Public Media: The Foundation of Local Music Ecosystems Local news has been getting a lot of attention in recent days with the announcement of a $500 million fund to revitalize local news through the Press Forward initiative. Local news ecosystems are essential to our democracy and need new investment but let’s also not forget that music plays a critical role in connecting people in...
Read More...Reflections on my new role at Public Media Company
What are your goals for Public Media Company? If I had a dollar for every time that I’ve been asked that question, I would donate it all back to Public Media Company. In my first two months in this role, I have been truly inspired by what I’ve learned about this organization, the team, our board and supporters, and the invaluable work that PMC...
Read More...Tim Isgitt Appointed as Chief Executive Officer of Public Media Company
Public Media Company’s Board of Directors is pleased to announce that Tim Isgitt has been named CEO of Public Media Company. Isgitt is a visionary leader whose career spans more than 25 years as a public servant and advocate for public and independent media. Serving as an independent consultant, Isgitt supported many nonprofit and philanthropic organizations on strategy, business, and program development. He was...
Read More...Watch our Public Media Company Webinar on the Future of Local News
On May 11, 2023, Public Media Company hosted the following webinar. You can watch it here, or download the slides. Email Alison Scholly (alison@publicmedia.co) with questions or comments. Future of Public Media, Newspapers and Local News: Case Studies from Maine and Central Pennsylvania PMC Webinar deck Future of Public Media Newspapers and Local News | Click here for the presentation video What’s the state...
Read More...WITF and LNP | LancasterOnline Forge New Model for Local News, Community Education and Civic Engagement in Central Pennsylvania
LNP Media Group, owned by Steinman Communications Inc., and WITF today announced that together the two organizations are forging a new model for local news, community education and civic engagement in Central Pennsylvania. Steinman Communications, which is owned by the Steinman family, is gifting LNP to WITF as a capstone to the family’s two centuries of community service and philanthropy. As a result of...
Read More...Public Media Company CEO Steps Down; Successor Search Begins
Public Media Company (PMC), the nonprofit consulting firm dedicated to serving public media, announced today that Chief Executive Officer Erin Moran will be stepping back from leading the organization. Before becoming CEO in 2019, Moran served as Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer. She joined the organization in 2001, shortly after its founding, and plans to stay involved in limited client projects part-time....
Read More...Gains & Losses at Public Media Stations: The COVID edition
It has been three years since the emergence of COVID-19 and its impact on global life. To understand how the pandemic affected public media’s financial health, we analyzed station Annual Financial Report (AFR) data from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) to help uncover recent trends in public radio and television finances. Our analysis has found that overall public media revenue in 2021 (the...
Read More...Signal Acquisition as an Expansion Strategy
The pandemic has led to softer demand and declines in prices for radio signals, which is resulting in signals coming up for sale in markets across the country. For example, WXXI recently acquired a commercial FM radio signal that used to broadcast jazz in Rochester from a local entrepreneur for a combination of cash and a charitable contribution from the seller. Given market conditions...
Read More...Station Sales Cooled by COVID
Public Media Company’s review of radio station sales data shows that COVID-19 has made a significant impact on transactions in the noncommercial radio market – both on the number of stations sold and the total value of those sales. 112 noncommercial stations changed hands in 2019 but that number dropped to 90 in 2020 and to just 68 in 2021. Number of Noncommercial Radio...
Read More...KERA and City of Dallas reach agreement to preserve venerable classical station in Texas
KERA to Operate WRR 101.1 FM In the summer of 2021, the City of Texas released an RFP to find an operator for the City’s commercial classical music station, WRR, also known as Texas’s first radio station, dating back to 1921. Public Media Company was hired by North Texas Public Broadcasting (KERA) to navigate the station through the selection process to ensure WRR’s long-term...
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