On Our Minds Season 7: Podcast and Audio Storytelling

Student Reporting Labs’ award-winning podcast, On Our Minds, explores the teenage experience, produced and hosted by teenagers themselves.

Season 7, Unplugged, explores what happens when we step away from screens and social media and make room for life offline. Think: stories about vintage hobbies, old-school technology, analog ways of creating and connecting, or the people, places and traditions that bring us together IRL. We want to hear how teens are finding meaning, creativity and connection beyond the scroll.

Opportunities for students:

Produce an audio story. DEADLINE: OCTOBER 9, 2026 11:59PM PT.

Apply to be a host. DEADLINE January 8, 2027, 11:59pm PT.

Submit original music for theme song contest. DEADLINE: JANUARY 29, 2027, 11:59pm PT.

Students can pitch an audio story for On Our Minds: Unplugged through October 9, 2026. Selected student producers will work with SRL staff to produce a 3–5 minute audio story for the spring 2027 season.

Pitch your story idea. Let us know you want to produce an audio story by filling out the On Our Minds Season 7 Student Producer Form by October 9, 2026 at 11:59 p.m PT. The earlier you submit, the better! SRL staff will review submissions on a rolling basis and may reach out to you before the deadline to talk through your idea.

1. Get feedback and mentorship. SRL producers will review your pitch and work with selected student producers to develop their ideas and guide them through the production process.
2. Produce your story. Selected students will produce a 3–5 minute audio story about how they or someone they know is turning away from tech and finding meaning, creativity, connection or joy in offline life. SRL producers will work with students on reporting, recording, scripting and editing.
3. Share your story. Selected stories will be considered for inclusion in On Our Minds: Unplugged, with episodes planned for release in Spring 2027. SRL may also contact students about adapting their pitch into a video for publication on SRL's social media channels rather than as a podcast episode.

A note about eligibility: On Our Minds focuses primarily on stories from high school students, but middle school and college-age students are welcome to pitch as well.

Listen to an example of an audio story that brings listeners into an everyday experience with a friend or classmate. Discuss what you heard:

• What captured your attention?
• What sounds made you feel like you were there?
• What details helped you understand the person or their world?
• What did the story reveal that you didn't expect?
• How did the audio make an ordinary experience feel interesting?

COMPLETE THIS PROJECT ON YOUR OWN OR FILL OUT THE STUDENT PRODUCER FORM TO LET US KNOW YOU WANT TO PRODUCE A STORY FOR ON OUR MINDS.

MAKE SURE YOU AND YOUR SUBJECTS AGREE TO AND UNDERSTAND THIS PROJECT.

Make sure anyone featured in your story understands that it may be included in a series by PBS News Student Reporting Labs and will be available to the public. Ask them how they'd like to be identified in the piece and remind them to only say what they feel comfortable sharing with a wide audience. Also, make sure you and everyone under 18 signs an SRL RELEASE FORM.

Ask yourself or someone you know these questions when coming up with your story idea:

• How are you turning away from tech? What are you doing with your time instead, and what's happened as a result?
• Have you taken up a vintage hobby like sewing, gardening, baking, knitting or collecting? Why does it appeal to you? Check out this story on knitting for inspiration.
• Have you embraced analog technology like film photography, arcade games, record players or radios? Why choose the old-school option instead of your phone?
• Where do you find community and connection in the real world? Think libraries, parks, roller rinks, music stores or other "third spaces." What happens there? Check out Lemon's story about his local art shop for inspiration.
• Have you or your friends changed the way you socialize because of phones or social media? Maybe you've gone to a phone-free party, started putting your phones away when you hang out, or found another way to connect.
• Who taught you how to do something the old-fashioned way? What did you learn from them?
• Is there something from the past that you're bringing back? Why does it feel meaningful to you now?
• What do you love doing that doesn't require a screen? What keeps you coming back to it?
• When do you feel the most "human"? What are you doing, where are you, and who are you with?
• What does that experience sound like? What sounds, voices and details could bring the story to life for someone listening?

Remember: We're not just looking for stories about things that are "old-school." We're looking for stories that reveal something about how young people are choosing to live, connect, create and spend their time in a digital world.

The best stories bring listeners somewhere and get them invested in a person or people they've never met before.

For Unplugged, think especially about the sounds that can make your listener feel like they're experiencing the story alongside you. The click of a film camera. The shuffle of cards. A record spinning. A sewing machine humming. A basketball bouncing. Someone laughing around a dinner table. The sound of a pencil moving across paper.

Look for the details that reveal why this offline experience matters. Don't just tell us that someone loves vinyl records; show us what happens when they put one on. Don't just tell us that friends like hanging out without their phones — bring us into the moment.

All good stories also REVEAL something. Think about SURPRISE, CONFLICT and CHANGE. Maybe unplugging is harder than someone expected. Maybe an old hobby becomes a way to connect with a grandparent. Maybe putting down a phone changes a friendship. Maybe something that seemed "old-fashioned" turns out to feel surprisingly new.

You want to leave your listener with the feeling that they've experienced something, met someone and discovered something they didn't know before.

Once you've filled out the Student Producer Form and heard back from an SRL producer, or if you're doing this project on your own, follow these production steps:

• PLAN. Whether you're telling a personal story, following someone through their favorite offline activity or bringing us into a screen-free gathering, make a plan for what you're going to say and the sounds you want to record. Write a script and practice reading it. If you plan to interview someone, draft questions that will get them telling stories rather than simply giving you information.
• RECORD. Record yourself, your environment and your interviews with others. Think beyond the interview! Capture the sounds of the activity you're reporting on and the spaces where it happens. Refer to the How to Record a Podcast One-Pager and How to Record a Podcast Level-Up for tips.
  • If you have a mic, use it! :)
  • Record the sounds of the story, not just people talking about the story.
• TRANSCRIBE. Transcribe your interview or audio diary. You can use sites like Otter.ai or transcription functions in Adobe Premiere or Audition to help generate a transcript. Then HIGHLIGHT the best parts, called soundbites.
• SCRIPT. Start a document (preferably a shared Google Doc) and arrange your soundbites, narration and audio scenes into the order you want for your story. Think about where you can let the natural sounds do the storytelling.
• EDIT. Edit your audio story using any audio or video software or app. Please do not add music.
• CELEBRATE! The act of telling your own story or helping someone else tell theirs is profound. Share your work far and wide and be proud!

• Audio Storytelling Toolkit
• NPR Audio Training
• How to Record a Podcast (Level-Up Video)
• How to Record a Podcast (One-Pager)