Sound-Mapping to Inauguration

Patrick Jarenwattananon, Jessica Naudziunas & Scott Pham, Weekend Edition

Owing to our modified work schedules, most of us at Weekend Edition weren't lucky enough (or perhaps unlucky enough, depending on your point of view) to be pressed into service for NPR's coverage of Election Day 2008.

But we were quite impressed ...

... with our NPR colleagues' work in broadcasting around the clock, delivering instant news flashes and reactions from points far afield. And we thought of what great audio resources we had available to us: scores of reporters across the globe, teaming with plenty of shows and bureaus pulling all the insights together.

So we decided to compile all the sound we could get of people reacting to the election results, starting immediately after the race was called for Barack Obama. It's all here on our interactive graphic map. If you click on a marker, you'll hear one of many folks from across the country talking about how they felt about the whole affair, with an emphasis on some of the battleground states where NPR reporters were on site. And if you click that little chevron in the top right corner, you can see a list of all the sound bites we have (including multiple from Los Angeles, Washington D.C., and the Cleveland area).

We're not quite sure what form this map will finally take as we head toward inauguration day in January. Our plans right now are to continue to track reactions and voices throughout the country (and eventually the whole world), as the craziness of election night turns to anticipation of the swearing-in. Meanwhile, our Soapbox will be our sandbox, and we invite you to poke around with us. Please: click around, listen, and comment.

*Note: Names may be spelled inexactly, as often we only have audio archives from which to transcribe. We apologize in advance for any errors.

6:28 PM ET | 11- 7-2008 | permalink

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