Multimedia Storytelling – Survivor Podcast with Grace Burns hosted by: Julia Rowland

This podcast episode covers a brief conversation about the highly regarded, well-loved and family-oriented CBS television show, Survivor. Survivor is one of the longest running television shows still on air. Survivor puts out two new seasons on a yearly basis with the COVID years being the only exception. Survivor first aired in late May of 2000, having filmed the first season the year prior, 1999. Survivor is a reality television show in which roughly thirty contestants from all walks of life compete in physically and mentally taxing contests to win the title of Sole Survivor and the prize of one million dollars. Historically, the competition is 39 days but due to the pandemic and what fans presumed was a shift in audience demographics, the current competition is a much shorter 26 days now. The contestants are trying to outwit, outplay, and outlast one another while still forming alliances and creating bonds. Those three words define Survivor’s game acting as its mantra. Every few days contestants vote one of their peers off the Island. It is the ultimate test of being a well-rounded competitor. Survivor tests much more than just athleticism and strength; It tests your mental fortitude as well as your relationship building skills. 

In this podcast, I sat down with Grace Burns “Burnsie”, a college sophomore playing Division I lacrosse at St. Bonaventure University, a Rochester, New York native, and a lifelong Survivor fan. Burns grew up watching the show with her family to be around one another. She credits Survivor for helping to develop and embrace her competitive edge and love of the outdoors. We cover all things Survivor from our favorite competitions, all-time greatest players, how she applies Survivor skills to collegiate lacrosse and beyond. We also discussed how Survivor has changed with the times and has tried to be a leader in inspiring and promoting change, making sure that the evolution of our world is reflected within the structure of the game. The data shown represents the viewership (in millions) for this season’s Survivor episodes so far (9 episodes). I chose this visualization because it is both concise and appealing to the eye.