thirst for knowledge and a passion for social justice. What makes News Beat so incredibly unique is that we delve into a single topic and intersperse interviews with a rhythmic score and original verses from independent hip-hop artists. So each episode is its own work of art with a natural story arc and poetry woven throughout. Listeners are engaged for the duration of the episode and come away with a new perspective on a critical social, political or economic issue.

DP: Social justice is obviously a hot topic in today’s political climate. How do you view your podcast and its goal in the larger picture?

MOREY: Social Justice is indeed a hot topic and our goal is to bring the words to life. Too often in today’s highly charged and tribal political environment, issues are relegated to one side of the political spectrum or the other. Everything is polarized. News Beat strives to break beyond these norms and humanize important issues in a listener-centric manner. We often say that News Beat is like Hamilton meets 60 Minutes. Just because our topics are serious and critical doesn’t mean you can’t thoroughly enjoy them as a listener.

DP: What are some episodes you’re particularly proud of?

MOREY: Obviously I’m a little bit of a proud parent so it’s hard to identify my favorite episodes. So I’ll offer the ones that received the most feedback.

The War on Drugs
https://www.usnewsbeat.com/2017/08/02/the-true-origins-of-the-war-on-drugs-episode-0002/

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
https://www.usnewsbeat.com/2018/01/08/mlk-what-they-wont-teach-in-school/

MS-13
https://www.usnewsbeat.com/2018/04/09/ms-13-made-in-the-usa/

UN Poverty Report
https://www.usnewsbeat.com/2018/03/21/land-of-the-rich-home-of-the-poor-americas-poverty-crisis/

DP: What’s the biggest challenge you face as an indie podcaster?

MOREY: Like most other indie podcasters, our biggest challenge is exposure beyond our natural audience of early adopters. We were fortunate to be featured as a New York Times Podcast Club pick of the week and our episodes have been added to the poli-sci curriculum at three different universities thus far. This kind of external publicity is extremely helpful and we are always looking at ways of connecting with people outside our immediate bubble. That’s really important if News Beat is going to make an impact and help shape the national discourse in a meaningful way.

DP: Where do you want to take your podcast?

MOREY: At our core, we are investigative journalists. Essentially this means that we are patient above all else. Great stories aren’t forced, they unfold. That’s how we feel about News Beat. We’re taking our time crafting each episode with incredible care and attention to detail in the hopes that it will continue to grow organically and then garner coverage from external sources. In a couple of years we hope to be part of the national conversation, helping to inform a large base of individuals committed to positive change. We earned this over many years in publishing so we know what it feels like to really move the needle, shape policy and affect change. It will take time, but that’s our simple but lofty goal.

DP: What other podcasts are you listening to now?

MOREY: We all have our personal favorites and guilty pleasures, but in terms of universal acclaim (in our little world) we’re all pretty big fans of Intercepted with Jeremy Scahill. Scahill is probably one of the world’s preeminent investigative journalists so getting to hear him in this venue is incredible. Ear Hustle is pretty special as well. Great concept, great production. In terms of organizations, ProPublica does great work and it seems like anything under the NPR umbrella is untouchable. Politically Re-Active is smart, funny and challenging. The cipher is doing some solid work in the hip-hop world. The podcasting world lost a huge voice in Combat Jack as he was really at the top of the game. The great thing about this medium is how collaborative it is and how much joy there is in discovering new shows that challenge us to be better. As the industry grows, it’s also great to see strong networks like Panoply emerge as platforms for great content.

DP: Anything else you’d like to add?

MOREY: News Beat is the truth amplified. If we can connect with listeners who are passionate about social justice and civil liberties and inspire them to get involved and affect change, then we’ll have accomplished our goals. The trick is to stay hungry, continue to adapt, push ourselves to tell great stories and even make people uncomfortable if need be. No matter what our journey looks like, we feel incredibly fortunate to pursue our craft and contribute something positive to the podcast universe.

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