There were more questions than answers in today's (Jan. 11) NETA session on the Editorial Integrity for Public Media project. Ted Krichels, director of Penn State Public Broadcasting, and Tom Thomas, co-c.e.o. of the Station Resource Group, updated attendees in Nashville on the public TV and radio work to develop a framework of principles, policies and practices for a pubcasting system facing increasingly complex ethical challenges.
What are appropriate boundaries between funders and subject matter? Is it acceptable for a funder to be an editorial partner? Do funding standards differ between news and non-news programming? How can a station ensure that a collaborative, multiplatform project is handled ethically when it is just one partner in the work?
One way to preserve the trust that viewers and listeners place in public media is to be transparent when working through such quandaries. Stations might consider publishing the amount and contractual obligations of a grant, or explaining specific criteria for the funding. "In today's media environment, transparency could become public media's calling card," Krichels noted.
A 20-member steering committee and smaller working groups have been facing down such issues and are now preparing final reports for feedback. It's the first project to establish comprehensive guidelines since the 1984 Wingspread Conference (PDF).
The work is headed up by the pubTV Affinity Group Coalition and the pubradio Station Resource Group. NETA is providing organizational support and funding is coming from CPB.
Jan 11, 2011
More reactions to the shake up at NPR News
The exit of Ellen Weiss as NPR's top news exec -- a departure linked to the hasty and controversial firing of long-time news analyst Juan Williams -- stirred up lots of opinion last week. Here's a sampling:
NPR Ombudsman Alicia Shepard: "Any damage that Williams may have caused NPR with his occasional intemperate remarks on Fox — which was definitely a problem for NPR —was infinitesimal to the damage NPR management did to the company with its ungracious firing."
David Carr of the New York Times: The entire incident leaves NPR President Vivian Schiller "leading a divided organization into a critical budget battle."
James Rainey of the Los Angeles Times: "NPR would be wise to do more than just give lip service to some of the reforms it proposed Thursday."
Kelly McBride, ethics expert at the Poynter Institute: NPR isn't the only organization struggling with outdated standards and a star system rife with conflicts.
John Sutton, public radio marketing consultant: It was Ellen Weiss who led "one of the most significant steps in public radio's growth as a national news outlet," the 1995 expansion of All Things Considered.
NPR Ombudsman Alicia Shepard: "Any damage that Williams may have caused NPR with his occasional intemperate remarks on Fox — which was definitely a problem for NPR —was infinitesimal to the damage NPR management did to the company with its ungracious firing."
David Carr of the New York Times: The entire incident leaves NPR President Vivian Schiller "leading a divided organization into a critical budget battle."
James Rainey of the Los Angeles Times: "NPR would be wise to do more than just give lip service to some of the reforms it proposed Thursday."
Kelly McBride, ethics expert at the Poynter Institute: NPR isn't the only organization struggling with outdated standards and a star system rife with conflicts.
John Sutton, public radio marketing consultant: It was Ellen Weiss who led "one of the most significant steps in public radio's growth as a national news outlet," the 1995 expansion of All Things Considered.
Head of Bay Area Video Coaltion departing for upcoming project
Ken Ikeda, executive director of the Bay Area Video Coalition, is departing after four years. "I was presented with an opportunity to help build a new organization and considering its objectives, it was something I couldn't walk away from," he said in an online exit interview. "I wish I could share more but I can't right now. It'll be public shortly, and in the end what I'll be doing is not far from the work we do at BAVC." The coalition is a pubmedia pioneer; it's going strong after 35 years.
Who are the lapsed pubTV members? TRAC knows.
TRAC Media Service's primer on "Everything You Should Know About Your Members" was first up today (Jan. 11) in its pre-NETA development workshop in Nashville. Kristen Keubler, director of station research for TRAC, fleshed out its continually updated 2001-03 survey of lapsed pubTV members and talked about the good news (many are longtime, enthusiastic viewers and have "formed a quasi-human relationship" with their station) and bad news (there are "practically no new adult viewers. Everybody has sooner or later sampled the station's programming and decided to view or not to view").
Fear not: There are strategies that work to better connect with local viewers, and bring them along as members. Encourage e-mail and website interaction. Develop on-air viewer and member education campaigns to help them better understand when, how and why to pledge. A biggie: One out of five members has called the station for some reason. Make sure viewer services staffers know how to properly interact. "Don't tell them you took a program off the air 'because no one watching it,'" Kuebler said. "Say, 'Yes, we had number members watching. I loved it too, but we just didn't get enough response.'" That can lead to more conversation.
