Public Interactive to Become Part of NPR

PRI and NPR announced today that "PRI, Public Interactive, and NPR signed an agreement for NPR to acquire the assets of Public Interactive". A press release is posted at both the PRI site and NPR.org.

Because this is a significant step in unifying public radio's internet presence and providing services to stations, for those who may not have access, here is the entire memo sent to NPR station reps earlier today,

Fr: Alisa Miller, CEO, Public Radio International (PRI)

Dana Davis Rehm, Senior Vice President for Strategy and Partnerships, NPR

Re: NPR and PRI Announce Deal to Expand Digital Service to Stations Through Public Interactive

We are pleased to announce the first step toward achieving a significant new collaboration in public broadcasting. Today, PRI, Public Interactive, and NPR signed an agreement for NPR to acquire the assets of Public Interactive, laying the groundwork for a digital distribution infrastructure to serve stations, producers, networks, and their partners in the communities we serve. At the completion of the acquisition in late August, PI will become part of NPR, and PI’s 20 staff members will become NPR employees. The new unit will be led by Debra May Hughes, the current President and COO of Public Interactive, and will be guided by an NPR Board-appointed committee similar to that which guides today’s Public Radio Satellite System (PRSS).

Merging the assets of PI with NPR enlarges the scale and scope of digital services for the benefit of all public radio constituents. It aligns resources, expertise, and station relationships to grow stations’ websites and digital services to make public radio a more powerful presence online. This goal is central to our industry’s success as we look to further engage listeners and provide relevant content on a variety of platforms. The exploratory work of public radio’s Digital Distribution Consortium and previous efforts such as the Public Service Publisher Initiative identified the needs for a collaborative system for public media web content exchange that would mirror what today’s PRSS does for broadcast content.

The time for investment in this area is now. Public media’s web capabilities are dramatically under-resourced and clearly, we need to pool resources to develop our collective potential.

We have posted a Q&A on the NPR station site that delves into different facets of this decision, and would like to call your attention to several station benefits:

• PI will support and expand the array of digital products and services now available to public broadcasting stations.
• PI-designed digital tools and services will include significant NPR content from which clients can select, in addition to content from PRI, BBC, Reuters, and other producers.
• While PI will maintain its current service model, it will create a new array of opportunities that will benefit the system as a whole.
• PI offers new distribution opportunities for all public media content producers.
• PI will become part of NPR but as with PRSS, PI will remain “customer and content neutral,” serving stations, producers, and networks equally.

Bringing PI and NPR together affirms the industry-wide learnings from the New Realities process to which many of you contributed, and which resulted in the NPR Board-approved Blueprint for Growth. This is an exciting development, and it is one that we feel will bring meaningful gains for your station in the digital environment. Both NPR and PRI are eager to hear your ideas about how PI could be of service to you as it moves forward.

This summer and fall, we will have the opportunity to discuss, through a series of special consultations, how PI’s services can be enhanced to best meet the needs of stations, producers, and our industry as a whole. We look forward to hearing your insights during these consultations. In the meantime, feel free to contact your PRI or NPR station relations manager with any comments or thoughts you may have.

PD's attending the upcoming Public Radio Programming Conference will be able to participate in the referenced consultations in special small group meetings being arranged in by PRPD in cooperation with NPR. Look for further information as the conference approaches.

One Week for Early Conference Rate

There is just one week to the August 6 Early Bird Rate deadline for registration to the 2008 PRPD Public Radio Programming Conference in Hollywood. The conference will be held September 17-20 at the elegant Renaissance Hollywood Hotel, in the heart of Hollywood, CA.

Our opening session will feature an interview with Hollywood producer, Brian Grazer. An Oscar, Emmy and Golden Globe winner, his extensive production work includes A Beautiful Mind, Cinderella Man, The DaVinci Code, Apollo 13, and television series' 24 and Arrested Development. He'll provide perspective on the future of media and the creative process.

Mark Ramsey, president of Mercury Research and media blogger will address "The Future of Listening" and All Things Considered Host Robert Seigel will share reflections on his 30+ year public radio career in our conference closing "Benediction". CPB Senior VP, Bruce Theriault, will talk about "Reinventing Public Radio" and general sessions will cover "The Changing Job of the PD" and "Grow the Audience".

Breakout sessions will focus on Audience Growth, Convergence, On-Air Fundraising and Management. An outline of our agenda is available at the PRPD website.

