Current.org - For People in Public Media / Published at American University School of Communication

It’s official: KCET, one of the biggest siblings in the PBS family, is leaving home for good. Although station President Al Jerome has complained for years about high network dues and the contentious overlap situation with KCET’s three PBS brethren … Continue reading →

June 2007: In a presentation to the PBS Board’s Station Services Committee, KCET protests that its dues assessments are disproportionately high and the other PBS stations in the Los Angeles market are overstepping their rights as part-time PBS members (PDP). … Continue reading →

The FCC’s recent National Broadband Plan and its Future of the Media initiative have highlighted a chronic problem in U.S public broadcasting: The system has no long-term policy planning capacity, and therefore it always has had great difficulty dealing with … Continue reading →

When Jim Pagliarini and Judy Diaz say public TV should pay more attention to a younger audience, they’re not thinking of viewers in their 20s and 30s. Their Next Avenue project, based at Twin Cities Public Television, aims at Boomers, … Continue reading →

Renowned movie critic Roger Ebert, who literally owns the trademarked thumbs-up/thumbs-down gesture, is returning to public TV, where he started his on-air career 35 years ago. Starting in January, Ebert will produce the weekly show Roger Ebert Presents At the … Continue reading →

A new study for NPR identifies a much bigger potential news audience that would listen to public radio if the field works to break down perceptions that its programs are elitist and stuffy. Producers would have to make shows that are more lively and conversational and promoters would have to take greater care when describing public radio as “intelligent” and “serious,” according to the Los Angeles-based firm SmithGeiger. Continue reading →

While our audience stereotypes may be better informed than they were 40 years ago, they can blind us to our potential for growth and change, with equally dangerous consequences. Today there are many indicators that we have room for audience growth on radio if only we expand our view of the potential. Continue reading →