And don't believe that viewers who lost their jobs will never return. Kuebler recalled interviewing a member in Georgia who lost hers – but went on to marry a wealthy man. "Her annual pledge went from $50 a year to either $2,500 or $5,000, she couldn't remember which," Kuebler said.
Fear not: There are strategies that work to better connect with local viewers, and bring them along as members. Encourage e-mail and website interaction. Develop on-air viewer and member education campaigns to help them better understand when, how and why to pledge. A biggie: One out of five members has called the station for some reason. Make sure viewer services staffers know how to properly interact. "Don't tell them you took a program off the air 'because no one watching it,'" Kuebler said. "Say, 'Yes, we had number members watching. I loved it too, but we just didn't get enough response.'" That can lead to more conversation.
And don't believe that viewers who lost their jobs will never return. Kuebler recalled interviewing a member in Georgia who lost hers – but went on to marry a wealthy man. "Her annual pledge went from $50 a year to either $2,500 or $5,000, she couldn't remember which," Kuebler said.
Stay tuned for NETA conference coverage
" 'Sexiest man' leaves U.S. FCC to join public television series"
Well, that is certainly not a headline you see every day.
Jan 10, 2011
Who needs mini-pies when you have PBS's programs?
No, PBS didn't give each writer at the Television Critics Association Winter Press Tour a mini-pie like HBO did. But at least one critic was more impressed with the network's actual programming. Todd VanDerWerff writes in today's (Jan. 10) AV Club that "the kind of arts, news, and science programming PBS offers just doesn’t pop up anywhere else. What other network would air Frontline? Or Great Performances? Or Nova?" PBS also featured "fascinating people" on its panels. "Some biologists let us know why it was totally cool for them to get within a few feet of grizzly bears," he writes, "and tried to help a TCA member figure out how to deal with the bear that makes trouble in her backyard."
In other TCA news, PBS is considering ways to make its groundbreaking doc from 1973, "An American Family," available now that HBO is presenting a dramatic take on the film, "Cinema Verite." "American Family" probably won't run on the network. WNET's v.p. for content Stephen Segaller said clearing 12 hours of air for what is essentially a rerun may not make sense. Another possibility is to do a special with highlights of the series and stream full episodes online. And sale of a DVD of the doc, which is considered by many as the first reality show, could benefit the perennially cash-strapped PBS.
In other TCA news, PBS is considering ways to make its groundbreaking doc from 1973, "An American Family," available now that HBO is presenting a dramatic take on the film, "Cinema Verite." "American Family" probably won't run on the network. WNET's v.p. for content Stephen Segaller said clearing 12 hours of air for what is essentially a rerun may not make sense. Another possibility is to do a special with highlights of the series and stream full episodes online. And sale of a DVD of the doc, which is considered by many as the first reality show, could benefit the perennially cash-strapped PBS.
NPR news head apologizes for network report that Arizona congresswoman had died
In an editor's note on NPR.org, Dick Meyer, executive editor of NPR News, said the network committed a "serious and grave error" when it reported that U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords had been shot to death in Tucson, Ariz.
In its 2:01 p.m. Eastern broadcast on Saturday (Jan. 8), NPR informed listeners that Giffords was dead. That erroneous news also was posted on NPR.org, and sent as an e-mail news alert to subscribers.
But Giffords had survived the shooting, which happened at a mall during a public appearance, and remained hospitalized Sunday night in critical condition after neurosurgery.
"The information we reported came from two different governmental sources, including a source in the Pima County Sheriff's Department," Meyer said. "Nonetheless, in a situation so chaotic and changing so swiftly, we should have been more cautious."
He said that corrections were issued within minutes, along with "properly updated reports."
In its 2:01 p.m. Eastern broadcast on Saturday (Jan. 8), NPR informed listeners that Giffords was dead. That erroneous news also was posted on NPR.org, and sent as an e-mail news alert to subscribers.
But Giffords had survived the shooting, which happened at a mall during a public appearance, and remained hospitalized Sunday night in critical condition after neurosurgery.
"The information we reported came from two different governmental sources, including a source in the Pima County Sheriff's Department," Meyer said. "Nonetheless, in a situation so chaotic and changing so swiftly, we should have been more cautious."
He said that corrections were issued within minutes, along with "properly updated reports."
Jan 9, 2011
"PBS NewsHour" touts its calm, reasoned approach to the news
Emphasizing its non-ideological news coverage, PBS Newshour tried out a new catch phrase today (Jan. 9) at the Television Critics Association press tour in Pasadena: "Brave enough not to take sides, strong enough not to shout."
