From the Nominator

"For every dollar of wealth owned by the average white household in the U.S., the average Black household has a mere 10 cents. We created a six-part podcast series to explore this shocking statistic. “The ARC of Justice” brought to life themes from noted Duke economist William A. Darity, Jr.’s book about how the wealth gap came to be.  

The series combined rich scholarly expertise from Duke and beyond with historical and contemporary real-world stories and voices of ordinary citizens. The series includes rarely heard voices, such as Hortense McClinton, a 102-year-old woman whose father was born enslaved in Texas. We visited the N.C. plantation where Darity’s ancestors were enslaved. We also met descendants of one of the last known survivors of the Atlantic slave trade. We tied these stories to today’s economic injustice.  

Our goal was to bring the work of a ground-breaking scholar to a wide audience. We did that. We partnered with our local NPR station, which promoted the series, aired episodes on the radio on four consecutive evenings, and re-released the series as an NPR podcast. The series has now been accepted for national radio distribution by American Public Media.  

We also partnered with Duke’s Forever Learning Institute to reach alumni. Each episode included a book club-style guide for listeners. More than 600 people attended the live finale."

From the Judges

Duke economist William A. “Sandy” Darity Jr.’s From Here to Equality: Reparations for Black Americans in the Twenty-First Century—coauthored with folklorist A. Kirsten Mullen—is the impetus for this six-part series, which explores the wealth gap in America. Arc of Justice features myriad voices, artfully woven together in service of a compelling narrative around the professor’s scholarship. It also boasts exceptional production value and an original score created by local youth. Although the $15,000 budget is one of the highest among the entrants, Duke’s partnership with the local NPR affiliate serves as an example for how other universities can team up with external stakeholders.