Heard About: A "Must-Listen" Podcast About The Greatest Stories Never Told

There are, no doubt, several qualities that appear to be lacking in American society these days. Tolerance and understanding have been replaced by grievance and rage.  Communication as the societal lubricant to help us all get along and work and live collaboratively has suffered a massive power blackout.

L.A-based public relations professional Winston Chang has written, produced and hosted a new podcast called Heard About to address this issue. 

"I wanted this podcast to be the story behind the story," Chang says. "It's the deep dive into the stories that you've heard about."

 Like so many of us, Chang found that the pandemic in 2020 suddenly derailed his daily routine.

"Like many others, I also found myself at home and with newfound time during the pandemic, Chang notes. "I've always liked to think that I'm a naturally curious person and able to ask decent questions, so the idea of doing a podcast began to grow."

Chang developed a business plan for his podcast before recording a sound (Note: a must-have for all aspiring podcasters) that encompassed three key objectives:

1. To entertain: by telling the little-known stories behind things everyone has heard about  
2. To elevate: by calling attention to oft-overlooked but critically important people and perspectives  
3. To educate: by teaching some valuable lessons about communicating that people can apply in their everyday lives

Winston Chang's new podcast -- Heard About --  focuses on communications throughout our society, from politics to sports and from language to marketing. 

 The podcast is a clear winner for several reasons. First, Chang financed the podcast himself as a passion project with no immediate monetization goals. Chang's finely tuned and perfectly calibrated podcast illustrates that, even with the Spotify, Apple, Amazon, and Sony incursions into podcasting, there is plenty of room for gifted amateurs like Chang.

Second, with no expensive sound engineers working 24/7 polishing his episodes, Chang is able to deliver a technically superior podcast experience, from the pitch perfect audio to the nicely blended audio clips and transition music. 

Third, Winston Chang makes hosting duties sound seamless, with his narrative prowess and his interviewing skills. Like so many gold-medal hosts, Chang asks the right questions, then allows the guest to take center stage while they spin their stories. 

Chang plans to release an episode every other Sunday. So far, he's released nine episodes by the end of April for season one. 

"The first episode took me ten hours," Chang admits. "But after a few episodes, I was able to complete an episode in about three or four hours."

Chang is back working with a prominent P.R. and Communications agency in Los Angeles, but he still intends to continue his podcast.

Heard About's first episode was a conversation was with White House Press Secretary for President Bill Clinton, Mike McCurry.

"I have a friend who knows McCurry," begins Chang. "He set me up for the interview and I completed it in January."

The nine episodes about the "biggest moments in communications with the people who were behind them," display Chang's wide-ranging and insatiable curiosity.

For example, in the second episode, Chang interviews Ken Spera , who created the GEICO Gecko ad campaign. 

In episode five, Chang proves that he offers balanced view points on his podcast. Interviewing George H.W. Bush's speechwriter Curt Smith who offers an insider's view of how Bush did something today's politicians are loath to do, announce tax increases in an October 1990 speech to keep the economy from going into free fall.  That selfless act may have lost the 1992 election for Bush, but Smith describes the affection and loyalty he had for the elder Bush and his dedication to public service.

In a true tour de force, Chang then offers us a four-part series on the opening of the Major league Baseball season.

What's amazing about the four episodes is that none of them are really about balls and strikes, home runs, errors, or much else on the field. Instead, Chang allows us to tag along as we delve into the narrative gems that are outside the baseball diamond.

For example, in one episode, Chang interviews the Phillie Phanatic, Tom Burgoyne, about his 33-year stint as the team's mascot. In another episode, Chang talks with Yankees radio color commentator Suzyn Waldman on how to make baseball come to life for radio audiences that can't see the game.

Then, in a "returning to the nest" episode, Chang focuses on language communications with one of the Cleveland baseball team's Spanish translators, Agustin Rivera.

In an era when the Goliaths have muscled into podcasting with a clear-cut advantage in resources, Heard About proves that there is always room for a "David" like this podcast.

Be kind to your ears.

You can listen to Heard About here.