I’m sure many of you newshound pals of mine are following the leadership change at NPR.
This account comes from an online transcription of NPR’s Morning Edition:
NPR announced Wednesday that CEO Vivian Schiller has resigned after controversial comments made by NPR’s former top fundraising executive came to light in a secret video. Read More »
One of my favorite routines from George Carlin is about people wanting to save the planet. He said, It’s not about saving the planet. “The planet is fine. The people are f***ed… The planet isn’t going anywhere. We are.”
I feel the same way about public media. Once again, some members of Congress want to kill funding for public media. Now, not only do I disagree with that, but I also disagree with a lot of the ways people are framing why and how to “save” public media. We can talk all we want about saving NPR and PBS, but really what we are saving is our own access to information and community.
First of all, America’s public media is a shadow of that in many developed countries. If we want to wallow in our own ignorance, then we can try to eliminate the funding pipeline. At the same time — not to be dismissive, but not to be alarmist — what we call public media is already vastly funded by private individuals and underwriting.
That doesn’t mean that cuts don’t matter. Anyone who’s pinching their pennies in this economy knows that money is money, and money counts. Does the Federal Government need to balance revenue and expenditures? Of course. But the total Federal funding for public media, $430 million, is not only a drop in the total $3.7 trillion proposed budget, but a fraction of what’s spent on political pork. And note — 70 percent of Federal public media funding goes to local stations.
Those stations are also facing state budget cuts. Blue Ridge PBS, which says it serves 26,000 square miles, has had its state funding cut by 25%. The money could be eliminated. As they state in an online piece, “Will Sesame Street Stay On”:
Right now state funding makes up 20 percent of the station’s more than $3.5 million dollar budget. Another 20 percent comes from the federal government. The rest comes from viewers and corporate donors…. In 2008 the state funded more than $1-million to Blue Ridge PBS. This year it’s down to $732,000. Under the current budget proposal it would be slashed to zero over the next two years.
The question facing public media now is what to do and how to frame an argument for continued funding, while still doing the job of reporting the news. That’s no mean feat. But here are a few trends that are changing the game.
First, people, under economic duress, are cutting their cable and other bills that seemed essential in better times, but less so now. Some are turning to broadband for video and audio programming, but others are using radios and rabbit-ear televisions. You can get PBS and NPR on those, and while there are commercial news and entertainment sources, they’re not the same. (Note: I didn’t say better or worse, but different, tonally and substantively.) People deserve choice even if they don’t have a lot of money.
Second, public media is doing some internal mentoring/tough love. I’m thinking of organizations like the National Federation of Community Broadcasters, under CEO Maxie Jackson. The NFCB represents smaller public radio stations, and it’s working to ensure they have a game plan for these times. As Jackson says about the proposed cuts, “FEAR is not an option, ANGER has little value, and DISGUST is not a solution. This dire forecast requires immediate strategic, rigorous and impacting action.” (Disclosure: I’m speaking at their June conference, on the topic of social media for radio.)
Third, to circle back to outlets like Blue Ridge PBS, public media isn’t about some remote system. It’s about communities…. communities that need information, tools, and choice, now in this economy more than ever. It’s up to us to make sure that those tools are available, for free, to everyone.
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Some articles of note supporting continued funding:
“Fact Check: Palin Calls for Congress to Defund NPR,” from WBUR
The Argument for Funding Public Media, by WNYC CEO Laura Walker and Kohanic Broadcast Corp. (Anchorage, Alaska) CEO Jaclyn Sallee
NPR announced the resignation of its vice president of news, Ellen Weiss, who presided over the firing of Juan Williams. From what I understand, however, the decision is based on much larger and longer standing issues, including ones of diversity.
From NPR:
NPR Announces Completion of Review of
The Termination of Juan Williams’ Contract
Washington, DC January 6, 2011 – The NPR Board of Directors announced today that it has completed its review into the facts and circumstances leading to the termination of NPR’s contract with senior news analyst Juan Williams. The review also included an examination of how other NPR analysts and correspondents have been treated under the NPR Ethics Code with respect to on-air comments. The independent members of NPR’s Board (the “Board”) worked with outside legal counsel, Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP (“Weil”), to gather information related to the contract termination.
In light of the review and feedback provided to them, the Board has adopted recommendations and remedial measures designed to address issues that surfaced with the review. The recommendations and remedial measures range from new internal procedures concerning personnel and on air-talent decisions to taking appropriate disciplinary action with respect to certain management employees involved in the termination. Some of these changes have already been made and others are in process. Specifically, the Board adopted recommendations that NPR:
· Establish a committee comprised of NPR personnel, respected journalists, and others from outside NPR to review and update NPR’s current Ethics Code (the “Code”).
