On Sunday December 27th, 2009, three Ballou Senior High School students who participated in the Prime Movers Media program had their work featured on National Public Radio. The commentaries, which aired on the Weekend Edition Sunday show, shed light on issues of importance to the students in Dr. J.D. DiMattio’s media class. These topics, including homelessness, the criminal justice system and creative writing were heard by nearly 4 million listeners on hundreds of stations across the country. Following the broadcast, the commentaries, entitled “Sounds from Inside the Teenage Mind” were posted on NPR’s website. (See link below)
For a period of two weeks, the Prime Movers Media program sent professional journalist Charla Bear of NPR into Ballou to help the students work on a project that focused on the creation of radio commentaries. With the help of Ms. Bear and seasoned teacher Dr. J.D. DiMattio, the students learned the basics of radio broadcasting. They listened to several examples of radio stories, learned how to write for the ear, constructed commentary scripts and voiced their work. Many of the students had little to no radio experience prior to their work with Ms. Bear.
After two weeks of hard work, the students were not only able to gain a new understanding and appreciation for what it takes to produce material for radio, many were able to give a voice to their thoughts, opinions, hopes and fears. Often times, teen voices are ignored, but not for these Ballou students. Their voices will now be heard loud and clear.
Prime Movers Media 
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