Nice Above Fold - Page 431
Mobile use accelerating among public radio listeners in PRTS5
Public radio listeners increasingly like music and news to go, according to findings of the fifth annual Public Radio Technology Survey (PRTS5), which shows the growing adoption of mobile devices among a sampling of listeners and donors.CPB Inspector General's report recommends penalties for WJFF-FM
A new report by the CPB Inspector General’s office released Sept. 12 and posted online today recommends that the corporation penalize WJFF-FM in Jeffersonville, N.Y., for failure to comply with various regulations dating to November 2011. The report was sparked by complaints to the IG’s office in March from several supporters of a canceled news and cultural magazine, Making Waves. After the public outcry over the cancellation, Winston Clark, g.m., resigned in April, and all but one board member quit soon after. The report determines that WJFF didn’t air quarterly announcements for open meetings; had no evidence that announcements of open meetings for its Community Advisory Board (CAB) or Board of Trustees were made at least seven days in advance; didn’t maintain CAB member attendance at meetings; didn’t always provide reasons for closing meetings to the public; and didn’t have written policies regarding open meetings and other transparency requirements.Obama to nominate Scripps s.v.p. to CPB Board
President Obama on Sept. 12 announced his intent to nominate David Arroyo to the CPB Board. Arroyo is s.v.p. for legal affairs at Scripps Networks Interactive, where he has worked since 2004. Previously he was an associate at the global law firm of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher. He is also a former chair of the Board of Latino Justice (formerly the Puerto Rican Legal Defense and Education Fund) and in 2012 was recognized by the Imagen Foundation as one of the most influential Latinos in entertainment. Arroyo’s nomination, Obama’s sixth for the CPB governing body, requires Senate confirmation.
WNYC, Takeaway encourage stations to take it apart
Public radio’s The Takeaway has more than doubled its carriage since cancellation of NPR’s Talk of the Nation, and the show’s producers are working to add even more outlets by building news collaborations with station-based reporters and programmers.Localism emphasis poses risk
Of all the complex and potentially fateful decisions faced by public radio program directors as they navigate the emergence of multiplatform distribution, one of the most significant is the drive to “go local” and produce more local programs, especially news and information. This push signals a strategic shift for public radio, with potentially enormous consequences for growth or decline. Audience 2010, one of a series of landmark research reports on programming trends published in the previous decade, reported that much of the credit for the growth of public radio listenership could be traced to a shift “away from local production toward network production, away from music-based content toward news, information and entertainment.”Public radio is stronger, and better, when stations invest in national shows
Public radio has reached a moment with the feel of the bank scene from It's a Wonderful Life, as station managers worry that listeners will direct their financial support to national producers instead of them.
Pacifica relieves WPFW manager of duties, urges staff to keep quiet
Pacifica has placed John Hughes, g.m. of WPFW in Washington, D.C., on paid administrative leave and appointed an outside consultant as interim g.m., according to a member of the Local Station Board.Redefining public media for the future
Public media is made up of hundreds of storefronts in communities large and small, each of which has a unique window into America, its people and their stories. These storefronts — local public TV and radio stations — have built public media’s greatest asset: our unique relationships with listeners and viewers, local businesses and governments, and anchor institutions in the arts, philanthropy, education and social welfare. Yet at Public Radio Capital we increasingly hear from public media executives facing competitive and financial challenges that threaten their stations’ economic foundations and thus their effectiveness. Let’s face it: The public media business model isn’t changing.PBS programs win three at 2013 Creative Arts Emmys
American Masters and Downton Abbey led the opening round of the annual Primetime Emmys Sept. 15 by claiming three Creative Arts Emmys for PBS. American Masters, a production of New York’s WNET, topped the category for outstanding documentary or nonfiction series. Credit for the Emmy went to Susan Lacy, executive producer; Julie Sacks, supervising producer; Prudence Glass, series producer; and Jessica Levin, producer. The Emmy for direction in nonfiction programming was awarded to Robert Trachtenberg for his direction of the American Masters biography “Mel Brooks: Make a Noise.” Downton Abbey, the hit British drama co-produced by Carnival Films and Masterpiece, received the Emmy for music composition in a series.The Key raises WXPN's profile as valued music curator
With The Key, we’re able to better reflect the diversity of the Philadelphia music scene, give local bands a platform to showcase their music in multimedia formats and position XPN even more centrally in the market conversation around local music.Flatow moves Science Friday to PRI distribution
Science Friday, the weekly NPR series hosted by Ira Flatow, is pairing with Public Radio International in a new distribution deal to take effect in January 2014. The agreement calls for Science Friday, a signature element of NPR’s science coverage since its 1991 launch, to continue as a weekly radio broadcast under PRI distribution. In addition, Flatow and his producers will collaborate with PRI series The World, The Takeaway and Studio 360 to develop multi-platform content around science topics. “We’re excited to work with PRI to expand their science and technology coverage,” Flatow said in a PRI news release.Alec Baldwin ending WNYC's Here's The Thing
Alec Baldwin, the actor and diehard public radio fan, will be ending his own popular podcast and pubradio program after two seasons due to a lack of funding, according to the Hollywood Reporter.NPR Board appoints Haaga as interim chief, announces 10-percent buy-out plan
Paul Haaga, a lawyer and financier who has served as NPR vice chair since last fall, was appointed interim president as the news organization unveiled a major workforce reduction.Saul Landau, investigative filmmaker, dies at 77
Saul Landau, a filmmaker who made investigative documentaries for PBS, died Sept. 9 from cancer. He was 77. Landau’s death was announced by the Institute for Policy Studies, where he was a fellow for four decades. He made more than 40 films over his lifetime. Landau specialized in reporting on Cuba and made numerous documentaries about the country and leader Fidel Castro for public TV. Castro himself invited Landau to make the 1969 film Fidel, which later aired on PBS. In 1979 he co-directed and co-produced PBS’s Emmy- and Polk Award-winning Paul Jacobs and the Nuclear Gang with Jack Willis.Pubcaster’s memoir details creative early years at WQED
A Secretly Handicapped Man, out in October, is not only the story of Norbert Nathanson’s place in the history of public broadcasting, but also the tale of his struggle with his own body and society’s attitude toward him: He was born without feet and one hand.
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