WNYC promoted Rebecca Carroll to host and managing editor of Come Through, a podcast that features discussions about race.
Carroll, who joined the New York City station in 2015 and has worked as a cultural critic and editor of special projects, will move from the newsroom to WNYC Studios. She will report to Studios Senior Editor Jenny Lawton.
In addition to the promotion, WNYC Chief Content Officer Andrew Golis said Come Through was greenlit for a new season that will air this fall. The first season launched during the COVID-19 pandemic. Golis said the station is hiring a full-time producer for the program.
Carroll has also hosted several live events for WNYC, written for Gothamist and hosted Rebel, a weekly program about race and culture. She has also worked as a critic-at-large for the Los Angeles Times, a columnist for Shondaland and an opinion writer for the Guardian.
“As our country continues to reckon with racism and inequality, and the 2020 election rapidly approaches, we know that there are many more conversations to be had — and we are so pleased that Rebecca will continue convening them as a host for WNYC Studios,” Golis said in a news release.
Justine Schmidt was named chief content officer for UNC-TV in Chapel Hill, N.C.
“I’m excited to return to my roots, to family and to a state I cherish deeply — one which offers so many opportunities for storytelling,” Schmidt said in a news release. “It is rich in tradition, talent and ingenuity across the board.” Her first day with the station will be Oct. 5.
Schmidt previously worked as a writer, producer and consultant for international content, acquisitions and development for the Smithsonian Channel. She has also worked as an EP and campaign manager for United Conservationists, an EP for National Geographic, director of programming for the Middle East Broadcast Networks and a supervising producer for Discovery Communications. She has also been head of video content for Quantum Communications in Beirut.
“Justine brings a rare breadth of experience and creative versatility to this critical role in a career spanning sectors and genres, from major breaking news across the Middle East to Smithsonian’s Incredible Animal Moments,” said UNC-TV CEO Lindsay Bierman in the release. “Her sharp, critical eye, love of storytelling, and considerable talents as a producer and programmer will strengthen and elevate the network’s lineup in public affairs, culture, and lifestyle across all our channels and platforms.”
Frank Stasio, a host of The State of Things for WUNC in Chapel Hill, will retire at the end of the year.
Stasio joined the station in 2006. He began his public radio career at WOI in Ames, Iowa, where he was a magazine show anchor and the station’s news director. He went on to work for NPR as an associate producer and newscaster. He left that job in 1990 to help start an alternative school in Washington, D.C. Stasio returned to NPR as a freelance news anchor, host of special news coverage and guest host of Talk of The Nation and other national programs.
Stasio also presents audio theater workshops for children and teachers and conducts radio journalism workshops for broadcasters in former Soviet bloc countries, according to the station.
In a note to staff Tuesday excerpted on Twitter, Stasio said, “As most of you know I’ve had a number of ‘careers’ both in and out of broadcasting. Hosting The State of Things has been an illuminating and thrilling part of my journey. I want to continue that journey while I still have some energy and good health. The sudden rupture created by the pandemic makes this the perfect moment to follow the adventure in new directions.”
Development
Bruce Marquis was appointed development director for WVTF in Roanoke, Va. His first day with the station is Sept. 10. Marquis currently works as a development officer for West Virginia Public Broadcasting. He has also worked as the interim executive director for the Paramount Arts Center in Ashland, Ky., and as an organizational consultant for the Gaillard Performance Hall Foundation in Charleston, S.C.
Content
Selena Reder was promoted from assistant producer to producer at WVXU in Cincinnati. She will continue working with the daily talk show Cincinnati Edition. Reder joined the station in 2017 after working as a news producer for WCPO, an ABC affiliate. Cory Sharber also joined Cincinnati Public Radio’s news department as a general assignment reporter. Sharber previously worked as a news producer and web editor for WSPD, an NBC affiliate in Paducah, Ky. He has also worked as a reporter for WKMS, licensed to Murray State University.
Michael Hill was named substitute anchor for PBS NewsHour Weekend, produced by WNET in New York City. Hill will host the program when Hari Sreenivasan is away from the desk. He will continue working as a correspondent for NJTV and as host of Newark Today, a radio program on WBGO, both in Newark, N.J. Hill has also contributed to the 2016 and 2020 broadcasts of America in Black and Blue, a NewsHour special on race and policing. In 2018, he was a national fellow for the University of Southern California Annenberg Center for Health Journalism.
Matt McCleskey, local host of Morning Edition for WAMU in Washington, D.C., is leaving the station to relocate to Ann Arbor, Mich. His final day is Sept. 30. McCleskey joined WAMU in 2004 and became a host in 2008. Before that, he was a producer and reporter for KQED in San Francisco and worked as an assistant producer for NPR.
Queena Kim, senior editor of the weekend desk for KQED in San Francisco, was named head of the audio journalism program at the University of California at Berkeley’s graduate school. She received a degree from the graduate school in 2000. Kim joined KQED in 2015 as a host and reporter and was also an editor for the Silicon Valley bureau. She has also been a senior reporter for American Public Media’s Marketplace, a producer and reporter for KPCC in Los Angeles and a reporter for the Wall Street Journal.
Corinne Boyer was hired as a health reporter for WEKU in Richmond, Ky. She will work with the Ohio Valley ReSource Journalism Collaborative, a multistation effort supported by CPB. Her first day with the station will be Tuesday. Boyer is currently a reporter for the Kansas News Service, which is directed by KCUR in Kansas City, Mo., in partnership with KMUW in Wichita, Kan., and High Plains Public Radio in Garden City, Kan. Boyer has also worked as a reporter for KLCC in Eugene, Ore., and the Eugene Weekly.
Cyrena Touros announced on Twitter that Friday was her last day as an assistant editor for NPR. She will take a few weeks off and then begin working as a freelancer focused on the arts, culture, gender and sexuality. She joined NPR Music as a programs and partnerships intern in 2018.
Valerie Vande Panne joined WGCU in Fort Myers, Fla., as an environmental reporter on a one-year contract. The position is funded in part by anonymous donors, the VoLo Foundation and the Brico Fund through the Community Foundation of Collier County. Vande Panne has contributed to Reuters, Politico, Bloomberg and the Guardian. She has also been a media instructor at the Center for Critical Thought in New York City and was an Equitable Cities Fellow with Next City.
Michelle Jokisch Polo was hired by WKAR in East Lansing, Mich., as a reporter focused on the Latinx community and as a weekend host. Some of Jokisch Polo’s stories will be presented in both Spanish and English, according to the station. In addition to reporting, she will provide news updates as local host for Weekend Edition and Weekend All Things Considered. Before joining WKAR, Jokisch Polo worked as a reporter for WGVU in Grand Rapids, Mich. She has also been a reporter for El Vocero Hispano, the largest Spanish-language newspaper in Michigan.
Quinton Morris was selected as the first artist-scholar in residence for KING FM, a noncommercial classical station in Seattle. In the role, Morris will create radio programs and podcasts. Morris will begin a two-year term beginning Sept. 15. Morris, a concert violinist, is an associate professor at Seattle University and the founder of Key to Change, a music education organization.
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Correction: A previous version of this column said Queena Kim left her position at KQED.