People
New twist on the news cycle: chasing stories on two wheels
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Several public broadcasting journalists now count a bike helmet among their essential reporting equipment as they pedal to cover news events and interview sources.
People
KCTS President Moss Bresnahan resigns, citing family issues
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Moss Bresnahan, president of KCTS Television in Seattle, resigned Thursday. “My reasons for making this very difficult decision are deeply personal — to attend to family-related issues that have arisen,” Bresnahan said in a note to public television managers. “I’m so proud of our many accomplishments to date, and I know that KCTS is poised for even greater things in the coming year,” he told the execs. Prior to his arrival in Seattle in November 2008, Bresnahan served as president of South Carolina ETV and WVPT in Harrisonburg, Va. He also spent six years as a board member of the International Public Television Screening Conference (INPUT) .
People
Syracuse’s WCNY welcomes two new execs, Echeverría and Santos host Vocalo en Español, and more . . .
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Jesús Echeverría and Rocío Santos are the new hosts for Chicago Public Media’s expanded Spanish-language music and talk blocks on Vocalo en Español.
People
Marian McPartland, Piano Jazz host, dies at 95
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Marian McPartland, a concert pianist and the long-running host of NPR’s Piano Jazz, died Aug. 20 at her home in Long Island, N.Y., of natural causes. She was 95.
People
Knell’s departure prolongs churn in NPR presidency
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The unexpected departure of President Gary Knell puts NPR in the all-too-familiar situation of looking once more for a leader.
People
Teshima Walker, e.p. of Tell Me More, dies at 44
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Teshima Walker, executive producer of NPR’s Tell Me More, died Aug. 16 after a two-year battle with colon cancer. She was 44.
People
Jack Germond, McLaughlin Group panelist, dies at 85
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Jack Germond, a longtime political pundit on WTTW’s nationally syndicated public affairs program The McLaughlin Group, died Aug. 14 at his Charles Town, W.Va. home, of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, according to the Associated Press.
People
Malatia’s exit from WBEZ leaves staff guessing
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When Torey Malatia unexpectedly announced his resignation as president of WBEZ licensee Chicago Public Media Friday, July 26, news of the longtime leader’s exit reverberated across Chicago media and public radio.
People
CPB gets five new board members, Deggans joins NPR as its new television correspondent, and more . . .
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Eric Deggans, a media critic at the Tampa Bay Times since 1995, will sign on as NPR’s television critic and correspondent, a new position, in October.
People
Dann Tucker, influential fundraising consultant, dies at 60
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Dann Tucker, a fundraising consultant who trained PBS employees in underwriter outreach and organized donor cruises for PBS and NPR, died Aug. 2 in Portland, Ore., of a stroke during open-heart surgery. He was 60.
Gwen Ifill
NewsHour promotes Ifill and Woodruff to helm show, as TV’s first female co-anchor team
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The PBS NewsHour is reassigning its senior journalists to new roles by tapping Gwen Ifill and Judy Woodruff as co-anchors and managing editors of the weeknightly broadcasts. The change, announced today during the Television Critics Association Press Tour in Los Angeles, drops the system of rotating anchor duties among six different NewsHour journalists. It takes effect next month. Jim Lehrer, longtime anchor and co-owner of the show through MacNeil/Lehrer Productions, retains the title of executive editor, but Ifill and Woodruff will lead editorial and strategic planning of PBS’s flagship news show. “Gwen and Judy have been the heart and soul of NewsHour for years,” said Linda Winslow, executive producer, “so it’s wonderful to formalize these new roles and give them an opportunity to provide even more input on the content and direction of the show.”
People
Senate approves all five presidential nominees to CPB Board
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President Obama’s five nominees to the CPB Board were approved Thursday night by the U.S. Senate.
People
Several pubmedia journalists to join new Al Jazeera America network
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Among the new reporters for Al Jazeera America’s 12 U.S. news bureaus are several with public media backgrounds. The New York City–based AJA announced the bureaus and personnel today in anticipation of the network’s Aug. 20 launch. Ash-har Quraishi will be AJA’s Chicago correspondent. Quraishi has reported for WTTW’s Chicago Tonight since 2011.
People
Malatia resigns as president of Chicago’s WBEZ
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Torey Malatia, longtime president and c.e.o. of Chicago Public Media, has resigned effective immediately.
People
After public broadcasting, David Giovannoni dives into audio’s long-lost past
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Retiring from public radio finally afforded audience analyst David Giovannoni the time to turn his hobby, collecting antique phonographs and early sound recordings, into a full-time pursuit.
People
Second journalist fired at Miami’s WLRN
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Miami’s WLRN confirmed that host and reporter Phil Latzman was dismissed July 16. Latzman hosted a weekly public affairs show on the station, according to his bio. Earlier this month, the station also dismissed news director Dan Grech. The blog Random Pixels first reported the news of Latzman’s dismissal. Latzman has not responded to a request for comment.
Idaho Public Television
Pisaneschi moves up to lead Idaho Public Television in August
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The next general manager of Idaho Public Television is Ron Pisaneschi, now its director of content. Pisaneschi takes over Aug. 5 from Peter Morrill, who announced his retirement in March. The State Board of Education announced Pisaneschi’s appointment today. “Idaho PTV is fortunate to have someone with Ron’s passion for public television and expertise in programming and operations ready to step up and lead the organization,” said Don Soltman, board president.
People
WPBT’s Schneider accepts chief operating officer post at WETA
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Rick Schneider, president of WPBT in Miami, will take over as executive vice president and chief operating officer at WETA in September, the Arlington, Va., station announced today. Schneider will step into the position being vacated by longtime WETA exec Joe Bruns, who announced his retirement in April. WETA President Sharon Rockefeller said in the announcement, “I have worked alongside him in public broadcasting’s national organizations, and I know firsthand that Rick’s strong management experience is matched by his true dedication to public media. He brings with him superb knowledge of the national public broadcasting landscape and the complexities of managing a major-market station, and he shares our profound commitment to public service.”
Schneider will report to Rockefeller. He will supervise all senior managers as well as oversee WETA’s financial and administrative operations, local television and radio operations, fundraising, engineering and technical operations, communications, information technology, educational enterprises, and community and government relations.
People
Rath goes from Frontline to WATC, Zuckerman steps in for Grech at WLRN in Miami, and more . . .
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Frontline‘s Arun Rath will join NPR in late September as host of Weekend All Things Considered, which is relocating to studios at NPR West in Culver City, Calif.
People
Delmarva Public Radio selects Whitehair as general manager
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Dana Whitehair arrives this week as the new general manager for financially struggling Delmarva Public Radio in Salisbury, Md., whose licensee will be reassessing the station’s future in three years. Whitehair’s experience includes four years as g.m. of WNCW-FM at Isothermal Community College in Spindale, N.C. He also spent 17 years at University of Texas at Austin’s KUT, 11 of those as manager of technical services, and worked as a broadcast engineer at WXXI in Rochester, N.Y.
Most recently Whitehair was executive director of Foothills Connect Business & Technology Center, a nonprofit focused on expanding broadband service in western North Carolina. Salisbury University said in today’s announcement that WSDL in Ocean City, Md., and WSCL in Salisbury will soon move from their headquarters on campus to temporary facilities nearby. The university is building a new tower and replacing aging equipment. The SU Foundation will transfer licenses to the university, “where DPR is expected to form closer ties with SU academic programs,” the announcement said.