Senate Committee Discusses Rules, Royalties

The Senate Judiciary Committee today is discussing proposed legislation that would create uniform rules and artist royalty rates for radio delivered by satellite, cable or the Internet. The bill, introduced by California Sen. Diane Feinstein, includes measures meant to crack down on illegal downloads and copying of music.

The committee is expected to debate a ruling by the federal Copyright Royalty Board last year that dramatically increased the royalty rates that Internet radio stations must pay artists and record labels. Legislation has been introduced to reverse the decision.

Thorn Blogs on Public Radio Innovation

Jesse Thorn, host of PRI's Sounds of Young America, posed some interesting observations about the recent cancellations of Fair Game and the Bryant Park Project on his Blog. In a post last Wednesday, he addressed some of public radio's innovation strategy in a variety of ways, including a section called "There was no reason to target young people in the first place":'

This may sound odd coming from a guy who has a show called "The Sound of Young America," but remember: my show's title is a joke :). Getting younger listeners isn't about creating shows for younger listeners any more than getting African-American listeners is about creating shows for African-American listeners. It's about creating great shows that have diverse perspectives and are inclusive. Public radio has done a good job of the former, but a mediocre to lousy job of the latter. It's telling to me that there's a category click-box on the Public Radio Satellite System website for bluegrass, but not one for hip-hop. Public radio's perspective is monolithic, and the correction has to be systemic, it can't be ghetto-ized to a few programs.

The full post is worth a read!

Strong Spring Arbitron Results for WBUR

Spring 2008 Arbitron results are beginning to be released and one of our first reports comes from Sam Fleming, WBUR Boston's Managing Director of News and Programming.

He reports that the station was #1 among 25-64 listeners in several dayparts:

• 6-9am (ME) with an 8.7% share between 7-8am!
• 4-7pm (ATC) w/ a 6.7% share…
• 8-11am Saturday morning (WESAT) w/ 8.4% share and 11% share between 8-9am!
• 8-11am Sunday morning (WESUN) w/ 7.5% share.
• 7am Saturday morning (Only A Game)
  

The Slow Growth of HD Radio

In an interview on APM's Future Tense, Edison Media's Tom Webster was asked about why HD Radio is experiencing a "slow uptake". He blogged about that question in a piece on the Infinite Dial blog earlier this week. One of this comments was:

The programming, however, varies considerably from market to market, and very little of it is driven by consumer demand or even consumer insight. Some markets have great HD programming, but here where I live, not so much. So it is hard for the typical consumer to get excited about HD when there is no clear content offering to sell.

As part of our Public Radio Programming Conference in September, PRPD will be featuring a panel on HD Radio entitled "Digital Radio 2008 for Programmers: New Knowledge/Fresh Content/Creative Ideas".

WMUB to All-News & Info

John Hingsbergen, Program Director at Oxford, Ohio's WMUB, informs us that the station will soon convert to an all-news and information format. The change will take effect on August 3rd with the jazz programming, now offered on-air in the evening and overnight, will move to a full time jazz HD2 channel.

Lorna Ozmon at PRPD Conference

Lorna Ozmon, one of America’s leading radio air personality development specialists, will offer two breakout sessions on Friday, September 19 at the Public Radio Programming Conference at the Rennaisance Hollywood Hotel. This is her first appearance at our conference since her highly rated workshops in 2002.

Her morning session will cover "The Art of Coaching Talent" and afternoon session will be cover "How to Become More Memorable and Make Stronger Connections with your Audience". These are just a couple of the many sessions and compelling speakers planned for our September 17-20th conference.

A complete tentative agenda is now posted at the PRPD website. Register by August 6 for the lowest Early Bird conference rates.

Fort Myers Station to Shift Format

WGCU in Fort Myers, FL has announced that it will convert its FM service to all-news and information and move its classical music to an HD channel beginning September 8. The station currently airs a mixed format with Classical 24 programming from 9am to 2pm weekdays and in the evening. Their website says that the new HD stations will be:

WGCU 90.1-1 HD: our new 24-hour lineup of public affairs, arts, drama, jazz and issue-focused programs; or
WGCU 90.1-2 HD: 24-hours of classical music, including our local chamber music, symphonic concerts and live performances. On this 24-hour classical HD music service, every note is clearer and it sounds as if you are in the performance hall.

