Alice Wilder is the founder and creator of “Starting Out,” a monthly newsletter and Transom.org column for people entering the audio industry.
Alice wants an industry where early career people feel supported in getting good jobs and nurturing their voices and passions. She wants to break the cycle of being exploited in the name of “paying dues” and she wants people to be paid fairly and treated with respect.
Through this fellowship, Alice wants to learn from experts about audience engagement, ways she can experiment with her newsletter, and how she can build something sustainable to serve her audience. She is also excited about the prospect of connecting with peers and seeing how projects can cross-pollinate.
MJ Bear Fellowship Project
“Starting Out” addresses an existing issue in audio journalism: a high barrier to entry that caters to people who have a four-year degree and can afford to take low-paying internships. Alice’s goal is to lower that barrier to entry and hopefully arm people with knowledge that will help prevent the exploitation that early-career audio journalists often deal with. As the founder and primary content creator, Alice directs project strategy, development, optimization, and evaluation.
Next, she is looking to build deeper connections with her audience and to find a way for the audience to connect with each other in a respectful and healthy manner.