Drama! Characters! Conflict! History podcasts have them all, with American History Tellers' Lindsay Graham

Feb 14, 2024

Ask episode

Chapters

Transcript

Episode notes

Don’t miss today’s takeaways! Scroll down for lessons from this episode.

The episodes we discussed on today’s episode are History Daily: Silent Spring Sparks the Modern Environmental Movement and American History Tellers Season 61: Salem Witch Trials.

Lindsay Graham

Lindsay Graham (no, not that Lindsey Graham) is a podcast creator, producer and host known for compelling narratives and in-depth exploration of pivotal moments in American and world history. His chart-topping shows American Scandal, American History Tellers and History Daily reach millions every month, using immersive sound design, a rich original score, and meticulous research to bring moving, character-driven stories that demonstrate “history is human.” His newest podcast is American Criminal, a “true crime podcast that tells the stories of the most infamous criminals in the history of the United States, revealing the men and women who cheated, lied, and murdered in their own twisted pursuit of the American dream.” Graham is the CEO and founder of Airship, a podcast publishing company. He is a podcast producer, sound designer and composer who has worked on Dirty John, Dr. Death, Bad Batch and others, reaching hundreds of millions of listeners.

If you liked this episode, you’ll love Sound Judgment Season 1, Episode 8, How Top Hosts Hook Their Listeners in 60 Seconds or Less.

Takeaways from my conversation with Lindsay:

In several of its shows, including American History Tellers, American Scandal, History Daily and Business Wars, Wondery employs a format that’s always been controversial. They call it “immersive storytelling.” It relies on a single narrator to voice all or most of the characters in an episode. It also employs fictionalized reenactments. As Lindsay says – some people hate this. “I can’t do anything about it,” he says, “cause that’s the show.” He also says, “I can’t help those people who want it to be different than it is.” And that’s the lesson: Choose what your show IS and lean into it. YOUR people will love it. If you do your job well, some people may, in fact, hate it. That’s OK. It’s not for them.
When they conduct historical research, Lindsay and his writers aren’t just cataloging facts. They’re on a treasure hunt to learn how the characters felt and how people in their lives felt about them. Those emotions make the historical world feel real, increase the stakes, and keep listeners glued to their headphones. This isn’t your father’s history class.
Here’s a tip for anyone leading a team: Create editorial guidelines and share them with everyone – writers, producers, sound designers, and engineers. Guidelines are great for onboarding newcomers. They also help make sure everyone is on the same page. Originally, Lindsay made a narrative podcast out of the American History Tellers guidelines; that’s a memorable way to get this information across. Whatever you do, remember that editorial guidelines are living documents – keep them up to date.
Lindsay calls himself a champion thinker, but an “apprentice do-er.” Self-doubt and perfectionism gets in his way, as they did with his long-delayed introduction of the subscription service Into History. Once he stopped overthinking and started taking one step after another, introducing this new product turned out to be easier than he thought. Taking action brings confidence, and confidence, as Lindsay says, breeds more confidence.

Visit Lindsay online:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lindsayagraham/

Twitter/X: @lindsayagraham

Improve your storytelling Check out our popular workshops on interviewing, story editing, story structure, longform narrative, audience engagement, guesting, scriptwriting and more.

Hire Elaine to speak at your conference or company. Subjects include: Effective Storytelling; Communicating for Leaders; Communicating about Change; Mastering the Art of the Interview; Success in Guesting, and much more.

Discover our strategic communication services and coaching for thought leaders using storytelling tools to make the world a better place. Serving writers, podcasters, public speakers, and others in journalism & public media, climate change, health care, policy, and higher education. Visit us at www.podcastallies.com.

Subscribe to Sound Judgment, the Newsletter, our twice-monthly newsletter about creative choices in audio storytelling.

Connect:

Facebook | LinkedIn | Instagram

✉️ Email Elaine at allies@podcastallies.com

💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts

🟢 Leave a rating on Spotify

🗣️ Share the show by word of mouth and on your socials

Help us find and celebrate today’s best hosts
Who’s your Sound Judgment dream guest? Email me: allies@podcastallies.com. Because of you, that host may appear on Sound Judgment.

Credits

Sound Judgment is a production of Podcast Allies, LLC.

Host: Elaine Appleton Grant

Podcast Manager: Tina Bassir

Production Manager: Andrew Parrella

Audio Engineer: Kevin Kline

Production Assistant: Audrey Nelson