Pacifica Radio Archives unearths missing 1964 London speech by Martin Luther King Jr.

Fifty years ago, Pacifica Radio correspondent Saul Bernstein recorded a 62-minute speech delivered in London by Martin Luther King Jr., in which the civil rights leader spoke about apartheid and the then-recent sentencing of Nelson Mandela. The recording, believed to be the only full record of King’s speech, was thought to be lost to time. But a half-century later, Pacifica Archives Director Brian DeShazor uncovered Bernstein’s recording in a dusty box while working on a Saturday, researching another project, “American Women Making History & Culture, 1963-1982,” a two-year effort funded by the National Archives to preserve hundreds of recordings. Now listeners to Democracy Now!, which airs on Pacifica’s five stations around the country, will hear the speech on the show’s Martin Luther King Day edition, and donors to the financially struggling network can receive a copy as a premium. DeShazor said he found the tape due to a lucky break.

‘Sonic Logos’ and partnerships provide new branding opportunities for Boston’s WCRB

Boston classical music station WCRB has leveraged a partnership with the Boston Conservatory to compose a new branding tool: a musical logo. The station opened a contest for Conservatory students in the spring of 2014. Out of 18 entries, WCRB staff chose a 6-second sonic logo, or “sounder,” submitted by Paul Fake to be its new trademark sound. Fake, 27, lives in the Boston area and composes concert music. “What you look for in a sounder is something that won’t become annoying or repetitive,” said WCRB Station Manager Tony Rudel, who initiated the project.

Colorado Public Radio, Colorado Symphony part ways after 15 years

Colorado Public Radio and the Colorado Symphony have ended their 15-year relationship after a disagreement over the value of the symphony’s performances to the station and a demand for editorial control over coverage of the ensemble. CPR stopped airing symphony performances as of Nov. 30, ending an arrangement that had been in place since 1999. Colorado Symphony CEO Jerome Kern said that in addition to providing performances to CPR free of charge, the symphony had bought underwriting on the station, to the tune of about $91,000 in the last fiscal year. In the symphony’s eyes, it was giving CPR not only valuable content but cash as well, Kern said.

NPR’s Tiny Desk Concert searches for new acts

NPR announced Tuesday a contest that will use the platform of its Tiny Desk Concerts to discover up-and-coming musicians. For viewers, the appeal of the Tiny Desk Concert series is watching popular and rising artists — from T-Pain to Timber Timbre — perform in an unusual setting: the desk of All Songs Considered host Bob Boilen. But the new contest will give smaller acts not signed to a record label the opportunity to perform and gain exposure. “I go to shows, most every night, hoping to find something new and surprising,” said Boilen in a press release. “This Tiny Desk Concert Contest is a way for me to, essentially, time travel around the country, hear hundreds of bands that are completely off my radar, and share the most exciting and surprising ones with our music-loving audience.”

BBC crafts module to take advantage of NPR clock changes

Responding to an opening created by changes to the clock for NPR’s Morning Edition, the BBC is rolling out a 90-second news module for insertion into a bottom-of-the-hour segment designated for local news coverage. The BBC’s Topline will curate top international news stories selected to compliment Morning Edition’s coverage. Stations that subscribe to the BBC World Service through American Public Media can pick it up at no additional cost, but the window for airing it is limited to the newly created 8:31:30 a.m. (Eastern time) break in Morning Edition. Stations are also prohibited from editing it. In a Q&A about the offering, the BBC said its editors will monitor Morning Edition to ensure that the stories featured on Topline don’t overlap with those covered by NPR.