Morning Edition co-host David Greene will leave NPR Dec. 29.
Greene plans to “focus on other projects,” according to an NPR release. In a note to network staff, Greene praised colleagues across several departments who worked with him and “went to bat for me or saved my butt in the scariest moments.”
Kenya Young, EP of Morning Edition, and Sarah Gilbert, VP for news programming, said in a joint memo that “we’ll miss David and the boundless joy he brings to the work every day — and because we’re as pleased and excited as he is to see him embark on a new chapter in life.”
Before hosting Morning Edition in 2012, Greene was an NPR foreign correspondent based in Moscow. He has also worked as a reporter for the Baltimore Sun.
NPR has started a search for Greene’s successor, according to a news release.
PRX Chief Content Officer John Barth will retire; Kerry Donahue has left the organization.
Barth’s last day with PRX will be Dec. 31. He joined PRX in 2005 and led the development of The Moth Radio Hour and Reveal with the Center for Investigative Reporting.
“We’re going to take the next few months to explore how this role may evolve and then decide if we’re hiring a new chief content officer, or it may be that we evolve the role into something else,” a PRX spokesperson said in a statement.
Barth was previously a founding producer of Marketplace and a reporter, producer and news director of radio for WHYY in Philadelphia.
In addition, Kerry Donahue is no longer PRX’s director of training. Donahue joined PRX in 2018. She previously worked as an EP for special projects and as a deputy EP for The Takeaway, produced by WNYC in New York City.
Marge Betley was hired as CEO of the Arkansas PBS Foundation.
Betley recently worked as major gifts officer for the Cape Fear Valley Health Foundation in Fayetteville, N.C. She was also chief development and communications officer for Family & Children’s Services in Tulsa, Okla., and director of development for the Oklahoma chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association.
Betley has also worked as a program officer for the National Endowment for the Arts, the executive director of the Stagebridge Senior Theatre and COO of the Los Cenzontles Mexican Arts Center.
“We are confident that Marge, with her nonprofit experience and belief in public media, will make great strides in securing the necessary resources to benefit all Arkansans,” said Foundation Board President S. Lynne Rich in a news release.
“In particular, Marge’s experience managing large campaigns and major donor relationships is in line with network needs for growing infrastructure, funding increased digital content, broadening content acquisition options for broadcast and Arkansas PBS Passport, and telling more local stories,” said Arkansas PBS CEO Courtney Pledger, the foundation’s previous CEO, in the release.
WGLT in Normal, Ill., and WCBU in Peoria, Ill., announced several personnel changes.
PD Mike McCurdy retired from the station. He joined WGLT in 1991 as news director and was promoted to PD in 1996. McCurdy said in a news story published by WGLT that he plans to permanently relocate to the West Coast after retiring.
Other staffers were hired or moved into new roles:
- Ryan Denham will become content director for both stations. He was hired as digital content director for WGLT in 2017.
- Jon Norton was named audio director for both stations and will continue as local host of Morning Edition.
- Ariele Jones will join WGLT’s staff full-time as local host of All Things Considered. Jones was a part-time host of Highway 309 and Center Stage, two music programs.
- Dana Vollmer was shifted from WCBU’s newsroom to WGLT and will continue to be a local host for Morning Edition.
- Joe Deacon was hired as a reporter for WCBU. He previously worked as a correspondent for WGLT and as a reporter for Neuhoff Media in Decatur, Ill.
“I’m very excited about the team we’ve put together at both WCBU and WGLT,” said GM R.C. McBride in reference to WGLT taking over operations of WCBU last year. “Professional local news has never been more important, and our user data over the last six months show us as much. But for us to continue — and grow — this essential public service, community financial support is critical.”
Content
Lulu Miller and Latif Nasser were named co-hosts of Radiolab, produced by WNYC in New York City. They succeed Robert Krulwich, who retired earlier this year. Miller and Nasser will work alongside the show’s creator and host, Jad Abumrad. Miller previously worked as a producer for Radiolab and is a co-founder of NPR’s Invisibilia. Nasser is director of research for Radiolab. WNYC also announced that reporter Molly Webster was named Radiolab’s first senior correspondent and that Tobin Low became a producer for the program.
John Howe, an EP for PBS Utah, is retiring from the station after 35 years. Howe has produced several programs for public television, including PBS’ most-viewed holiday program, Christmas with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, according to a news release. His final film for the station, Downwinders and the Radioactive West, will premiere next year.
Kate McGee is leaving her position as the higher education reporter for WBEZ in Chicago to become the higher education reporter for the Texas Tribune. McGee previously worked as a reporter for Reno Public Radio in Nevada; WAMU in Washington, D.C.; and KUT in Austin, Texas.
Kate Giammarise was hired as a reporter for WESA in Pittsburgh. She will cover the economic impact of COVID-19. Giammarise previously worked as a reporter for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and the Toledo Blade. Laura Tsutsui was hired as a producer for the station and will work on The Confluence, a daily news program. Tsutsui comes to WESA from Valley Public Radio in Fresno, Calif., where she worked as a reporter and producer for Valley Edition, a weekly program. She has also worked as a mentor for NPR’s Next Generation Radio program and was a journalism institute fellow for Politico.
Austin Cross was promoted to local host of All Things Considered for KPCC in Pasadena, Calif. Cross joined the station in 2014 as a fill-in producer and has also been a producer for Take Two, a news and culture program. He has also worked as a fill-in producer for Marketplace and a producer for CBS News Radio.
Michael Lyle Jr. was named local Weekend Edition host for New England Public Media. Lyle joined the station in 2019 as an anchor and host. Before that, he worked as a news and sports anchor, reporter and producer for WQUN in Hamden, Conn., a production assistant for ESPN radio and a reporter for the Middletown Press. Lyle will continue working as a weekend news anchor for WTIC in Hartford, Conn.
Monica Castillo was hired as an arts and culture reporter for Colorado Public Radio. She previously worked as a writer for the Village Voice, Teen Vogue, the New York Times and The Lily, a vertical from the Washington Post. She has also been a reporter for the International Business Times, a correspondent for the Boston Globe and a contributor to WBUR in Boston.
Thomas Lu left his position as an assistant producer for Hidden Brain to work for NPR’s Short Wave, a science program. Lu previously worked as a production assistant and news assistant for NPR and as an intern for the TED Radio Hour. He was also a production intern for StoryCorps.
Technology
Jon Panzer is leaving his position as director of engineering for Pioneer PBS in Granite Falls, Minn., to become an engineer for WDSE in Duluth, Minn. Panzer initially joined the station in 1990 as a production assistant and master control operator. He later became an EP of Your Legislators, a live public affairs program, and interim GM. During his tenure, Panzer oversaw the move to a new studio in Granite Falls from Appleton, Minn. Paul Fisher will replace Panzer as the director of engineering. Fisher most recently worked as chief engineer for KSMQ in Austin, Minn.
Governance
J. Andrew Murphy was elected board chair of Southern California Public Radio, which operates KPCC in Pasadena, Calif., and LAist. Murphy, who joined the board in 2017, is SVP of strategy and corporate development for Edison International. Catherine M. Ward, who joined the board in 2015, was elected vice chair. Ward most recently worked as an SVP and director for the Capital Research and Management Company.
Matthew Rapp was named board chair for WJCT in Jacksonville, Fla. Rapp is SVP of championship management for the PGA Tour.
Erika Dilday was elected to the board of directors of the Institute for Nonprofit News. Dilday is CEO and executive director of Futuro Media, which produces Latino USA and America By the Numbers.
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