FCC Commissioner Opposes Satellite Merger

Michael J. Copps (at right), a Democrat on the Federal Communications Commission has voted against the merger between XM and Sirius satellite radio broadcasters. That now makes the vote total on the proposed merger two in favor and one against.

Two other commissions have yet to cast their votes. But, Democrat Jonathon Adelstein has said he will support the merger on the condition that the resulting company agrees to cap prices for six years and create opportunities for minority programming.

The XM-Sirius merger has been under review for some 16 months.

Arbitron Announces PPM Changes

Arbitron is increasing sample sizes as it prepares to roll out Portable People Meters in more markets come September. The announcement was made at the recent July Radio Advisory Council meeting.

Arbitron says the changes include:

• Increasing the size of the persons 12+ sample by 10 percent;
  
• Increasing the threshold for the persons 18-54 sample size guarantee to 90 percent (up from 80 percent);
  
• Raising the sample benchmarks for total persons 6+ from 90 percent to 100 percent;
  
• and increasing the sample benchmarks for 18-34 from 70 percent to 75 percent at month six, prior to the 80 percent benchmark for year two and beyond.

In related news, Arbitron's revenues were up by 4.7 percent in the first half of 2008. But, the company continues to forecast that its revenues will be up 8 percent to 10 percent for the entire year.

Haarsager Responds to BPP Supporters

Add NPR interim CEO Dennis Haarsager's to the growing list of comments regarding the cancellation of The Bryant Park Project, which goes off the air after its Friday morning broadcast.

Harrsager posted a lengthy response Tuesday afternoon explaining the reasoning behind canceling what most people in pubradio thought was a big part of NPR's efforts to attract younger listeners. He addressed what NPR is doing to cater to that audience:

"A number of you have expressed concern that with this cancellation, NPR has forsaken its commitment to reaching younger audiences. That isn't true. We're doing it at npr.org/music and on many of our major news magazines, on the radio, online and via podcasting. While our reach crosses several demographics, younger audiences are well-represented."

And, he praised the BPP staff:

"First, let me wholeheartedly agree with your high praise for the BPP staff. They are a team of smart, creative journalists who have delivered compelling programming every day."

My Source Winners' Audio Available

Winners of CPB's My Source testimonial contest were announced at last week's PRDMC meeting in Orlando, FL. Now the audio of the winners is available at the My Source website.

My Source is part of the CPB Public Awareness Initiative.

TAL on TV Gets Five Emmy Nominations

This American Life, the public radio show now also appearing on cable TV's Showtime, has been nominated for the Outstanding Nonfiction Series Emmy Emmy award, as well as four others.

The Market Watch website quotes TAL host and executive producer Ira Glass:

"It's nice to be nominated for an award people have actually heard of. In journalism, generally the big awards are the sorts of things that happen in hotel ballrooms and your parents have to take it on faith that they're a big deal. They show the statuettes to their friends who pretend to be impressed. But an Emmy! Even my dog knows what that is. Sadly, he's rooting for Deadliest Catch."

My Source Winners Announced

The Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) today announced the recipients of the My Source Radio Testimonials Awards at the Public Radio Development and Marketing Conference in Orlando, FL. The winners are:

• First Place: WBGO-FM/Newark: Simon Rentner, producer; $3,000; Matt Berman, listener;
• Second Place: KWMU-FM/St.Louis: Michael Schrand, produce; $2,000; Darcella Craven, listener;
  
• Third Place: Vermont Public Radio/Colchester: Franny Bastain, producer; $1,000; James Woodard, listener.

The awards were given to the producers of the testimonials and to the people featured in them. In addition to the cash award given to the winning stations, each winner was also invited to Orlando to receive the award in person.

KCPW Veteran, Founder Gone or Not?

Blair Feulner, who in 1980 founded Park City, UT's FM radio station, KPCW signed off his morning program earlier this week and said that because of a dispute with the station's board of directors and was taking what he called a sabbatical. He said he may return ... or may not.

Station board member Joe Wrona said, "We have to deal with an employee who up and walked off the job."

According to a story on The Salt Lake City Tribune's website,

"His departure, if that's what it is, comes as KPCW's full-time staff takes up residence in a new, station-owned building.

"At the same time, Community Wireless is in the process of shedding its sister station, Salt Lake City's KCPW, for financial reasons. Feulner launched that operation in 1990."

