Pismo pays big bucks for PBS wine series

"We like public TV as much as the next viewer, but we wonder whether the city of Pismo Beach had enjoyed one glass of wine too many when it agreed to pay $50,000 to sponsor a PBS reality series called 'The Wine Makers'," reads an opinion piece in The Tribune, the newspaper of San Luis Obispo County.

Lessons learned in Iowa network's first year

"The creation of Iowa Public Radio, and its early success, should send an important signal to a public radio system that is vastly overbuilt," writes IPR Content Director Todd Mundt, in a blog entry describing the evolving state network's first year of service. "Maintaining local public service is not the same thing as maintaining hundreds of independent stations."

Portland church's political agenda prompts venue change for event featuring Ira Glass

After learning that a mega-church that actively opposes the gay rights movement had been booked for his upcoming appearance in Portland, This American Life host Ira Glass requested a change in venue, according to local news accounts. Oregon Public Broadcasting, which is hosting the event, defended its first choice of venue but later rented the convention center.