Listening

What happens when listening itself changes what can be spoken?

This opening episode explores listening — not as a technique or virtue, but as a condition that makes certain experiences thinkable and speakable. Drawing on scenes from Mad Men and Barry Jenkins' Moonlight, and on moments from the consulting room, the episode lingers with instances of contact: when something long held in silence is briefly illuminated because someone is there to hear it.

This episode features excerpts from Mad Men Season 7, Episode 14 (written and directed by Matthew Weiner, featuring Evan Arnold) and the 2016 film Moonlight (written and directed by Barry Jenkins, featuring Mahershala Ali, Ashton Sanders, Jharrel Jerome, Trevante Rhodes, and André Holland).

Script, music, and production by Jonathan David Moss.

Listener correspondence is welcome at [e-mail]