Subject Matter
Perspectives are personal narratives. The potential subject matter for Perspectives is very broad, but we emphasize topics of interest to KQED’s regional audience. We accept commentary on national and even international topics if the point of view emphasizes regional or personal concerns. However, the National Public Radio programs we air tend to focus on these subjects, so Perspectives are often geared to Northern California issues; state and regional topics are best. Essays on local issues work well if they illustrate larger concerns with which other communities are struggling. Observations on everyday life are frequent topics at Perspectives, especially if they make a broader point about who we are and how we live. Perspectives may not be promotional in nature and do not advocate for specific policies or legislation. We encourage submissions from KQED listeners throughout the nine Bay Area counties.
Length and Editing
The time limit for all pieces is two minutes. For most people, two minutes works out to about 350 words, more or less, depending on your rate of speech. When timing yourself, read your script aloud, clearly and with feeling, as you would on the air. The Perspectives editor is happy to work editorially with authors to make scripts suitable for broadcast and all material is subject to editing for style and content.
Honorarium
KQED Public Radio pays an honorarium of $65.00 per Perspective, after the commentary is broadcast.
Submitting a Perspectives Script
If you wish, you may run your ideas past us before writing the script. However, because the potential for Perspectives material is so broad, it is usually more productive to have a draft to respond to. Email is the much-preferred method to submit material. Please note there is a maximum of four pieces per contributor per year.
Send all submissions to the Perspectives editor through the submissions portal below. We will attempt to respond as soon as possible. Please be aware, however, that it may not be possible to respond to all submissions immediately, and submissions will be responded to in the order they are received.