Murrow Award to WNYC's Laura Walker

The Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) today named Laura Walker, the president and CEO of WNYC, the recipient of the 2008 Edward R. Murrow Award. The presentation was made at the Public Radio Development and Marketing Conference in Orlando, FL.

"Laura's leadership and perseverance transformed WNYC from a city owned-agency to a station with the largest audience in public radio," said CPB President and CEO Pat Harrison, who presented the award to Walker. "Her creativity and willingness to take risks have made WNYC one of the foremost radio stations in the country."

Recognition for PRPD Members

PRPD member stations were recently singled out for recognition lately.

Metroland, the alternative weekly in Albany, NY recently named WEXT "The Exit" was named Best Music Radio Station (Non-Commercial). In the article about the choice Metroland said:

"What seemed like an experiment has the potential to become an empire: Exit 97.7, as the station is colloquially known, has cemented its spot on the Capital Region dial with an great mix of music (technically “Triple A,” or Adult Album Alternative, according to radio- formatting standards, though that classification spans the divide between Radiohead and Dylan), a strong commitment to the local music scene (they’re playing roughly two regional acts per hour by our count), and interesting syndicated programming (everything from the Putamayo Radio Hour to Nic Harcourt’s Sounds Eclectic). The listener-supported station was recently nominated for a R&R Triple A award for Best Non-Commercial Radio Station in a small(er) market. We’re just going to go ahead and say they’re the best around.."

And, Joe Tlustos, PD at South Dakota Public Broadcasting says:

"South Dakota Public Broadcasting had a pretty good week last week. First, we were informed by the Radio and Television News Directors Association (RTNDA) that we won a National Edward R. Murrow Award for hard news. Then, we were surprised to learn that we had been named a winner of one of only six RTNDA/UNITY awards for our continuing coverage of Native American news and issues. We share company with CNN, PRI/WGBH, and WNYC for the Unity Award.

"RNDTA coveres both public and commercial broadcasters, both in the US and abroad. We realize that there are a lot of awards out there, etc., but we're pretty proud of these two coming back-to-back way out here in the Prairie."

The Value of Local Programming

I like the commentary below both because it has the ring of truth to it, and it helps to explain why our local coverage is so important. The subject of it is the homogenized America and the diminishment of a clear sense of local place. Here is the main point of the piece.

"...it’s not great that our best-known commodities in this culture are fast-foods, gas-guzzling SUVs and subpar Will Smith movies. It’s also bad that we more often end up having national conversations about celebrity breakups—and that when we do talk politics, Washington, D.C., is considered more important than what happens in our own state capitols and city councils. Indeed, in making anywhere into everywhere, homogenization has swallowed up not only our downtowns, restaurants and radio stations, but even our understanding of American democracy.

This is the most significant—and scariest—downside.

As we have faced health, energy and environmental emergencies that demand customized answers, homogenization has taken us from “think global, act local” to “obsess federal, ignore local”—right when imminent crises mean we need to act more locally than ever. Because of this, America may yet become a casualty of its own cultural conquest."

One of the things I like about much of our local coverage is that we are drawing attention to the things that make, in our case, Seattle, the PNW, and the people who live here, distinctive. The more often we do this, the better KUOW (in our case) is positioned to compete for listeners who have increasing options for learning about and discussing national issues.

It is also true that many of us can do more to fully realize the potential of our local programming. Recent research (Sense of Place - PRPD) alerts us all that listeners think our local programming is "his or miss". Let's fix the problems and take our local programming to the next level!

PRPD President Arthur Cohen presented some important new research he did that shows that local programming within the mid-day daypart performs as well as the adjacent national programming within the same daypart in some markets. This is good news.

Jeffrey W. Hansen Program Director KUOW 94.9 Seattle 206-221-2731 jwhansen@kuow.org

--------------------------------------
Anywhere Becomes Everywhere Posted on Jul 10, 2008 By David Sirota
Full commentary: http://www.truthdig.com/report/item/20080710_anywhere_becomes_everywhere/
His blog is at www.credoaction.com/sirota.

Grow the Audience Launches Web Presence

The SRG led Grow the Audience project has launched a new website. The site contains a comprehensive Situation Analysis as a beginning to discussions on how public radio can continue to increase audience.

From a note sent to us yesterday by SRG:

We are excited to launch the public phase of Grow the Audience, our initiative to widen the use and deepen the value of public radio’s service. Our project web site includes an introduction of the Audience Growth Task Force, publication of Situation Analysis, our first research report, and an outline of themes and options that surfaced at the Task Force’s mid-June kick-off meeting.There is also a start toward resources to share and an invitation for comments from all comers.

