Radio broadcasts of the Metropolitan Opera have introduced music lovers and opera stars alike to the genre, reports the New York Times (registration required). ChevronTexaco’s decision to stop backing the broadcasts has put their future in doubt.

It’s been nearly 10 years since the infamous O.J. Simpson low-speed car chase, and L.A. TV stations have made recording such pursuits a staple of their news coverage. TelevisionWeek borrows from This American Life to recall one of the stranger examples.

Religion & Ethics NewsWeekly features prominently in a TelevisionWeek story about how TV news covers religion in the post 9/11 era.

How about a glass of NPR wine? The New York Times reports that the net will partner with Signature Wines, a company that offers custom labeling for businesses and individuals, to promote its NPR wine club.

Piano Jazz hits its silver anniversary in April, a landmark that surprises nobody more than venerated host and pianist Marian McPartland. “It’s kind of amazing that we’ve managed to be on the air for 25 years and no end in sight,” she says with a laugh. “I sort of envisioned doing it for a few months, or at the most a year. It never occurred to me that people would like it as much as they do.” Today it ranks among public radio’s most popular music programs, airing on 241 stations and reaching almost 400,000 listeners a week. McPartland, 85, who has hosted the show from its inception, started the gig at an age when most professionals are starting to daydream of sunny retirement homes.

James A. Fellows, a longtime leader in public TV, remained in critical but stable condition last week after being hit by a car in Bethesda, Md., Dec. 2. Since the accident he has had five major operations at Bethesda’s Suburban Hospital to mend broken bones and other damage. Though he still faces many risks, doctors said last week he was trending for the better, according to Fellows’ friend Pete Willson. On Dec. 10, the attending physician smiled for the first time, Willson said. Fellows was struck in front of his house while walking across a busy commuter route during evening rush hour.

Monkey reminds you that Joan Kroc’s gift to NPR doesn’t excuse you from supporting your local station. “now, what i want to know is, what did mrs. kroc’s estate get as a member incentive? millions of npr coffee mugs? carl kassel recording me [a] message on their answering machine? a tub of mama stamberg’s cranberry relish?” Monkey’s site also features some pics of KERA p.d. Abby Goldstein.

NPR Ombudsman Jeffrey Dvorkin addresses NPR’s online underwriting and possible e-mail e-litism in his latest Media Matters column.

“It was clear to us then that PBS could not retreat from Death of a Princess without compromising the integrity and independence of the network,” recall Larry Grossman and Newton Minow in Columbia Journalism Review. The former PBS leaders compare their handling of the controversial PBS docudrama with CBS’s cancellation of The Reagans.

Classical Public Radio Network host Mark Sheldon died Monday of cancer. More from Colorado Public Radio.

Tavis Smiley says in the New York Daily News that listeners complained when he enlisted the conservative J.C. Watts to provide commentaries. “I had people demanding to know if I’d lost my mind,” he says. “But my belief is we need to hear and examine different perspectives, not just our own.”

Tavis Smiley’s criticism of Washington’s WAMU hasn’t helped his chances of being heard in the nation’s capital, reports the Baltimore Sun. “There are ways to court program managers other than to complain in the media,” says a station spokeswoman. [Earlier coverage in Current.]

In the same Geneva conference center where Internet summit participants are fighting over political control of the Web, broadcasters are holding their own summit, where they claim to be dealing with more significant issues, AP reported. Along with the BBC and many national nets, Pacifica’s WBAI sent a rep.

Tonight’s Association of Independents in Radio Member Spotlight features Joe Bevilacqua.

Independent Lens is crafting an interactive version of its documentary series for the American Film Institute’s Enhanced TV Workshop, reports the New York Times. Interactive TV could “attract additional tech-savvy viewers who are hungry for more information, and don’t like to be passive when they watch,” says Lois Vossen, a producer with ITVS.