Nice Above Fold - Page 920
- Chicago broadcasters led by Steve Robinson, manager of WTTW’s sister WFMT-FM, jointly raised $2 million for tsunami relief last week, the Sun-Times reported. In Pittsburgh, an hourlong telethon aired from WQED studios drew nearly $923,000 in pledges Jan. 7, said the Pittsburgh Channel. In Canada, CBC plans a three-hour fundraiser, Canada for Asia, tonight. Mike Myers, Celine Dion, Wayne Gretzky and other stars of the frozen north will appear. Australia’s three commercial TV nets raised more than $20 million Jan. 8.
- Jeffrey Dvorkin calls NPR’s tsunami coverage the day after the disaster “curiously distant and even callous.” Dvorkin also addresses a controversy about the editing of David Sedaris’ “Santaland Diaries,” which is discussed at length on this weblog. (One commenter says he “ripped [Dvorkin] another one”; we hope for a speedy recovery.)
- The Washington Times talks with David Brancaccio in advance of his Friday debut as the solo host of PBS’s Now. Though the formerly hour-long newsmag has been cut to 30 minutes, the roving anchor, who will host each show from a different locale, says the smaller window will result in fewer, not shorter, stories. “If a piece was 18 minutes in ’04, it will be 18 minutes in ’05,” he says. (via Romenesko)
- KERA in Dallas announced Monday that president and CEO Gary Ferrell had unexpectedly resigned for personal reasons. Station spokeswoman Sharon Philippart told the Dallas Business Journal the resignation, which was effective immediately, was not requested by the KERA board. Ferrell, former CFO at Los Angeles’ KCET, is reportedly returning to California. The Kansas City Star also reports that William T. Reed will announce this week that he’s stepping down as president and CEO of Kansas City Public Television effective June 30. (registration req.)
- Public TV’s Frontline/World invited journalism schools to recommend young journalists for reporting fellowships on its website. Selected students and recent graduates of the schools would work with the series’ website to report on international stories not covered in mainstream media. Applications from individuals will not be considered, the producers said. Fellows have already contributed many stories to the site.
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