What makes a crossover hit for public radio?
Crossover appeal plays a vital role in public radio’s growth. Many of our best programs — including the top daily newsmagazines — have it…. Continue reading
Tag archive: Commentary
Why don’t more stations adopt ‘sustainer’ ways?
Public radio stations have widely adopted sustaining-member programs over the last several years. Because of this, one might assume that a significant number of sustainers contribute to public radio every month. However, the reality for most public radio stations is quite the opposite. Continue reading
Where does Car Talk belong? Let listeners decide
NPR’s v.p. of programming responds Ira Glass’s suggestion that stations not devote prime weekend airtime to Car Talk reruns after the Magliozzi brothers retire this fall. Like Ira, I’m really excited about all the innovation in public radio today. Each … Continue reading
Satullo: You’ll make mistakes, so be sure to learn from them
Do you have the courage to fail? I asked that leading question during a keynote address to public media journalists who attended “Taking News Digital,” a June 7–9 workshop exploring the lessons we’ve learned at WHYY since launching NewsWorks.org in … Continue reading
Want new radio hits on Saturday? Step 1: Drop Car Talk when the guys retire
I enjoy Car Talk. I like those guys. And as a public radio lifer, I’m grateful for what Tom and Ray Magliozzi did to bring a vast audience to public radio, year after year.. … But — with all respect to Doug Berman and my colleagues at Car Talk Plaza — I think when they stop making new episodes in October, they should be pulled from Saturday mornings. Continue reading
Avoid the penalty — don’t lose sight of direct-mail acquisition
The Super Bowl is over. The boys of summer have just taken the field. And March Madness has only recently subsided. That can only mean one thing to a public media development professional. It’s budget time! Many see this process … Continue reading
Extolling public TV’s mission with an edge
I love standing on a stage — especially in the American heartland — and saying to 500 public television supporters, “Fear is for people who don’t get out much. When we travel, we get out. And, in the same … Continue reading
Alvarado as he exits: ‘Change cannot be a complaint’
“… The architecture of public media has to be reimagined immediately or the millennials will build their own parallel universe separate from the public broadcasting universe their Boomer grandparents live in….” Continue reading
On the beat in Juárez, you listen with your gut
As a reporter for the multistation “local journalism center” Fronteras: The Changing America Desk, I am surrounded by borders. I live in Texas, work in New Mexico and regularly report in Mexico. In a 15-minute drive, I can be in … Continue reading