Hallelujah! It's a musical treat from NewsHour

Your Current blogger has been looking for the perfect holiday item for you, and leave it to PBS NewsHour to provide it: "Hallelujah! A Global Mash-up of Handel's 'Messiah'." It stars a worldwide array of musical participants including the NewsHour staff as well as contributions from PBS member stations KTWU in Topeka, Kan.; WOSU in Columbus, Ohio; and Smoky Hills Public Television in Bunker Hill, Kan.

University commercial station to go public in Georgia

Pending FCC approval, the University of Georgia will transform its commercial TV station WNEG to a public station to be named WUGA, the university announced Thursday (Dec. 23). It is entering into a programming management partnership with Georgia Public Broadcasting. The university acquired the station in October 2008 to serve northeast Georgia and offer laboratory experience to students. It will still do so. Day-to-day operations will be under a director of television who will report jointly to the university's vice president for public affairs and the director of GPB Media, which will provide core programming.

KCET to announce reorganization of top management

As KCET in Los Angeles departs the PBS system on Jan. 1, it'll have a reorganized management team in place. The Los Angeles Times is reporting the changes; the station is expected to formally announce the changes Dec. 27. According to the newspaper:

— Deborah Hinton, e.v.p. of operations and c.f.o., will be replaced by Camille Gonzalez, the present controller.

— Mary Mazur, currently head of programming, becomes c.o.o., a new position. Moving up to programming chief is Bret Marcus.

— Susan Reardon, general counsel, will be chief development officer. Her previous position will be filled by June Baldwin, now director of legal and business affairs.

— Gordon Bell, overseeing engineering and operations, will be a senior v.p.

Seasonal salutations from the staff of Current

To all our faithful RSS readers, happiest of holidays!

WDAV-FM loses its g.m. to love

The general manager at WDAV-FM/89.9 in Davidson, N.C., Benjamin Roe, will depart to marry one of the station's "high-profile hosts," reports the Charlotte Observer today (Dec. 24). Roe said that he and Jennifer Foster, the station's midday announcer, plan to marry sometime in 2011. He departs the post Jan. 14, and will work on contract into the summer. He arrived at WDAV in 2008 with more than 25 years of experience, including serving as NPR's director of music and music initiatives. Roe also was a Grammy and Peabody Award-winning producer. Foster will continue her work as host and producer.