PBS’ board voted Wednesday to appoint Lisa Trapani Shumate, associate VP and GM for Houston Public Media, as a professional director.
Shumate replaces Jon Abbott, former CEO for GBH in Boston. Abbott left the station late last year and resigned from the board.
Shumate’s term on the board will end in the fall of 2025. She will then be eligible to serve additional terms. She previously served on the PBS board from 2014–20.
Shumate joined HPM in 2011 and is also executive director of the Houston Public Media Foundation. She serves on the boards of the PBS Foundation, American Public Television and the Public Television Major Market Group.
Kobee Vance was promoted to EP of Mississippi Edition for Mississippi Public Broadcasting.
Vance previously worked as a production intern before rejoining the state network as a reporter in 2019.
“With this new job, I will no longer be spending as much time out in the field,” Vance said on Twitter. “And while I will miss getting to see first hand some of the amazing things Mississippians do each day, I do look forward to having a way to tell larger stories than ever.”
Content
Jason Beaubien announced on Twitter that he’s leaving his position as a global health and development correspondent for NPR to “spend more time with my goats.” Beaubien joined the network in 2002 after volunteering to cover a coup attempt in the Ivory Coast and has also served as NPR’s bureau chief in Johannesburg and later in Mexico City. Beaubien previously worked for WBUR in Boston and KQED in San Francisco. He lives in Maryland with his family “and a rotating cast of goats, chickens, dogs and other animals,” according to his NPR bio.
Thelishia Eaddy was named host of Morning Edition for South Carolina Public Radio. Eaddy joined the station in 2016 as a reporter and producer. In a news release, the station noted that she is the first Black woman to host the morning program in the station’s history. “Having Thelisha as the local host of Morning Edition not only showcases her expertise in journalistic excellence, but is a historic moment for SC Public Radio. Her experience, integrity and passion for public radio is invaluable,” said interim CEO Stephanie Cook in the release.
Raven Santana is the new host of NJ Business Beat, a weekly series produced by NJ PBS. She succeeds Rhonda Schaffler, a business correspondent who is leaving the station to become communications director for the New Jersey General Assembly’s Democratic Caucus. Santana joined the state network in 2018 as a fill-in anchor and correspondent for NJ Spotlight News, a daily public affairs program. She previously worked as a reporter for commercial television stations in New York and Massachusetts.
Buffalo Toronto Public Media named Valerie Pringle host of Canada Files, a weekly interview program. She succeeds the program’s founding host, Jim Deeks, who will stay on as EP. “The opportunity to interview great Canadians for half an hour, with no commercial interruption, is such a rare offering in television that I think any journalist or broadcaster would jump at the chance,” said Pringle in a news release. “Doing this series has been a gift.” Pringle previously worked as host of Canadian Antiques Roadshow, which aired on the CBC, and was host of Canada AM for CTV and the CBC’s Midday.
Joel Filomeno was hired as a multimedia journalist for Oklahoma News Report, a weekly public affairs program produced by the Oklahoma Educational Television Authority. Filomeno most recently worked as a digital media specialist for Homes by Tabor, a construction company in Oklahoma. He was also a video producer and graphics designer for El Nacional de Oklahoma, the state’s largest Spanish-language newspaper.
Ambriehl Crutchfield left her position as a metro reporter for Nashville Public Radio. “I’ve learned a lot about Nashville, humanity and the journalism industry. I’ll be interested in how the station improves retention for reporters of color who have innovated and expanded on everything we proudly boast about,” she said on Twitter. “I’m leaving for multiple reasons. My desire to do more enterprising work, not feeling heard internally and waiting [for] my next assignment from God.” She joined the station in 2020 after working as a general assignment reporter and fill-in host for Cincinnati Public Radio.
Carmen Molina Acosta left her position as a temporary production assistant for NPR to become a digital producer for the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists. She first joined the network as a Code Switch intern in 2021 and was also a contract news assistant. She rejoined NPR last year after working as an intern for an investigations team led by Connecticut Public.
Stephen Hegg announced on LinkedIn that he left his position as a part-time video producer for Cascade Public Media in Seattle. “I finally emptied my desk, gave the beautiful Grass Valley mini-switcher back to engineering (it looked cool on my desk!), turned in the laptop and my badge,” Hegg said on LinkedIn. “But I’m not going anywhere and will continue to produce, write and consult as a freelancer.” Hegg joined the organization in 1998 and pulled back from full-time work last year.
Governance
Chris Brockman was elected board chair of WMFE in Orlando, Fla. Brockman, a partner for Holland & Knight LLP, succeeds Donna Mackenzie, CEO of Bright Impact, a business incubator and accelerator program for technology startups. The station also announced that Markita Cooper, associate dean of academic affairs and a professor of law for Florida A&M University, was elected vice chair.
Send news of “comings and goings” to [email protected]