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It’s free verse. It’s spoken word. It’s rap, scat, poetry, rhythms, rhymes, beats and melodies—with a powerful, important message.
Welcome to News Beat, a short-form educational news podcast melding the worlds of journalism and music to elevate storytelling, foster a deeper connection with listeners, and deliver an alternative narrative on some of the most pressing issues, happenings, events and people shaping our world.
Morey Publishing, parent company of Long Island Press, is launching News Beat to continue the mission of truth-telling and journalistic integrity that’s guided the Press for its nearly 15 years of publication. News Beat utilizes verse, beats, and audio to educate, inform, and inspire our readers and listeners—interacting with the public on a whole new level in the process.
News Beat combines all the facets of Morey Publishing—content production, inbound marketing and alternative news perspective—and embodies our ideals and our strengths as a company: collaboration, storytelling, alternative news, history and education.
Podcasting is a logical extension of our brand, and News Beat is a natural progression of the alt-journalism the Press has been crafting since its inception.
With News Beat, you’ll no longer simply read the news; you’ll hear it, and you’ll literally feel it. Most importantly, News Beat presents an alternative take to widely accepted narratives on its featured topics, arming listeners with important knowledge and insights that they likely wouldn’t hear from mainstream media—provoking thought, spurring questions, and challenging long-held beliefs.
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No matter the gravity of the topic, News Beat’s musical format is easily digestible. In the day of instantaneous digital gratification, “fake news,” 24/7 kitten memes and deteriorating attention spans, News Beat episodes will clock in at roughly 16 minutes each—far less than the typical podcast length of 30 minutes, and yet long enough to listen to in their entirety during the commute to work.
Think how “Schoolhouse Rock” broke down educational barriers by leveraging an original score in a televised cartoon format, and more recently, how “Hamilton” has brought history to life through hip hop and theater.
While the musical genre may change, each News Beat podcast follows an established story arc rooted in traditional journalism and songwriting. Journalists will recognize the lede, nut graph, body and kicker, while all listeners will hear choruses and verses following a musical structure.
Listeners are presented with a version of a story or topic they’re familiar with. Narration and audio clips reinforce that narrative, before a rhythmic interlude, called “The Breakdown,” well, breaks-it-down.
Wha-whaattt?!
Guest artists fill various roles throughout each podcast—some lending spoken word, some rapping, some even singing. Each episode ends with an “Upshot” encapsulating that presentation’s key takeaways.
News Beat is an MP Studios production, a division of Morey Publishing. Its producer is Manny Faces, hip-hop journalist, producer and lecturer, founder of New York hip-hop publication Birthplace Magazine and hip-hop non-profit The Center for Hip-Hop Advocacy. Its Original Music Supervisor is Eden White. News Beat’s executive editor is Morey Publishing President and Long Island Press Publisher Jed Morey. Its editor-at-large is Christopher Twarowski, Morey Publishing and Long Island Press editor in chief.
Our inaugural episode is titled “MLK, Jr. – Unfinished Business,” and shares a side of the late, great civil rights pioneer’s legacy not often referenced in the history books. It features Silent Knight, solo rap artist and frontman for The Band Called FUSE and Pastor Roger C. Williams of the First Baptist Church of Glen Cove.
This alternative perspective of the holiday that celebrates Martin Luther King, Jr. is designed to make our readers and listeners think differently and more authentically about the legacy of this important American icon. It’s also just the beginning of a new and exciting chapter in delivering meaningful content.
MP Studios will be creating more episodes of News Beat throughout the year, along with a host of other new shows and programs.
We encourage you to send us your feedback and share our debut podcast with others you think might enjoy it.
Check out all MP Studios podcasts at: moreypublishing.com/podcasts
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