LaFontaine E. Oliver was elected to a second term as chair of NPR’s board of directors. Oliver, president of WYPR in Baltimore, joined the board in 2016 and became chair last year.
Jeff Sine was elected as vice chair of the board. Sine, co-founder and partner of the Raine Group, joined the board in 2017.
Craig LeFevre was promoted to station manager for WCTE in Cookeville, Tenn.
LeFevre succeeds Avery Hutchins, who became WCTE’s CEO this year. LeFevre joined the station in 2004 and has been operations manager and director of technical operations.
“It’s exciting to have an internal candidate with so much experience step into this role who has the enthusiasm needed to lead our teams into the next phase of WCTE’s growth,” said Hutchins in a news release. “With projects like ATSC 3.0 (NextGen TV), and the Datacasting Pilot on the horizon, we are experiencing the many advances of broadcast television very quickly, and Craig is just the person that can lead the station through these very technical and new advances.”
DeLinda Mrowka was appointed chief revenue officer for KQED in San Francisco.
Mrowka most recently worked as chief audience officer. She joined the station in 2013 and has also been VP of marketing and VP of corporate sponsorship.
Before KQED, Mrowka was an executive director for CPB, senior director of marketing and media relations for WETA in Washington, D.C., and director of rights acquisition and licensing for the National Wildlife Federation.
Celeste LeCompte was hired as chief audience officer for Chicago Public Media.
LeCompte will start in February. She is currently VP of strategy and operations for ProPublica, which she joined in 2015.
Before ProPublica, LeCompte was a fellow for the Nieman Foundation at Harvard University and was also director of product for GigaOm, which provided data and insights on emerging technologies. She was also co-founder and business manager of Climate Confidential, a crowdfunded environmental reporting project.
Technology
Anand Kavalapara was promoted to VP of technology for American Public Television. Kavalapara joined APT in 2002 and most recently worked as director of systems. He succeeds Gerry Field, who will retire at the end of January after 14 years at APT. Before APT, Kavalapara was an IT consultant and systems analyst for ITC Infotech.
Rob Byers is leaving his position as director of broadcast and media operations for American Public Media to become a technical director for Vox Media. Byers rejoined APM in 2018 after working for NPR and holding several positions with APM. “It is tough to leave #pubmedia, which I’ve been a part of for the last 17 years. It will always be a foundational part of my identity, which I will carry forward through all of my work,” Byers said on Twitter.
Kayode Onaolapo joined Maryland Public Television as senior director of information technology. Onaolapo most recently worked as director of IT for the Maryland Medical Cannabis Commission. He also held programming and IT roles for the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development and was a software developer for Novasys Limited, based in Nigeria.
Marketing
Gretchen Borzi joined PRX as senior director of brand, creative and digital marketing. She will report to CMO Donna Hardwick. Borzi most recently worked as director of marketing and audience development for the Boston Symphony Orchestra. She has also been a marketing consultant for the North Shore Music Theatre in Beverly, Mass.
Matti Smith, a marketing manager for South Dakota Public Broadcasting, left the station to work for the Sioux City Public Library system in Iowa. Smith joined SDPB in 2014. “We wish her the best as she continues to put beauty and the love of lifelong learning into the world,” said the station in a news release.
Content
Charles Maynes was hired as a Moscow correspondent for NPR. Maynes, an independent journalist, has been filling in from Moscow since the summer. His work has appeared on programs from PRX, Public Radio International, the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. and Voice of America.
Lettie Holman, PD for WAMU in Washington, D.C., will retire. Holman joined the station in 1993 and has also been a program manager, according to a spokesperson.
Herb Pinder joined WNYC in New York City as editor of the race and justice unit. Pinder will report to Jami Floyd, the unit’s director, according to a WNYC spokesperson. Pinder most recently worked as a senior editor for The Asbury Park Press in New Jersey. He was also an opinion editor for The Journal News in Westchester, N.Y., and has been a lawyer for a firm in Philadelphia and an editor for The News Journal in Delaware. Tiffany Hanssen also joined WNYC as a weekend host and board operator. She most recently worked as a producer and guest host for Minnesota Public Radio.
WFUV, licensed to Fordham University in New York City, announced two promotions. George Bodarky will be senior director of content strategy and student development. Bodarky joined the station in 2001 and most recently worked as news director and host of Cityscape, a weekly public affairs program. Robin Shannon was promoted to director of news, public affairs and student training. Shannon most recently worked as assistant news and public affairs director. She has also hosted Fordham Conversations, a weekly public affairs program.
Michael English retired as managing director of content for Maryland Public Television. English began working for MPT in 1985 as a writer for Farm Day. He also produced and created local series such as Outdoors Maryland and Maryland Farm & Harvest. English has also produced several historical, cultural and environmental programs about the Chesapeake region.
Jamie Bologna was hired as an EP of Boston Public Radio for GBH. He most recently worked as senior producer and studio director of Radio Boston for WBUR, a station he joined in 2015. GBH also hired Sam Turken as a reporter for its Worcester bureau. Turken most recently worked as a reporter for WHRO Public Media in Norfolk, Va. Alexi Cohan will also join GBH as a producer for Greater Boston. Cohan most recently worked as a reporter for the Boston Herald.
Jill Hopkins, a host and producer for Vocalo, owned by Chicago Public Media, is leaving the organization this month to become the new media and civic events producer for the Metro, Smartbar and GMan music venues in Chicago. Hopkins, who joined Vocalo in 2013, announced on LinkedIn that her last day on the air is Jan. 14.
Taylor Jung became a social justice reporter for NJ PBS. Jung will work for the station’s news division, NJ Spotlight News. Jung previously worked as a production assistant and associate producer for the station.
Luis Antonio Perez announced on LinkedIn that he became a community audio producer for Colorado Public Radio. “The role in a nutshell: point person for collaborations with external organizations and community voices,” he said. He joined the station in 2020 as a podcast producer.
Fellowships
The Solutions Journalism Network announced its third class of LEDE Fellows, who will spend the next year working on projects that fulfill four goals, according to a news release: “Leverage networks of journalism professionals; Engage communities; Disseminate solutions stories; and Elevate the people and narratives that problem-focused reporting misses.” Amanda Anderson, producer, editor and host of public affairs program Compass for Pioneer PBS in Granite Falls, Minn., was selected as a fellow. Anderson’s LEDE project “aims to create a network of solutions journalists in rural Minnesota, focusing on solutions stories around caregiving.”
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