System/Policy
Houston Public Media suspends Chevron partnership after backlash over sponsored content
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HPM was preparing to release a 10-part series on how energy companies like Chevron are “working towards a lower carbon future.”
People
Maggie Martin: Public media is a place for great stories
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In college, Maggie Martin felt invigorated telling listeners what was happening and why it was important.
Quick Takes
CPB assists stations in Harvey’s path with emergency grants
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Houston Public Media and KEDT in Corpus Christi, Texas, have received initial support.
System/Policy
Houston Public Media opens doors to CBS station after floods
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HPM has also been working with public radio partners in Texas to cover the historic storm.
Programs/Content
With LGBT documentary, Houston station aims for community impact
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A Murder in Montrose: The Paul Broussard Legacy examines the history and future of the city’s LGBT activism.
Stations
Religious broadcaster buys Houston classical station
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KSBJ Educational Foundation paid $10 million for the station.
System/Policy
Despite station sales, classical music remains strong as format
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Research shows that events in Miami and Houston aren’t a harbinger of decline.
System/Policy
Houston Public Media aims to sell classical FM station
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The broadcaster acquired the signal for $9.6 million in 2011.
Programs/Content
Texas stations launch newsroom collaboration
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The initiative grows out of the stations’ partnership on producing the daily newsmagazine Texas Standard.
Tech
Houston Public Media launches new site combining TV and radio offerings
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Houston Public Media unveiled a new website this week as part of its ongoing effort to converge its radio, TV and digital operations. The site launched March 1 alongside a six-month marketing campaign that combines billboard ads and direct mail, aiming to raise awareness of the pubcaster’s multiple offerings under one brand. The website was developed by outside consultants and provides an online portal to HPM’s television and radio stations, including news/talk 88.7 FM and classical 91.7 FM, all owned by the University of Houston. The Houston stations were managed separately until a 2011 reorganization that adopted a converged pubcasting model along the lines of Cleveland’s ideastream and San Diego’s KPBS. With the March 1 site relaunch and promo blitz, HPM consolidated its branding and marketing, offering memberships and selling underwriting for Houston Public Media rather than the three individual stations.
Houston Public Media
Houston Public Media eliminates eight full-time positions
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Houston Public Media announced Nov. 7 the layoffs of eight staffers as part of a reorganization to create more multiplatform arts coverage. Four of the eliminated staffers hosted locally programmed classical music on KUHA-FM, one of the broadcaster’s two radio stations. HPM will replace the local shows with American Public Media’s Classical 24 service, though it will continue to air weekly broadcasts from the Houston Symphony. HPM also laid off two technical staff and two membership assistants.
System/Policy
Houston stations merge media in bid to boost local content
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Add Houston Public Media to the list of pubcasters that are converging radio, TV and online production to increase local programming, attract more financial support and prepare for the demands of an increasingly digital future.
People
Blogger gets the hots for NPR’ers, Maine pubcaster appears on Family Feud, and more…
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Despite the phrase “a face made for radio,” a blogger has started appraising crush-worthy folks in public radio. Babes Of NPR features public radio hosts, reporters and producers whose photos inspire a swoon or a snarky comment from the site’s North Carolina proprietor. Morning Edition’s Steve Inskeep is “the thinking man’s David Hasselhoff.” Peter Breslow, a senior producer for Weekend Edition, is likened to actor Ted Danson. And Joe and Terry Graedon, hosts of The People’s Pharmacy, “look like they might be fun to take home from the middle-aged hippie swingers potluck.”
Babes of NPR was launched after a photo of NPR reporter Ari Shapiro popped up on the Facebook page of creator Katie Herzog. “I thought, ‘That guy is really good-looking, especially for an NPR nerd,’” says Herzog, who works for an academic press in Durham, N.C.
The blog started getting attention from people in public media.