WFMU showcases 14 bands at SXSW tonight

WFMU, the free-form community radio station in Jersey City, N.J., will be broadcasting live from South by Southwest this evening, beginning at 8 p.m. ET. The station teamed up with Aquarius Records to showcase 14 bands at Spiro's in downtown Austin. Half of the sets will be broadcast live and others recorded for a later date.

Hear the fade down of NPR's Day to Day and News and Notes

The last broadcasts of NPR's Day to Day and News and Notes transmit today from NPR West, the network's production facility in Culver City, Calif. If you can't listen live on an NPR station, audio streams from both broadcasts will be available via the shows' websites (here and here) after 3 p.m. ET. The blog LA Observed has an appreciation of the "nice job" that Day to Day has done in saying good-bye to its listeners.

Pledge program prompts columns

An online column about a PBS pledge-drive special, The UltraMind Solution, has sparked a debate on Salon.com. The show offers a combination of books, DVDs and home questionnaires to reportedly help participants sharpen their minds and lessen depression and anxiety. The program ran during pledge drives and related items were given as pledge bonuses. Dr. Robert Burton, a former hospital chief of neurology, calls physician and author Mark Hyman's medical theories a "fringe opinion" and is troubled by the show's appearance of an infomercial. Hyman responds that his program is based on sound medical research and is grateful for PBS's "courageous stand" in airing the show.

It's a beautiful day for Fred Rogers news

Mr. Rogers has arrived in Pittsburgh. Well, actually it's a 7,000-pound figure of the late PBS star. The nearly 11 foot tall likeness will be the centerpiece of a new Tribute to Children park on the Ohio River facing the city. The legendary Mister Rogers' Neighborhood was produced for more than 40 years at the WQED studios in Pittsburgh. In other Fred Rogers news, everyone is encouraged to wear a cardigan sweater -- his trademark -- today in honor of what would have been his 80st birthday. Family Communications is hoping to turn his birthday into an annual tradition of community service, to be known as "Won't You Be My Neighbor?" Day. "The sweater is the fun part," says Margy Whitmer of Family Communications, the show's producer and distributor. "It reminds you of Fred."