As part of this project, PRPD will be involved in forming some of the working groups of program decision makers and producers which will help frame key proposals and options. We have also scheduled a general session on Friday, September 19 at the Public Radio Programming Conference to provide programmers an opportunity to contribute to the project.

Carmakers Dislike Satellite/HD Requirement

Two major automakers -- GM and Toyota -- object to a proposal that HD Radio technology be included in future, combined satellite radio receivers. The plan has been suggested by many opponents of the XM-Sirius merger. They suggest that new receivers include XM and HD technology as a condition of merger approval.
In their letter to the Federal Communications Commission, GM and Toyota called the required mash-up an "unprecedented requirement" that undercuts the will of the marketplace.

Details.

Creating New Public Radio Show Not Easy

As the Bryant Park Project's blog loads up with farewell comments from listeners who will miss the show when it ends July 25, one person who is no stranger to new program launches weighs in. Jeff Horwich, host of Minnesota Public Radio's In The Loop, talks about the difficulty in attracting younger listeners. On the show's blog, Horwich says:

"Launching new public radio shows is a harsh business. All while In The Loop has been creeping along our under-radar path, two high-profile efforts to nab younger listeners have now been conceived, lived and died. (The other was Fair Game, a show from WNYC and PRI, which went off the air May 30). Another, called The Takeaway, also produced by WNYC and PRI, has just launched and is presumably wobbling along its own uncertain trajectory."

Read Horiwch's entire blog post.

Arbitron Study Tracks Hispanic Listenership

A new report from Arbitron and Scarborough focuses on radio listening trends in the U.S. Hispanic community. The chief findings in Hispanic Radio Today 2008 Edition concludes:

• Number of Hispanic stations reached another peak;
• Hispanic country listeners posted higher education, income levels than country listeners nationally;
• Major at-work increase in listening to Spanish variety;
• Spanish religious income levels soared;
• Teen weekend cume ratings declined;
• Radio reach among Hispanic women 18-24, 65+ slipped;
• and cume ratings for Hispanic men rose in many demographic categories.

The report shows there were 872 Spanish-language stations in the Spring of 2007, up from the previous record of 847 the same time a year earlier. That represents a 3 percent increase. It also shows a 64 percent growth rate in the previous 10 years.

NPR to End BPP This Month, Says NY Times

Citing budget tightening, The New York Times today reports that National Public Radio is pulling the plug on The Bryant Park Poject after less than a year on the air. The last show is July 25, according to the Times.

Alison Stewart, one of the original co-hosts of the show is due to return from maternity leave July 21.

The Times reports:

"Although the program is heard over the air on just five radio stations and available on 19 high-definition digital channels, NPR officials said publicly in recent months that “Bryant Park Project” was attracting the kind of Web audience they had hoped for. One NPR employee, who was not authorized to speak publicly, said the program had one million individual, or “unique” listeners in both April and May."

Vermont to Austin - Jody Evans Moving

"I'm trading in my snow shoes for cowboy boots!"

PRPD Board Chair Jody Evans announced today that after 10 years at Vermont Public Radio she will be leaving to become Program Director at KUT in Austin.

In her new job she will oversee the station's music, news and media efforts, working for former KUT PD, Hawk Mendenhall who was recently promoted. Hawk is currently completing his term on the PRPD board. Her last day at VPR will be August 8.

Colorado PR News Now On FM

Colorado Public Radio's Vice President of Programming, Sean Nethery, informs us:

"At 10 am (Mountain Time), Colorado Public Radio's full-time news service moved to KCFR-FM, returning to its former home at 90.1 FM in the Denver metropolitan area. Our classical music service, KVOD, has moved to a new frequency in Denver, 88.1 FM.

We will continue to simulcast our news service on its existing Denver station, 1340 KCFR-AM, until we sell the AM station. And we will also continue simulcasting on 1490 KCFC-AM in neighboring Boulder for the foreseeable future."

Congratulations to the station - and to Denver's listeners who can now hear a full-time news and info public radio station on FM.

Workshop Early Bird Registration Deadline is Monday

July 14 is the last day for the Early Bird Rate for registration in either the BEYOND The Basics or the PD Workshop. Both will be held just before PRPD’s Public Radio Programming Conference which runs Sept. 17-20 at the Renaissance Hollywood Hotel in Hollywood, CA.

