Tim Roesler will leave his position as SVP and chief business development officer for American Public Media by the end of the year.
“I have decided that now is the right time for me to leave American Public Media and MPR. This decision wasn’t made lightly,” Roesler said in a memo to colleagues provided to Current. “It has been my privilege to serve our audience, users, and members for the better part of two decades. Having helped lead MPR through a challenging year and handing the baton to its new President has helped me to take a broad perspective view. This is the perfect time to transition to my next set of challenges, and ventures. I will wrap up transitional work by December 31.”
Roesler’s decision to leave APM was personal, according to a spokesperson.
Roesler joined the organization in 2001 and has held several roles, including SVP of sales, marketing and program distribution. He was also interim president for Minnesota Public Radio, which is owned by American Public Media Group, before Duchesne Drew was hired. Roesler also oversaw the staff that produced Live From Here, which ended production this year.
Rob Dunlop, CEO of Cascade Public Media in Seattle, was appointed board chair of the Public Television Major Market Group.
Dunlop replaces Lisa Shumate, GM of Houston Public Media. Amanda Mountain, CEO of Rocky Mountain PBS in Denver, was named vice chair. Two additional board members were appointed: Kliff Kuehl, CEO of Kansas City PBS, and Amy Shaw, CEO of Nine Network in St. Louis. The PTMMG is a consortium of the 40 largest public television stations by market size, representing nearly 70% of the viewing audience, according to a news release.
Ed Ulman, CEO of Alaska Public Media, was elected chair of the Small Station Association.
Ulman will serve a two-year term. Brad Kimmel, CEO of WNIN in Evansville, Ind., was elected vice chair/chair elect. Kimmel will become chair in October 2022.
Vickie Lawson, CEO of East Tennessee PBS in Knoxville, will be treasurer. Royal Aills, GM of RSU Public TV in Tulsa, Okla., will “hold the office of immediate past chair,” according to a news release.
Other members of the SSA board, recently elected by the membership, are Bob Culkeen, CEO of WTCI in Chattanooga, Tenn.; Terry Dugas, GM of Wyoming PBS in Riverton; Becky Magura, CEO of WCTE in Cookeville, Tenn.; Bill McColgan, CEO of Mountain Lake PBS in Plattsburgh, N.Y.; and Jim Rademaker, GM of WCMU Public Media in Mount Pleasant, Mich.
Ulman also announced that Skip Hinton, an associate with National Educational Telecommunications Association Consulting, “has agreed to provide administrative support for the work of the SSA,” according to the release. Hinton, the former president of NETA, will work with SSA leadership and members to plan meetings and support new initiatives for the association.
Content
Jane Lindholm will end her tenure as host of Vermont Edition for Vermont Public Radio to help expand But Why: A Podcast for Curious Kids and produce special news projects for the station. She starts the new role in February. Lindholm joined VPR in 2007 after working as director of Marketplace. In 2016, she became host and producer for the podcast, which takes questions submitted by kids all over the world. Lindholm and Melody Bodette, a senior producer, will continue working on the podcast and will co-produce the new special projects. Vermont Edition Managing Producer Lydia Brown said the station will search for a new host, according to a news release.
Kayla Lattimore was hired as an associate producer for Fresh Air, produced by WHYY in Philadelphia. She previously worked as a multimedia producer for Sojourners magazine in Washington, D.C. She has also worked as a production assistant for 522 Productions and was an education desk fellow for NPR.
Rahman Wortman was named a host for WXPN in Philadelphia. Wortman has been a contributing writer for the station since 2017 and was an intern in 2014-15. He has also been a writer for AllHipHop.com, the music website MXDWN.com and was a host for WHIP, licensed to Temple University.
Vinnee Tong, the director of news for KQED in San Francisco, is joining the Public Media Journalists Association board representing large stations. Tong is replacing Eugene Sonn, who announced that he is leaving WHYY in Philadelphia to join Resolve Philadelphia, a nonprofit journalism organization. Sonn’s last day on the board is Saturday, but he will continue as a member of the association’s training committee. Tong will join the board Sunday and will serve out the remaining nine months of Sonn’s term.
Management
Nancy Maldonado, VP of education for PBS Reno in Nevada, was selected to join the Nevada STEM Advisory Council’s Informal STEM Learning Environments subcommittee. The subcommittee’s mission is to promote STEM literacy in Nevada. “I’m honored to work with such a highly regarded group,” said Maldonado in a news release. “This subcommittee has a mission that is important to me: promoting STEM literacy experiences for young learners through informal and formal education. PBS Reno continues to grow our STEM literacy-based workshops for Pre-K through 4th graders in seven northern Nevada and northeastern California school districts.”
Communications
Rebekah Radisch, an assistant director of marketing communications for UNC-TV in Chapel Hill, N.C., is retiring effective Friday. Radisch joined UNC-TV in 1999. Before that, she was an announcer for WUNC in Chapel Hill, N.C., and was publicity director for Sugar Hill Records.
Governance
Louise Bryson was named board chair for the Public Media Group of Southern California, the parent company of KCET, PBS SoCal and Link TV. Bryson has held several roles in media, including SVP at FX Networks, president of distribution for Lifetime Entertainment Services and EVP and GM for Lifetime Movie Networks. Bryson succeeds Dick Cook, who will stay on as a board member. Cook was chairman of Walt Disney Studios. Anne Gates was also named vice chair. Gates previously served as president of MGA Entertainment and EVP and CFO of the Disney Company’s Consumer Products Division.
Send news of “comings and goings” to [email protected]