APM receives $2.95 million grant

American Public Media has been granted $2.95 million for three years by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation for the network's citizen journalist project. "Public Insight Journalism" encourages the MPR audience to become involved in the news-gathering process. More than 70,000 radio listeners and website users are signed up to participate.

Six Silver Batons for pubcasters

NPR News won three of the 13 duPont-Columbia awards announced today by Columbia University's Graduate School of Journalism. Silver Batons recognizing excellence in broadcast journalism went to: All Things Considered for its coverage of the earthquake that devastated China's Sichuan Province in May 2008; "Sexual Abuse of Native American Women" by Laura Sullivan, a two-part report that aired on ATC in July 2007; and "Giant Pool of Money," a one-hour documentary on the subprime mortgage crisis that This American Life produced in collaboration with NPR News. PBS's duPont winners are "Abduction: The Megumi Yokota Story", a documentary presented on Independent Lens, and "Unnatural Causes: Is Inequality Making Us Sick?," a four-hour series on racial and economic disparities in health care by California Newsreel and Vital Pictures. In addition, Oregon Public Broadcasting won for The Silent Invasion, a local documentary on environmental threats posed by invasive plants and insects.

ITVS launches new blog

ITVS has launched the blog "Beyond the Box," an extension of its monthly newsletter by the same name. The blog/website will serve as the central location for ITVS news and updates about funding, docs and events and "create more and better opportunities to showcase ITVS-funded projects with filmmaker profiles, production and broadcast updates, video clips and more," according to an introductory post by Sally Jo Fifer, president. 

DTV history analysis

Analysis of the DTV transition problems continues. Here's a good piece from Congressional Quarterly reminding readers that the transition has been contemplated in Washington for more than two decades and, as one telecom expert says, "... The single biggest problem with the digital TV transition: It’s nobody’s baby."

Muppets go green for Earth Day

Sesame Workshop is releasing an environmental-theme DVD, "Sesame Street: Being Green," on Earth Day, April 7. On that link, don't miss the photos of actor Paul Rudd enjoying himself in a rotund Earth costume.

New Obama bio from Frontline

On January 20, inauguration day, Frontline will broadcast Dreams of Obama, a new personal and political biography from producer Michael Kirk that begins with Obama's days at Harvard Law School and traces his path to the office of President. The full program is already available online on Frontline's website.