Western States Public Radio (WSPR) President’s report on

 

NPR Board Meeting July 17- 18, 2003

* There’s a wolf prowling the hallways of NPR.  One indicator – discretionary travel by NPR staff has been frozen.  NPR corporate support is down.NPR is now projecting $21 million for FY 03 down from an original goal of $24 million.  Last year NPR projected $32 million, made a mid-year downward adjustment to $23 million, and ended with a little over $21 million. NPR is also heavily reliant on foundation support and “the outlook for future foundation support has grown increasingly troublesome.”  The bottom line – stations continue to be NPR’s most important revenue source.  

* Distribution / Interconnect Committee – Chairman Jose Fajardo is lame duck having lost the NPR Board election by two votes…Marketplace’s Jim Russell objected to NPR Distribution running full page vanity in Current – “Is this strategically connected or vanity?”…Radio Bilingue and AIROS will not be charged (100% discount) for use of the public radio satellite system service because they have “demonstrated their intrinsic and critical value” to public radio.  This is a permanent arrangement – Radio Bilingue and AIROS will no longer have to annually justify their discount.  The impact – D/I fees will be raised $300 per station annually.

* PACS – The NPR Board unanimously passed a resolution distancing itself from the Association of Public Television Station’s plan to startup a political action committee (PAC.)  “National Public Radio has never established a political action committee and has no intention of doing so.” Kevin Klose – “I have a negative view of what APTS is attempting to do.  We are perfectly well positioned to successfully advocate our issues.”  The WSPR Board passed a similar resolution (posted at www.wspr.org.)

* The AREPS meeting along with Capitol Hill Day has been moved from March to May 2004.  Rationale – last year public radio was the third of three successive broadcasting entities to go to Capitol Hill within three weeks (APTS and NAB preceded NPR.)  NPR wants to “create a distinct political identity for public radio on Capitol Hill.” 

* Programming – This August while Bob Edwards is on vacation, Morning Edition will pair Renee Montagne and Steve Inskeep as hosts … NPR is considering producing Wait, Wait in front of a live audience on a regular basis from the Bank One Auditorium in Chicago … Anti-war listener complaints outnumbered pro-war listener complaints at a ratio of more than 3:1 …Monthly unique visitors to npr.org averaged 1.3 million with npr.org named the 9th fastest growing general online news source by Nielsen … Since NPR’s cultural reorganization, jazz coverage on the newsmagazines has increased by 30%, classical by 90% and overall music by 10%. … Sirius subscribers now at 100,233 as of 6/23/03.  NPR reports getting more feedback about the NPR2 service on Sirius.  Sam and Kay (no last name) write on 5/5/03 “We have been in the Bahamas on our boat for the Winter armed with a Sirius radio thinking that we would be getting all of NPR.  Why are Morning Edition and Weekend Edition not included?”

* KSJN Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota Public Radio’s all-classical service, now airing NPR newscasts, readmitted at an NPR member station.  Their AREP – former KNAU Arizona Public Radio PD Erik Nycklemoe. WRVS Elizabeth, NC, an African-American station, also admitted to NPR.

* NPR’s Mike Starling reports “unbridled enthusiasm for digital transition” with 41 seed market stations and 9 outside seed market stations applying for CPB’s $3.5 million startup fund.

* Kevin Klose – “I hope Day to Day (NPR’s new mid-day newsmagazine) will find a quick, warm and boisterous welcome among stations.”

* Precedent?  – NPR is naming its conference room after Susan Bennett King, a longtime NPR Foundation financial supporter. 

* Board Elections - NPR will explore why fewer AREPS are voting in the Board election.  In the second year it’s been conducted electronically, 223 AREPS voted in 2003 versus 234 last year.

* NPR’s downtown neighborhood is getting high toned and fashionable. Once an urban eyesore characterized by homeless people, NPR’s neighborhood is being transformed.  Construction cranes are evident up and down Massachusetts Avenue.  The new Washington Convention Center has opened next to NPR with one obvious problem – virtually no parking.

* Arter and Hadden, legal counsel to many public radio stations, closed its doors on July 15th after 160 years of doing business!

CPB Funding Priorities

CPB VP Radio VP Vinnie Curren consulted with stations attending the Public Radio Development and Marketing Conference (PRDMC) in Salt Lake City (7/11/03) about Competitive Fund priorities.