The PD Workshop is a comprehensive overview of programming. Registration before July 14 is $485; after that date, $600. (PRPD Members receive a $200 discount on the cost of the workshop if they attend the conference.)

Click here to register for the PD Workshop.

BEYOND The Basics, as its name suggests, is for more advanced programmers who want to polish their skills. Registration before July 14 is $485 and $600 after the early Bird deadline.

Click here to register for BEYOND The Basics.

Guitar Maker Honors Car Talk

Call them Slowwrench ...

Legendary American guitar maker C.F. Martin is producing a special edition instrument in honor of Click and Clack, a.k.a. Tom and Ray Magliozzi of public radio's Car Talk. The company said the Magliozzi brothers were recognized as being "... very capable bluegrass musicians."

This special edition guitar is a based on a staple of Martin's catalogue, the "classic dreadnaught". The Click-&-Clack version is made of Engelmann spruce, East Indian rosewood, and abalone pearl. It features features artwork by Bill Morrison, who illustrates the "Car Talk" website.

The Magliozzi brothers' guitar joins those honoring of Eric Clapton, Mark Knopfler, and Clarence White in the Martin lineup. Martin also recently issued a guitar in honor of another pubradio program, A Prairie Home Companion.

The Car Talk special edition guitar sells for $6,499.

Martin is located in Nazareth, PA in the Lehigh Valley.

XPN & The Current Swap Local Music

Two Triple A public radio stations are sharing with oneanother the bounties of their respective markets.

Throughout July, The Current in the Twin Cities and WXPN in Philadelphia are participating in "The Music Exchange." The two stations will swap local music in what they called "... an effort to cross-pollinate two of the best music scenes in America". The music will be played on the air and be available for free download online as well.

Each station chose songs by eight bands from their own markets to be featured on the other station.

Koppel to Host TOTN

TVNewser reports that for the first time since leaving Nightline, Ted Koppel will host a regularly-scheduled series. This Wednesday, he'll guest host NPR's daily news talk show, "Talk of the Nation." The show will be broadcast live from the Newseum.

Request for FCC PPM Probe Denied

The Federal Communications Commission decided not to act on a request from its Advisory Committee on Diversity for Communications in the Digital Age to investigate the possible effects of Arbitron's Portable People Meters on stations targeting minority audiences.

In addition, Arbitron responded to the committee's concerns in part by stating:

"The PPM samples fully represent the diversity of the markets Arbitron measures in terms of age, sex, race, ethnicity and language preference. Hispanics and African-Americans have the highest listening levels in the PPM system and ethnic broadcasters who have embraced PPM are succeeding with the timely and detailed data that only PPM can deliver."

NPR's Newest Blog Goes Inside

NPR's Digital Media team has launch its brand new blog, Inside NPR.org, and it's dedicated to providing a closer view of what the online unit is doing.Andy Carvin and Daniel Jacobson write:

The idea behind this blog has its roots in our two newest shows - Tell Me More and The Bryant Park Project. Both of them were rolled out as blogs many months before they were ready to go on air, in the hopes of getting as much public feedback as possible. [...] By creating online communities for each show while they were still "rough cuts," we were able to build better programs because of it.

Now, we'd like to apply the same rough cuts idea to our online services in general. Whether it's rolling out social networking, building new mobile products or improving our online strategy in general, we're hoping we can develop better tools if you're a part of the conversation.

Listeners might find this interesting, but this blog could be especially helpful for new media, online, and content execs at stations.

If you're a PD, you should bookmark this blog or add it to your feed reader; if the blog lives up to its billing, this will be required reading.

More and more, PD's are finding themselves in charge of a big chunk of the web at their stations (it is programming after all, right?). A simple tool like this makes it easier for us to know what NPR has coming, and it can help us keep some of our core strategies in alignment or coordinate the release of new offerings.

For NPR's digital unit, the challenge is to use the blog as a tool for discussion and collaboration, not just a bullhorn for announcements. That it exists at all is a good sign.

Committee Seeks FCC Study of PPMs

Arbitron's Portable People Meter measurement has drawn questions and criticism from several quarters. The latest is an Federal Communications Commission advisory committee.

The FCC's Advisory Committee on Diversity for Communications in the Digital Age recently asked the entire commission to study whether PPMs are harmful to stations catering to primarily minority audiences.

