Twin Cities PBS has hired three new staffers.
Darlington
Marguerite Darlington is the new director of Rewire, the initiative at the St. Paul, Minn., station to engage young digital natives. Darlington had been managing editor at the Wisconsin School of Business, overseeing the newsroom, faculty blogs, social media, content strategy and the alumni magazine. Earlier in her career, Darlington wrote and developed websites for feature films including The Sixth Sense, The X-Files and Muppet World at Dream Theater in Chatsworth, Calif. She also worked on the staff of the marketing services department at the New York Times and as a freelance writer and editor.
Shayla Thiel Stern has joined the station as editorial director of Next Avenue, its digital media service for seniors and baby boomers. She’s leading editorial strategy and content development and overseeing Next Avenue’s editorial staff. Previously she directed digital strategy at Fast Horse, a Minneapolis-based advertising agency.
And Dave Peters is chief information and technology officer, a new position. He oversees information technology and broadcast engineering teams and will work to modernize TPT’s infrastructure. Previously Peters was chief information officer at Bluestem Brands, an e-commerce retail company.
Content
Clark
WHYY has hired Sandra Clark as vice president for news and civic dialogue. She joins the Philadelphia station Aug. 22 to manage all news coverage for radio, television and digital media. She replaces Chris Satullo, who resigned last September. Currently Clark is managing editor at Philadelphia Media Network, which publishes the Philadelphia Inquirer, Daily News and Philly.com. Before ascending to that position in 2014, she was a senior news editor and deputy managing editor for digital news operations at the network.
NPR’s new Shanghai bureau chief is Rob Schmitz. Since 2010, Schmitz has reported on China for Marketplace. Earlier, he worked as Los Angeles bureau chief for KQED and reported for KPCC in southern California and Minnesota Public Radio. He replaces Frank Langfitt, who is now London correspondent.
Bush
Matt Bush has joined WCQS in Asheville, N.C., as news director. For the past eight years, he worked at WAMU in Washington, D.C., where he reported on politics, government, transportation and the environment as well as edited and anchored programs. Earlier in his career Bush was bureau chief in Pittsburgh for Metro Networks and on the staff of WMAL radio, a Cumulus station in Washington, D.C.
Kate Pearson has joined Maryland Public Television in Owings Mills as programming managing director, responsible for all programming and scheduling. Previously Pearson was senior vice president, programming and acquisitions, at the Documentary Channel and directed acquisitions at HBO Latin America. She began her career as a video journalist at CNN Headline News. Most recently she was a consultant for PBS NewsHour, curating original content for digitization.
Management
Aguilar
After 14 years with Pacifica station KPFT in Houston, Ernesto Aguilar is leaving to join the National Federation of Community Broadcasters. Starting Aug. 1 Aguilar will be membership program director, a new position for the service organization. He’ll be responsible for launching new digital initiatives, development, programming and other projects aimed at expanding tools and training for stations and producers. For the past 11 years Aguilar has been program director at KPFT, making him one of Pacifica’s longest-tenured PDs. He began as a volunteer radio host in 2002, later rising to co-director of the news department and, in 2005, program director. “I have never been more grateful for the life experiences this robust organization, its audience and its volunteers provided me, as a young man and still today,” Aguilar wrote in a Facebook post.
Public relations
Danielle Deabler, founder and former senior director of NPR’s Generation Listen initiative targeting millennial listeners, just started work at creative agency Weber Shandwick in New York City as s.v.p., media innovation. Earlier in her career she directed NPR public relations.
Fellowship
Theuri
Murillo
The first recipients of the Roger and Marilyn Sarow Fellowship for Diversity in Public Radio have arrived at WFAE in Charlotte, N.C. Ana Lucia Murillo is working in the newsroom, and Wanjiku Theuri is assigned to the Charlotte Talks program. The 10-week fellowship honors Sarow, president and g.m. of the station for 27 years, and his wife. WFAE General Manager Joe O’Connor said in a statement that the fellowship allows WFAE “to play an active role in training the next generation of journalists to help further our commitment to inclusion.”
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