Programs/Content

Report: SiriusXM to end The Bob Edwards Show

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SiriusXM Radio will wind down The Bob Edwards Show next month, according to a Politico article published Friday. Citing unnamed sources, Politico reported that the show will end Sept. 26. Public Radio International distributes a weekly version of the show to public radio, and PRI spokeswoman Julia Yager said that program will continue. Edwards declined to comment to Current, and SiriusXM did not respond to a request for comment.

System/Policy

Anchorage becomes hub in Alaska’s latest public TV alliance

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A new configuration of public TV stations in Alaska will begin sharing a single programming feed July 1 under the name Alaska Public Television, a move that shifts distribution duties from KUAC in Fairbanks to KAKM in Anchorage. The change disbands AlaskaOne, a network operated by KUAC for 17 years that excluded Anchorage. KUAC will not participate in Alaska Public Television but will attempt to make it on its own with a renewed focus on programming tailored to its local community. Viewers in Anchorage will receive much the same programming from Alaska Public Television as before, while viewers of Bethel’s KYUK and Juneau’s KTOO may notice some changes. The centralcasting facility at KAKM allows for program feeds customized for each station, but that option will not be used at first.

Programs/Content

APM displaces PRI as BBC World Service distributor

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American Public Media will begin distributing the BBC World Service to U.S. pubradio stations July 1 [2012], ending the British network’s 26-year distribution relationship with Public Radio International. A five-year BBC-PRI contract is expiring, but the two networks will still collaborate on their co-productions such as The World and The Takeaway. Portions of the World Service air on 521 stations in the U.S.

“BBC World Service radio has been enjoying record audiences in the U.S., and we are delighted to be working with American Public Media to ensure that more U.S. listeners have access to the BBC’s impartial international journalism and programming across public radio,” said Richard Porter, controller, English, for the BBC, in a statement to Current. APM declined comment.  

Programs/Content

Edwards’ jump to XM renews satellite debate

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With Bob Edwards’ decision to leave NPR for a satellite radio company,
public radio is debating again a highly ponderable question: Should it embrace
satellite as a distributor for its programs or fear it as a competitor for
listeners and revenue? Edwards’ new weekday morning gig, The Bob Edwards Show, will
start the morning for a new channel, XM Public Radio. The one-hour show will
originate weekdays at 8 a.m. Eastern time and will repeat at 9 a.m. The channel
launches Sept. 1; Edwards’ show debuts Oct. 4.

Programs/Content

NPR’s reassignment of Bob Edwards shocks, explanations befuddle

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The cry from a distraught public rang out: “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it!” After announcing the reassignment of Morning Edition host Bob Edwards
March 23, the network struggled to explain itself amid a coast-to-coast
NPR-bashing in the media and a record influx of listener complaints. Some public radio managers joined the attack on NPR brass. Even those who
supported the network’s aim — to strengthen Morning Edition with
a two-host setup — criticized it for poor timing and lack of public-relations
finesse. Many stations were scheduled to begin on-air fund drives shortly
after the announcement and feared repercussions.

Public Media Policybase

Proposal on Formation of the Public Television Network, 1968

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What kind of organization should interconnect the public TV stations? On Sept. 23, 1968, a little more than a year before the formation of PBS, two officials of the newly created Corporation for Public Broadcasting, Ward B. Chamberlin and Robert D.B. Carlisle, drafted this proposal for a new nonprofit network. INTRODUCTORY

The Public Broadcasting Act of 1967, and the intensive discussions that preceded its enactment, have given high priority to the establishment of a nationwide interconnected television network to serve public TV daily. To give this system dedicated and professional management in keeping with its significant objectives, formation of an independent organization will be necessary.