Radio Ink, says the committee told the FCC:

“PPM results have been objected to as inaccurate and unreliable by some broadcast companies, and in particular, companies whose programming targets African American and Hispanic audiences."

Public Radio in South Pacific Struggles to Stay On the Air

Technical difficulties occurring at the same time as financial concerns gave public radio listeners on the Commonwealth of the Northern Marians Islands the impression that KRNM was off the air for good.

KRNM, located in the U.S. territory in the South Pacific, had transmitter issues that decreased its signal to less than half power. At the same time, computer glitches interrupted the flow of programming from NPR and the BBC.

Adding insult to injury, Northern Marians College -- KRNM's host -- said it would cease funding for the station. Combined with the technical difficulties, some listeners reportedly thought the plug had been pulled.

Not so. Mechanical issues have been tended to and private funding has been sought to keep KRNM on the air.

NPR.org Recognition

I've hear lots of dire warnings recently about public media being "way behind" in developing our web and social media applications. While I agree that we need to continue to strive for excellence and greater relevance, both within and beyond our air signals, its worth noting that there are we are already making impact.

One such indication comes in PC World's inclusion of NPR.org in its list of The 100 Best Products of the Year in its July issue:

"Welcome to the online home of NPR's lauded national news coverage and commentary, special reports, and documentaries. NPR's site has done a lot in a short time to convey its rich content in compelling digital formats such as podcasts and live and recorded streams"

The only other news site on the list was WashingtonPost.com.

There certainly is much to improve, and NPR is currently deeply involved in a redesign and upgrade. But its worthwhile to occasionally remember all the work that public media has done in the "new media" world and its impact on the public we seek to serve.

Mountain Stage to NPR

Inside Radio reports that West Virginia Public Radio's Mountain Stage has moved from PRI to NPR. The program will also be featured on NPR Music.

Car Talk Cartoon Debuts July 9 on PBS

The people who gave you Masterpiece Theater, Nova and Charlie Rose are unleashing the cartoon incarnations of Tom & Ray Magliozzi of public radio's Car Talk on an unsuspecting nation. PBS' As the Wrench Turns debuts at 8 p.m. Wednesday, July 9 (check local listings).

According to The San Diego Tribune:

"Tom and Ray voice their animated selves in the TV series, executive-produced by Howard Grossman. But “As the Wrench Turns” deviates from “Car Talk's” successful format. No phone calls from distressed car owners, no long bouts of brotherly banter, no silly signature “Puzzler” or “Stump the Chump” jokes. Instead, the show plays out like a family-friendly “Family Guy” or “The Simpsons.”

"Story lines include Click and Clack's loony fundraising efforts for their bankrupt radio network – which involves their joint run for the White House – plus outsourcing their radio show to India and creating the first-ever pasta-fueled motor vehicle."

WBEZ PD Change, Program Cuts

Ron Jones is leaving WBEZ, Chicago, where he has been Vice President of Programming. The change was effective July 1 but Ron will be working at WBEZ on various projects for the next few weeks and can still be reached there. The Chicago Reader News Bites reports that some local programs will be suspended and:

"...programming vice president Ron Jones announced this week that he's leaving the station "to look for a new adventure." Jones will be replaced by former Eight Forty-Eight host Steve Edwards, returning from a ten-month leave of absence. Edwards will have the lesser title of acting program director."

NEW PRPD WEBSITE

We're proud to announce the newly revamped PRPD website. In addition to a new look and vastly improved navigation, prpd.org now features a Search function on every page to make finding the information you need quick and easy.

Over 250 pages of programming knowledge is available through our Knowledge Base. A great deal of this section is provided as a member benefit and requires a member log-in. But there are some sections that are public, such as the Classical Music Testing area and information about the recent PRPD/LNI Talk Show Convening.

A new feature for PRPD Members, the Members Forum section, where you can post questions, develop conversations, share knowledge with the community of PRPD members. We have set up forums by format and one General Programming area to start. Please let us know if you have ideas for other forums.

We hope you'll find this a big leap forward in PRPD's service to public radio programmers and encourage your feedback and suggestions as well as letting us know about any errors or broken links.

NOTE: While the new site and email "propagate" through the internet, some may find that the new site is not yet available on your server. Also, our email hosting is moving, so messages to prpd.org may not go through for much of today (July 1). If you need to contact PRPD in the interim, you can call us at 315-824-8226.