* CPB held formal, advisory panel consultations late June.  Panelists included the usual suspects (Tom Thomas, David Giovannoni, Mark Fuerst) plus various individuals from public radio organizations and stations.

* Vinnie expects to solicit broad system comment in late July / early August, issue a CPB Competitive Fund RFP in the fall (“there may be more than one RFP”), with initial grants announced January or February 2004. Vinnie characterized this as “an aggressive timetable.”

* He also advised the system to expect CPB to fund higher impact, higher dollar, and fewer projects.

* CPB appropriation reductions in FY 04 are probable. Various WSPR managers say that CPB should not cut Community Service Grants (CSG) in FY 04 but instead should first reduce other grants, particularly those to program and research projects.  Station FY 04 revenues are already suffering without CSG cuts.  CPB rejects this proposal, arguing that competitive or future fund projects have driven public radio audience and financial growth and will continue to do so.

* CPB Draft Priorities as of 7/11/03 – this is a “work in progress.  Not all of our ideas are equally well baked.” (Curren)  Vinnie wouldn’t circulate copies of the Draft Priorities so these are from quickly scribbled notes from the 7/11/03 session and are probably 90%+ accurate.  They are listed, according to CPB, in order of consensus.

1- Projects to substantially increase stations’ ability to raise net revenue including projects: (a) to research and develop significantly new or improved fundraising techniques; (b) significantly reduce fundraising costs involving collaboration or consolidation; (c) substantially advance CRM practices particularly through online channels and/or database integration.  Note:  Projects must have clearly measurable potential for high impact and specify how measurements will be made.

2- New Platforms – Invest development or test strategies to extend public radio service through new platforms including online, satellite, HD radio.  (a) Projects that significantly advance the ability of stations or networks to make public radio content available through online channels in a sustainable way.   Note: CPB isn’t prioritizing acquisition of terrestrial signals.

3- Local station significance projects that advance stations as significant local institutions.  (a) Projects that best realign local public broadcasting organizations.  How can multiple stations in a market work together? (b) Projects that document and demonstrate in measurable and replicable ways the impact of differing program strategies on local signals.  (c) Extend our understanding of the variables that contribute to community perceptions of station significance.

4- Programming (a) Well-defined opportunities to strengthen core public radio program services with additional preference to projects with realistic potential to increase public radio’s appeal to minority audiences.

Content Depot

NPR is implementing a new satellite distribution service called Content Depot.  It’s scheduled to be activated November 2004.  Last week I attended a workshop where staff explained how it works and its features and benefits.  Most important - managers should be aware that a major distribution change is coming.  All costs are being paid by PRSS – the Public Radio Satellite System.  Distribution will still be satellite-based but with web interface.  Here are some interesting features I was able to grasp along with colorful Content Depot jargon  –

* Stations will subscribe to programs and series, kind of like pay per view cable, allowing producers to accurately track carriage and bill for use.  (“distribution address list”)

* All program related material such as promos, graphics, copy, timings and cues) will be available for each program at a centralized website.  (“metadata”)

* Producers can upload programming to Content Depot via high speed modem, undercutting the satellite uplink business.  (“new ingest routes”)

* PRSS will furnish all stations lacking automation technology with a basic system to allow time shifting. (“automation lite”)

* Programs will be sent as audio files for live use or storage at the station.  (“point to multi-point transmission using internet protocol over satellite technology”)

* Content Depot is a better system for content exchange for communities of interest and regions.  (“regional underwriting files”)

* “Content Depot is an information system with some audio”

* Distributors still reserving satellite time but getting bits rather than bandwidth. (“buckets of bits”)

* Stations still pay flat Interconnect fee as share of operating costs (“unmetered”)

* Content Depot will prepare public radio for new digital services such as HD Radio.

* “Pipeline agnostic” – Not certain what this means but it was a phrase bandied about.

* SOSS will die.

November 2004 is a mere 16 months away. In the interests of clarifying Content Depot, NPR Distribution will be a featured presenter at WSPR meeting in Phoenix.

Development Conference (PRDMC) July 9-12, 2003 in Snowbird, UT outside of Salt Lake City.

