WPSU-FM invites residents in central Pennsylvania to speak out about their personal philosophy and the core values that guide their daily lives for a new radio program, WPSU's "This I Believe."
Modeled after the series on National Public Radio (NPR), "WPSU-FM's "This I Believe" is a new initiative designed to encourage our community members to write about the beliefs that guide their daily lives and to thoughtfully consider the varied perspectives of others.
National Public Radio started broadcasting "This I Believe" in April of 2005. The program is a revival of an Edward R. Murrow radio program from the 1950s. Conceived of as a dose of comfort and inspiration during a time of great fear and social division, the original "This I Believe" series invited Americans from all walks of life to broadcast their beliefs to a national audience.
Sensing a similar need today, NPR producers resurrected the series, along with its original mission — to encourage Americans to voice their personal beliefs, the core principles that guide their lives, and to listen, if for only a moment, to people like and unlike them.
Central Pennsylvania residents can submit their essays to WPSU's "This I Believe" online at http://www.wpsu.org/believe. All essays will be posted on the WPSU Web site, and some will be selected to be read aloud by their authors for a weekly broadcast on WPSU-FM. Some essays will also be published in the Centre Daily Times, WPSU's partner in the project.
An essay for WPSU’s "This I Believe" is about 450 words long. It’s a statement of personal philosophy -- the values and principles that are central to everyday life. Most essays are serious, reflecting on such values as family, friends and playing fair. But some are lighthearted, singing the praises of new shoes or really good pastrami. Guidelines for how to write an essay also can be found at the site.
"We believe that this project is a perfect fit for WPSU and its mission to encourage dialogue," said Greg Petersen, station manager. "Public radio has always been a place for thoughtful discourse and this local 'This I Believe' project enhances our role in the community."
In addition to becoming part of the WPSU collection, all of the submitted essays also will be shared with the national archive of essays, which currently numbers in the thousands.