"We haven't actually used it before today and we thought it might be a good opportunity to kind of roll that out," said Simon Marks, president of MacNeil/Lehrer Productions (left, PBS photo). Marks said that slogan survived scrutiny while others didn't. "At one point, we were looking at 'The original no-spin zone,' but we decided not to go there."
The calmer PBS approach is gaining favor with more people, particularly online. In a news release, Newshour said the number of daily online visitors to its website had more than tripled in the last year, from 60,000 to more than 200,000. The show melded its on-air and online staffs and coverage a year ago this month (Current, Jan. 11, 2010). While the web traffic increased, the number of broadcast viewers during that time has remained unchanged.
"We haven't actually used it before today and we thought it might be a good opportunity to kind of roll that out," said Simon Marks, president of MacNeil/Lehrer Productions (left, PBS photo). Marks said that slogan survived scrutiny while others didn't. "At one point, we were looking at 'The original no-spin zone,' but we decided not to go there." The new phrase is intended to emphasize the difference between PBS news values and those of other news operations. "The environment in which we're operating is filled with organizations that are increasingly taking positions and trying to, in large measure, preach to choirs they've already identified," Marks said.
The calmer PBS approach is gaining favor with more people, particularly online. In a news release, Newshour said the number of daily online visitors to its website had more than tripled in the last year, from 60,000 to more than 200,000. The show melded its on-air and online staffs and coverage a year ago this month (Current, Jan. 11, 2010). While the web traffic increased, the number of broadcast viewers during that time has remained unchanged.
"Masterpiece" is reaching out to enthusiastic fans in two new and unique ways
Now, fans of Masterpiece can become part of the series that's celebrating its 40th anniversary this year. They can join a special trust to help directly fund the program, or literally retrace the footsteps of Agatha Christie's Hercule Poirot, Miss Marple and other characters.
Executive Producer Rebecca Eaton (right, PBS photo) announced yesterday (Jan. 8) at the TV Critics Association Winter Press Tour in Pasadena, Calif., that a "Masterpiece Trust" has been established. That financial support — which would go directly to the show — could go toward replacing some of the funding lost when longtime sponsor ExxonMobil pulled out as of 2005. So far, four couples will be listed as part of the trust in the credits on tonight's presentation of "Downton Abbey" (which, by the way, has been receiving rave reviews: The Los Angeles Times proclaimed the Edwardian drama "possibly the best show of the year").
The trust "is a unique way we have come up with to allow those devoted, loyal Masterpiece fans who want to give money directly to Masterpiece to continue its legacy," Eaton said, adding that further details will be coming later this week. "My feeling is this is the perfect way to acknowledge and tap into people who love Masterpiece and consider it the drama of their lives."
And Masterpiece is betting that those viewers also would like to immerse themselves in the shows by visiting the places where they are shot.
"With so many of our locations, people just yearn to be there and to go there," Eaton said. "So in honor of our 40th anniversary, we are creating the Masterpiece itinerary."
Working with Visit Britain, the official UK tourist agency, the series came up with a tour with 21 stops over a route of 985 miles. In addition, an online contest will send two people on a four-day trip to England in September. Highlights include VIP tours of Highclere Castle ("Jeeves & Wooster") and Blenheim Palace ("The Lost Prince").
— By Barry Garron, longtime TV critic and past-president of the Television Critics Association, who is covering the Winter Press Tour for Current. Watch upcoming issues for more.
The trust "is a unique way we have come up with to allow those devoted, loyal Masterpiece fans who want to give money directly to Masterpiece to continue its legacy," Eaton said, adding that further details will be coming later this week. "My feeling is this is the perfect way to acknowledge and tap into people who love Masterpiece and consider it the drama of their lives."
And Masterpiece is betting that those viewers also would like to immerse themselves in the shows by visiting the places where they are shot.
"With so many of our locations, people just yearn to be there and to go there," Eaton said. "So in honor of our 40th anniversary, we are creating the Masterpiece itinerary."
Working with Visit Britain, the official UK tourist agency, the series came up with a tour with 21 stops over a route of 985 miles. In addition, an online contest will send two people on a four-day trip to England in September. Highlights include VIP tours of Highclere Castle ("Jeeves & Wooster") and Blenheim Palace ("The Lost Prince").
— By Barry Garron, longtime TV critic and past-president of the Television Critics Association, who is covering the Winter Press Tour for Current. Watch upcoming issues for more.
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