Julius Knapp, the Federal Communication Commission’s deputy chief of the Office of Engineering and Technology, today announced in his blog the release of an FCC paper, “Spectrum Analysis: Options for Broadband Spectrum.” It supports recommendations in the National Broadband Plan that 120 MHz of the broadcast spectrum be turned over for wireless use. “We cannot emphasize strongly enough two critical points that are the cornerstones of the paper,” he stressed: Any contributions of spectrum by TV broadcasters for an auction will be voluntary, and viewers will still be able to watch free over-the-air TV. The paper “offers provocative ideas that deserve to be fully vetted and considered,” Knapp said.

NPR President Vivian Schiller talked about the challenges and rewards of reporting collaborations during last weekend’s Investigative Reporters and Editors conference: “[A partnership] will succeed only if it results in good, serious, enduring work. And not if it’s about next news flavor of the month. And certainly not solely because it’s a cheaper model.” She also spoke at length about the investigative unit that NPR established in January: “The next step in our ambition is to help our member stations do better investigative work at the local level where so much reporting has simply gone away. And we know to do that we must partner.

Quinnipiac University in Hamden, Conn., presented its 17th annual Fred Friendly First Amendment Award to Gwen Ifill of PBS’s Washington Week, during a luncheon today (June 14) at the Metropolitan Club in New York City. The award, named for the former CBS News president, acknowledges those who have shown courage in preserving the Constitutional right. “Gwen is a top writer, great reporter and fine communicator,” said Ruth Friendly, Friendly’s widow, who presented the award. “She is gutsy, determined and dedicated to her craft. . . . I can’t help but to feel the presence of Fred today. He would be nodding hearty approval, too.”

New Jersey Network Interim Director Howard Blumenthal and his leadership of Philadelphia’s indie pubcaster MiND TV (WYBE)  is the focus of a story Sunday (June 13) in the Bergen, N.J., Record. His “bold privatization plan” (PDF) to transfer the TV/radio network to a nonprofit would “unload a taxpayer asset with an estimated value of $200 million,” the paper says. During his time as CEO of MiND TV, it paid a fine for airing commercials; Blumenthal said an oversight by busy staff members led to the fine. Also, net assets for MiND dropped 16 percent. But Douglas Eakeley, chairman of the NJN Foundation, supports Blumenthal and his plan, which has been called a “radical restructuring” by the  Record.

South Carolina Educational TV is the latest in an ever-growing number of stations facing state budget cuts. ETV finds out Tuesday (June 15) if it will see over 50 percent cut, more than $5 million of its $10 million in state support, the South Carolina Radio Network reports. On Friday (June 11) ETV posted an “emergency alert” asking viewers to contact state legislators to protest the cutback, which it says would have a “crippling effect” on services. ETV is statewide network with 11 pubTV stations, eight radio transmitters and a closed circuit educational telecommunications system to schools statewide. The cut may force ETV to discontinue its public safety and local government training, it said.

The Jim Henson Company is working on a 3D sequel to Jim Henson’s “Dark Crystal” film, CEO Lisa Henson tells Reuters. She said several of her father’s primary interests before he died in 1990 were 3D films, computer animation and digital imagery. “He was pretty far ahead of his time, and I like to think that we have taken the company in the direction he would have chosen,” she said. “I really believe that 3D will only get better.” The movie, “The Power of the Dark Crystal” will be made in Australia with using techniques including 3D and CGI to propel puppets into the 21st century and beyond.

