Podcasting towards hope in Gun Violence Research

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Saturday 3:20 pm Four Seasons Ballroom 2-3
  In Roundtable Session: Podcasts as Public Scholarship: (Re)Imagining Theories in Everyday Life (Table 6)

Abstract

Gun violence persists as one of the most devastating social crises in the United States. Over 100,000 individuals across the life course are shot every year, firearms are currently the single leading cause of death among children and teens (CDC 2022; Goldstick, Cunningham, & Carter, 2022), and these numbers don’t even begin to capture the impacts of other forms of firearm violence that uniquely impact youth (Rajan, Branas, Myers, & Agrawal, 2019). While there exists a growing, rigorous, and meaningful body of research informing specific solutions to the persistence of gun violence, the politicalization of this issue, historic underfunding by the federal government, and corresponding misinformation have long dominated the discourse around this very complex issue; hampering much needed progress.
[Podcast name] was, therefore, a podcast developed and produced by an interdisciplinary team of graduate students and faculty at [blinded] and in direct response to the persistence of gun violence across the nation. The series sought to take innovative gun violence research and translate its methods, key findings, and implications into an accessible form of communication intended for academic and non-academic audiences alike. At the same time, [podcast name] also served as a form of research in and of itself, whereas our team conducted qualitative interviews, gathering a collection of narratives, which helped us to contextualize traditional academic studies of gun violence and understand the affective impacts of this epidemic on communities.

The issue of gun violence, as experienced and viewed by the public itself, is polarizing. In generating a podcast series as a form of public scholarship on this specific topic, the primary goal was to present scientific solutions to a persistent social crisis and in a way that tackled this complex issue with care and nuance. Perhaps most importantly, this series also sought to bring together multiple voices and perspectives. Each episode included both researchers and practitioners, as well as individuals with firsthand experience working with or being affected by the repercussions of gun violence and policy.. Rather than positioning researchers as the only sources of knowledge on this topic, the producers emphasized the importance of valuing multiple perspectives and sources of expertise.

Authors

• Sonali Rajan, Teachers College, Columbia University

• Joseph Riina-Ferrie, Teachers College, Columbia University