Lest we be left behind in the digital age, we are pleased to announce two new audio projects in The Varsity’s Comment section.
First, a podcast series entitled Comment Up Close will go deeper into selected cover stories of the section through extended, moderated discussion with the authors. This will provide authors with the opportunity to elaborate on their stances and respond to any alternative points of view. Furthermore, authors will be able to clarify contentious points in their articles that may have induced confusion or concern, especially in comments published by readers.
We anticipate that an in-depth podcast series will allow for dialogue and accountability in the Comment section. Comment Up Close will be available on The Varsity’s website and on YouTube, Facebook, and SoundCloud. The first three episodes cover articles corresponding to the university-mandated leave of absence policy, Desmond Cole’s potential mayoral bid, and tax revenue allocation regarding marijuana legalization.
Second, in the footsteps of publications like The Atlantic and the Financial Times, an audio article series will feature authors reading out the articles they have written. All authors will be invited to produce an audio version of their articles, so that the readership has choice in how to access Varsity content. We envision that audio articles will illustrate the author’s personality and tone in the presentation of their content, which is not always clear through reading alone. Audio articles will be available on The Varsity’s website as well as SoundCloud.
The Varsity strives to make its content more accessible to the student readership, and in pursuing these audio projects, the Comment section is pleased to embrace digitization trends and mesh print sources with non-print. In a broader context of journalistic ambiguity and post-truth, it is important that we provide authors with the platform to authentically voice and defend their perspectives. And so, Comment goes vocal.
—The Comment team