A four-year Campaign for Love and Forgiveness program draws to an end Tuesday (June 15) at six pubcasting stations nationwide participating in the Fetzer Institute program. It’s an outreach that encourages participants to come together to forgive on both personal and community levels. At KEET in Eureka, Calif., there was a theater production and art exhibits. KPBS in San Diego sponsored conversations among youth and survivors of torture. Maryland Public Television dedicated a forgiveness garden. At WGVU in Grand Rapids, Mich., “A Season of Forgiveness” project that began with the outreach is now a privately held organization. Part of WTVI’s campaign, a “Red Bench of Love” in Charlotte, N.C.,

Financial journalist Stacey Tisdale tis joining Need to Know as a contributing reporter on June 25. “It’s an honor to be part of something that PBS entrusts with the responsibility of succeeding Bill Moyers,” she told The Women on the Web site. “I look forward to the longer ‘docustory’ format that will allow us to go in depth and meet the journalistic standards and expectations of the PBS audience.” Tisdale’s career includes reporting for CNN, NBC’s Today, CBS MarketWatch, The Early Show and CBS Evening News. CLARIFICATION: Tisdale is joining the show as a contributing correspondent, not as a staffer as previously reported.

KWMU is picking up live performance broadcasts of the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra in September. The partnership, announced yesterday, provides a new outlet for the symphony after KFUO, the city’s all-classical outlet, switches to the “Joy FM” format under new owner Gateway Creative Broadcasting, a religious broadcaster. KWMU, which recently rebranded itself St. Louis Public Media, will air all Saturday concerts in the symphony’s Wells Fargo Advisors Orchestral Series, beginning with the 2010-11 season-opening performance featuring violinist Joshua Bell. The news isn’t so good for opera lovers, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, which reports that KWMU doesn’t plan to change its Saturday afternoon line-up to carry live broadcasts of the Metropolitan Opera.

NPR Music is about to begin webcasting live from the Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival in Manchester, Tenn., a first for the online music service recently touted by the Washington Post as “a kind of passport to coolness for NPR’s core radio audience of aging baby boomers.” Neon Indian, a synth-pop band that riffs off Wizard/True Star-era Todd Rundgren in a track on NPR Music’s Bonnaroo Preview playlist, kicks off three days of live performances at 1 pm ET. Three public radio stations–KUT, WFUV and The Current–have joined NPR in producing coverage of more than 40 full sets from the festival.

PBS Ombudsman Michael Getler continues to hear from viewers about two controversial subjects: Tavis Smiley’s comments on terrorism, and treatment of the Vietnam War in the recent Memorial Day special. Read his Mailbag here.

Sylvia Strobel, president of the Pennsylvania Public Television Network until it was dismembered in state budget cuts recently, has been named executive director of the Alliance for Community Media, the national association of cable access centers, starting Aug. 1. Strobel is chair of the American Women in Radio and Television and recently served as its acting president. She held executive roles with Twin Cities Public Television and CPB and has been a senior partner in the entertainment law firm Lehmann Strobel PLC, now based in Lancaster, Pa.

The Pittsburgh foundations that bought a 60-day option on the sale of WDUQ last month have withdrawn their nascent bid for the public radio station. The group sought to recast the NPR News and jazz station as a public media news service for the Pittsburgh region, but recently decided that there wasn’t enough time to complete its analysis and solicit community feedback before the July 2 deadline. The Heinz Endowments, one of four community foundations involved in the planning, announced the decision yesterday. Duquesne University wants at least $10 million for WDUQ, the city’s most-listened-to public radio outlet. It’s unclear whether any bidders are willing to pay that amount.

R.L. Stine, author of the hit children’s book series Goosebumps, is among the judges for the PBS Kids Go! Writers Contest — which has already generated 25,000 entries from 87 stations nationwide, according to PBS. The contest, co-sponsored by WNED-TV Buffalo/Toronto, encourages children from kindergarten through third grade to create illustrated stories. Also on the 14-judge panel is six-time Emmy winner Marc Brown, creator of the character Arthur of book and PBS program fame; Ann M. Martin, author of the mega-hit series The Baby-sitters Club; and Jorge Cauz, president of Encyclopaedia Britannica. Winners will be announced in July.

Longtime ABC News Political Director David Chalian joins the PBS NewsHour on July 6, the show announced today. As its political editor, Chalian will direct the NewsHour’s political coverage across all platforms and manage the editorial content from the NewsHour’s congressional, White House, and Supreme Court beats. He will also serve as an on-camera political analyst and will appear in regular political webcasts on the Online NewsHour, as well as develop original digital political content.