· Develop policies and procedures to ensure consistent application of and training on the Code to all employees and contractors.
· Review and update policies/training with respect to the role of NPR journalists appearing on other media outlets to ensure that they understand the applicability of the Ethics Code to their work and to facilitate equitable and consistent application of the Code.
· Review and define the roles of NPR journalists (including news analysts) to address a changing news environment in which such individuals have a myriad of outlets and new platforms for their talent, balancing the opportunities presented by such outlets and platforms with the potential for conflicts of interest that may compromise NPR’s mission.
· Ensure that its practices encourage a broad range of viewpoints to assist its decision-making, support its mission, and reflect the diversity of its national audiences. The Human Resources Committee of the Board is working in conjunction with key members of NPR management on this issue.
Williams’ contract was terminated in accordance with its terms. The contract gave both parties the right to terminate on 30 days’ notice for any reason. The facts gathered during the review revealed that the termination was not the result of special interest group or donor pressure. However, because of concerns regarding the speed and handling of the termination process, the Board additionally recommended that certain actions be taken with regard to management involved in Williams’ contract termination.
The Board has expressed confidence in Vivian Schiller’s leadership going forward. She accepted responsibility as CEO and cooperated fully with the review process. The Board, however, expressed concern over her role in the termination process and has voted that she will not receive a 2010 bonus.
NPR also announced that Ellen Weiss, Senior Vice-President for News, has resigned.
“We have taken this situation very seriously and the Board believes these recommendations and remedial steps address the concerns raised in connection with the termination of Williams’ contract,” said Dave Edwards, Chair. “The Board regrets this incident’s impact on NPR and will work with NPR’s CEO, Vivian Schiller, to ensure that these actions will be expeditiously completed, examined, and monitored on an ongoing basis.”
In conducting the review, Weil gathered thousands of documents from various sources and interviewed many current and former NPR employees and contractors. Weil requested Williams’ participation in the review through both his agent and a former NPR colleague. Unfortunately, these efforts were unsuccessful and Williams was not interviewed.
The Ad Hoc Committee and the non-management members of the Board met on multiple occasions and deliberated on the information provided to them. Weil reported to an Ad Hoc Committee of the NPR Board consisting of Dave Edwards (Chair of the Board), Howard Stevenson (Immediate Past Chair), and Carol Cartwright (Vice-Chair).
“juan, gettin ugly. wonder if it will result in him severing ties, or mutual”
That was my note at the top of an email I sent back in September of 2007 to a colleague at NPR. In full disclosure, I am a former employee of NPR, let go in 2008 as part of the cancellation of three shows, including one I hosted. In the email, I’d forwarded a Washington Post column by Howard Kurtz dissecting a Fox/NPR/Juan Williams triad of recrimination. The headline: “NPR Rebuffs White House On Bush Talk — Radio Network Wanted To Choose Its Interviewer.” In Kurtz’s words:
The White House reached out to National Public Radio over the weekend, offering analyst Juan Williams a presidential interview to mark yesterday’s 50th anniversary of school desegregation in Little Rock. But NPR turned down the interview, and Williams’s talk with Bush wound up in a very different media venue: Fox News. Williams said yesterday he was “stunned” by NPR’s decision… Ellen Weiss, NPR’s vice president for news, said she “felt strongly” that “the White House shouldn’t be selecting the person.”
(Note: This article can also be viewed on the Huffington Post, where I would encourage you to post comments.)
A year ago today, I was in NPR’s Los Angeles studios, providing commentary for the network’s election night special. I’d worked a double shift, first as the host of the African-American focused show News and Notes, then rolling on into the coverage of returns and looks at ballot initiatives like California’s Proposition 8. After Barack Obama was announced the winner of the U.S. Preidency and we wrapped up the special, I drove down Jefferson Avenue in Los Angeles… and almost got carjacked. I’ve rarely spoken about the incident, but it’s time for me to examine its resonance as I look back on the last year of American life, of black American life, and of journalism. Read More »
tracks the life of Sophie "Sky" Lee, a thirtysomething black rock musician making a comeback in New York City in 2000. There are a few hitches to her plans: Sky's guitarist is her mercurial, drug-abusing ex-husband; her manager is also her boyfriend; and Sky herself is frightened of the cost she'll pay to reach the pinnacle of fame.