NewsHour has launched a Web site for its new Global Health Watch Unit. This week the show began a three-part series on HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis in South Africa. The new unit is funded by a $3.5 million grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

PBS viewers in several areas of Idaho are in danger of losing Idaho Public Television’s signal. A state legislative committee just rejected a proposed $150,000 in matching grants for federal funds that would have paid for translators to eliminate the holes in digital coverage, which includes parts of Boise. ” … at this point, I’m not sure what were going to do as we don’t have match money,” g.m. Peter Morrill said.

The pubradio marketing consultants who produced the end-of-year fundraising special “The Best of Public Radio 2008” plan to create a “best-of” summer show that will take pledges via a national toll-free number, according to this project report from John Sutton & Associates. For a 2009 year’s end special to be broadcast in December, the project hopes to incorporate text giving. A follow-up survey of contributors to the December 2008 fundraiser found that the more ways an individual listens to public radio, including online listening to more than one station, the more likely he or she is to contribute.

PBS newsman Jim Lehrer’s 19th novel, Oh, Johnny (Random House), goes on sale today. In an interview with USA Today, Lehrer details his writing technique, which involves checking into hotel rooms in his hometown of Wichita, Kan.

The cumulative weekly audience for NPR programming and newscasts grew 7 percent to 27.5 million listeners last fall, according to an NPR news release announcing record-setting growth in just-released Arbitron ratings for Fall 2008. Total listening to NPR stations reached 32.7 million, a 6 percent increase. All Things Considered boosted its weekly cume to 13 million listeners, a 15 percent increase from Fall 2007, and nearly 14 million listeners tuned into Morning Edition each week, a 9 percent increase. In the Washington Post‘s story on NPR’s Fall 2008 numbers, the weekly cume of 23.6 million listeners reported for all NPR programs excludes listeners to NPR newscasts, according to an NPR spokeswoman.

Here’s a Q&A with Kathleen Pavelko, CEO and president of WITF in Central Pennsylvania, in which she discusses not only her upcoming fight to save $900,000 in state funding but also the station’s controversial new 75,000-square-foot headquarters — which cost $26.9 million.

The Kansas House today voted down a motion that would have transferred the state’s entire $2.1 million in public broadcasting operating grants to home-based services for citizens with disabilities, according to The Kansas City Star. Rep. Virgil Peck offered the motion, which would have been an amendment to the budget bill. He said Kansas has more more critical services to fund than public TV and radio. The measure was defeated 42-74.

The staff at MusicRadar.com (“The Place for Music Makers”) details its fave songs by guest stars during the 40 years of Sesame Street. Videos on the site include Johnny Cash as “Johnny Trash” singing Nasty Dan to Oscar the Grouch.

Colorado Public Radio is creating a “Drive to Thrive: Campaign of Confidence” to generate revenue to meet its revised membership budget of $1.6 million for the fiscal year, reports Denver’s Westward blog. Sue Coughlin, station v.p., details the plans in a letter to staffers: “Activities will include customized mail and telemarketing appeals, campaign-related promos, a $100,000 member challenge, targeted major donor solicitations, a timely web presence and a few additional days of on-air fund raising. The Campaign of Confidence will begin in earnest on April 1st and continue through June 30th with a final countdown during our June Drive. Leading up to the June Drive, we will have two short mini campaigns — one day of fund-raising on April 22nd and a two day effort May 13th & 14th.”

CPB has announced Ready to Learn grants so pubcasting stations can work in collaboration with state education agencies to “assess, align, and integrate research-tested and curriculum-based RTL products and services into early childhood education.” A one-year planning grant of up to $50,000 will be awarded to up to five stations with state educational agency partnerships. Deadline is April 27.

PBS ombudsman Michael Getler writes about the ongoing controversy over the pledge program The UltraMind Solution in his latest column, More Pledge Madness. It includes a Q&A with Joseph A. Campbell, v.p. of fundraising programming for PBS.

WFMU, the free-form community radio station in Jersey City, N.J., will be broadcasting live from South by Southwest this evening, beginning at 8 p.m. ET. The station teamed up with Aquarius Records to showcase 14 bands at Spiro’s in downtown Austin. Half of the sets will be broadcast live and others recorded for a later date.

The last broadcasts of NPR’s Day to Day and News and Notes transmit today from NPR West, the network’s production facility in Culver City, Calif. If you can’t listen live on an NPR station, audio streams from both broadcasts will be available via the shows’ websites (here and here) after 3 p.m. ET. The blog LA Observed has an appreciation of the “nice job” that Day to Day has done in saying good-bye to its listeners.

An online column about a PBS pledge-drive special, The UltraMind Solution, has sparked a debate on Salon.com. The show offers a combination of books, DVDs and home questionnaires to reportedly help participants sharpen their minds and lessen depression and anxiety. The program ran during pledge drives and related items were given as pledge bonuses. Dr. Robert Burton, a former hospital chief of neurology, calls physician and author Mark Hyman’s medical theories a “fringe opinion” and is troubled by the show’s appearance of an infomercial. Hyman responds that his program is based on sound medical research and is grateful for PBS’s “courageous stand” in airing the show.

Mr. Rogers has arrived in Pittsburgh. Well, actually it’s a 7,000-pound figure of the late PBS star. The nearly 11 foot tall likeness will be the centerpiece of a new Tribute to Children park on the Ohio River facing the city. The legendary Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood was produced for more than 40 years at the WQED studios in Pittsburgh. In other Fred Rogers news, everyone is encouraged to wear a cardigan sweater — his trademark — today in honor of what would have been his 80st birthday. Family Communications is hoping to turn his birthday into an annual tradition of community service, to be known as “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?”