Call for pitches! Europe Talks Back podcast

The new Sphera Network and Europod podcast series is welcoming pitches from podcasters from all corners of Europe. We are looking for impactful, raw, authentic stories to travel around the continent for season 2 of Europe Talks Back.

We want to ensure excellent reporting and provide European Millennials and Gen-Zers with informative and engaging podcasts. That is why Europe Talks Back will travel across Europe by the hand of young podcast creators. Do you have a story to tell and experience in podcast creation? Pitch it to us!

The Format of Europe Talks Back - Season 2

Each episode we are going to produce will focus on one single story. We are expecting to create 20-minute-long episodes based on a single interview, wrapped in a narration read by our host. Therefore, the story will need to be powerful and stand on its own feet.

We expect your pitch to explain the uniqueness of the story you want to cover, the location where the recordings will take place, as well as the historical, social and cultural context within which the given story plays a role.

The topics we want to deal with in the next months

All topics are welcome, but we will choose three stories that fit into the following themes:

• Disability: from urban planning for people with disabilities to personal stories about overcoming adversities (deadline for pitches: 27/04/2023).
• Generation Gap: your story can focus on young people and the difference between older generations, a specific age group or its challenges: access to housing, digital knowledge, the future of pensions, etc.
• Parties: from your favourite festivals to traditional festivities or the dark side of university nightlife.
• Droughts: is the climate changing the environment in your country, suffocating your community? How does life -human or not- look like when water is scarce?

But please, take them as an inspiration. We will select four other stories from your ideas, so your pitch can be focused on a different topic. If you have a good story to tell, you will have the same chance of being chosen.

What we will expect from you

• Several .wav recording files: one for the interview collected on the ground , plus sound bites related to the physical context in which the story takes place.
• An edited transcription of the interview .wav audio file.
• A draft script for the episode in English.
• Availability to be interviewed remotely for the production of a behind-the-scenes podcast episode.

What you can expect from us

• Freelancers will be paid 300 euros per episode, all charges included.
• Your story will become an episode of Europe Talks Back, a space for independent journalists across Europe.

To get an idea

During the first season of Europe Talks Back, we produced a slightly different format combining story-full interviews from remote and expert interviews. However, the following example episodes of Season 1 can provide food for thought - check out the first part of each episode:

• Post-Brexit UK: no country for Black Europeans?
• One of the Worst Cases of Gentrification
• Depopulation is Causing Wildfires in Europe

How to get in touch

You can send your pitches to our producer, María Dios, at maria.sanchezdios@bullemedia.eu with europetalksback@bullemedia.eu in CC.

Please, use Europe Talks Back / Title / your name + country for the subject.

About us

Sphera is the first network of independent media in Europe to reinvent the media space and paint a new picture of the continent through authentic stories. With cross-border journalism at its core, Sphera Network brings news in an innovative way, where national media outlets collaborate. Together we produce new European stories, closer to the people, closer to the youth.

Europod is a network of podcasts exploring European cultures, politics, and societies. Europod aims to create a public sphere for producers of quality information and to share their stories and perspectives. Our podcasters have received numerous awards in several EU countries.