* Public Radio Revenue Summit Two took place the day before PRDMC.  It was announced that 50 General Managers participated.  We counted 20.  10 the second day after the crowds poured in. We heard various presentations on membership, underwriting, major giving and foundation revenue.  John Sutton made the argument that public radio is less self-sufficient than three years ago.  We’re raising fewer dollars to cover ever-decreasing subsidies.  Programming costs are growing faster than listening. His observation –“station managers appear more ready to cut direct and indirect programming expenses and their fundraising capacity in response to subsidy loss than to replace subsidies with additional net revenue.”  Grim stuff.  Revenue Summit materials promised, “a process will be introduced to effectively involve your complete management team in addressing revenue issues.  We guarantee that you will look differently at your station revenue picture following these meetings.”  I must have nodded off or been distracted by the beautiful mountains because the guaranteed effect didn’t work on me.  

* Stewart Vanderwilt (KUT Austin, TX Stewart) recognized as Public Radio Manager of the Year. 

* The theme of this meeting seemed to be – start soliciting major gifts!  Put away the tin cup and ask for big bucks! Current magazine reports “Failing to ask for major gifts costs pubcasting millions.” Expect to hear more and more about how and why stations should be asking for $1,000+ gifts. 

* PRDMC 550 person attendance was down 20 persons from the previous year.

* NPR rolled out its underwriting research by Jacobs Media.  This is powerful stuff.  Not CPB funded.  Here are verbatims from the presentation - Length is the issue not language.  The longer the credit the bigger the problem for listeners.  Underwriting isn’t broken- listeners are comfortable with it. There’s a clear difference between commercial advertisements and public radio underwriting – listeners turn the dial when commercials come on.  The public radio audience doesn’t go away when credits run.  87% of respondents agreed there are too many commercials on commercial radio.  77% disagree that there are too many underwriting announcements on public radio.  Underwriting = reasonable and professional. Commercials = hysterical and disgusting. The halo effect - associating with public radio provides significant benefits to sponsors.  Public radio has a unique strategic advantage over other media.  See the power point presentation at www.nprstations.org/research/fundraising/paul_jacobs.cfm.

* Bob Ottenfoff the President of Guidestar, which maintains an extensive database on non-profit organizations’ financial activities advised stations to publicly disclose and be transparent.  Post your annual financial report on your website.  Pending Guidestar approval and in the spirit of disclosure, WSPR will post the www.guidestar.com analysis of NPR, NPR Foundation and CPB on the www.wspr.org website. 

PRC Successor Meeting

Also at the PRDMC, we had a meeting about meetings (!)  The WSPR Board is not alone in sensing a void now that the Public Radio Conference is gone. The WSPR Board passed a resolution calling for CPB to reconvene the PRC (read it at www.wspr.org.)  On June 30th, CPB President Bob Coonrod responded saying he “appreciated Western States’ confidence that CPB is the right organization to pull together a successor meeting to the public radio conference, but I must respectfully disagree.”  He added:

“The question still remains open as to how pressing the need is for a successor meeting or what exactly the purpose and focus of such a meeting might be.  More thought, analysis, and planning are required.  Should an appropriate organization come forward, though, with a compelling case and operating model for a renewed PRC, should it demonstrate sytem interest and a sustainable business plan, and should the organization be willing to take on the work, CPB would be willing to consider proposals to help restart a meeting for managers.”

In fact, the WSPR Board asked CPB to convene a cross-pollinating, interdisciplinary meeting with managers, fundraisers, funders, producers, programmers, engineers, network personnel, regionals, engineers, community radio, independents, board members, researchers, policy makers, Native stations, etc.  Public radio is navigating through a dynamic, rapidly changing media environment.  The Board believes that we must discuss as a system where we are going. We expect actionable, strategic outcomes from the meeting not a marketing perkfest.  We need less stress on our travel budgets. 

The system lacks consensus about how we should proceed.  Ideas range from bookending a more inclusive meeting to AREPS; holding more super regionals; having topical issue summits, for instance on governance or a PD/DD summit (is fundraising programming or programming fundraising?); add on a public radio summit to existing conferences; have two existing conferences meet together (e.g. PRPD and PRDMC); disseminate similar but reversioned information through existing conferences; add-on to NAB in Las Vegas.  Regardless, all parties agree that the old PRC shmoozefest had a duty to die, travel costs must be reduced, and the new meeting must have defined outcomes, the meeting must be financially solvent.  Questions include – What is the purpose? Who should attend? Should it be annual or ad hoc?  How will it be funded?  There will be another meeting to advance the discussion at the PRPD in Phoenix in September.

Respectfully submitted,

John Stark

WSPR President  

 

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