A Year In Review

Today’s State of the News will feature WFPL’s Rick Howlett, Stephanie Crosby and me, as well as Phillip Bailey and Jonathan Meador of LEO.  Shea Van Hoy of the Jeffersonville Tribune will be on in the first segment to discuss Indiana news. We’ll all talk about the top stories of 2009. Listen and call in to share your picks.

Carl Kassell’s On-Air Party

NPR newscaster Carl Kassell is leaving the newscast at the end of the year. He’ll still be on Wait, Wait…Don’t Tell Me, though, so you can still try to get his voice on your voicemail.

Today’s All Things Considered will feature a special goodbye to Carl in the five o’clock hour.

Ken Rudin has the details.

Don’t miss a very special tribute for our very own Carl Kassell, NPR’s beloved newscaster who is hanging up his newscast microphone at the end of the year, in the second hour of today’sTalk of the Nation.

His retirement party will include former Morning Edition host Bob Edwards, Wait, Wait Don’t Tell Me’s Peter Sagal, CBS Evening News anchor Katie Couric and comedian Paula Poundstone.

I’ve been listening to Carl my entire life, and I’ll never forget the first time I heard him introduce one of my stories in the newscast. January 4th, 2008.

Are Local Music Festivals Missing The Point?

Local blogger Loueyville (disclosure: I’m friends with this person) isn’t happy with the lineups for Halfway to Forecastle or the brand-new HullabaLOU festival.

I’ve heard a few complaints about HullabaLOU, most of them in line with Loueyville’s:

And when I saw the line-up? Well, I kind of thought of Great Aunt Rose. Actually, truth be told, I thought of a different aunt. The Aunt Rose heir-apparent Aunt who loves all those classic rock bands from her youth (38 Special, the Steve Miller Band, Kansas, the Doobie Brothers) but can still wax poetic about Dave Matthew’s “nice bum” when fully tucked into her wine coolers.

Sure, there’s a little something for almost everyone– a little Gladys and Al for the soulsters, a little Govt Mule and DMB for the jam banders, a little Dwight and Loretta for Mama, a little Richard Marx for… WHO?? WHO the HECK is looking forward to Richard Marx??

But you’ve gotta wonder who these folks consulted with when planning this festival. My big hope is that, like Jazz Fest, they’ll keep adding acts right up til showtime.

C’mon organizers: let’s look at festivals like Bonnaroo and Coachella for line-up additions (step away from the casino tour circuit regulars!!). Maybe a little Prince? A little Leonard Cohen, perhaps? MMJ? U2? How ’bout that lovely Jewish pharmacist with the nice bum… that Springstein guy? I’m just saying. Aunt Rose would have been thrilled.

The lineup for HullabaLOU is reportedly only about halfway decided, so more acts may be announced soon.

Lou is similarly frustrated by the electronic-heavy Halfway to Forecastle lineup. I haven’t heard any complaints about that group of bands, and I assume it’s because there’s a demand for that genre at the festival. Forecastle isn’t a niche event, but there is a certain crowd that seems to be more into the festival than the other ticket buyers. Perhaps that’s who turns up to Halfway.

When I was a music critic, I quickly learned that there’s no accounting for anyone’s tastes (not even the critic’s). And while I imagine that each festival will have a dedicated group of attendees who have a great time, bypassing (by choice or not) one or two acts might make turnout a little smaller than expected for such large events.

Now, with that out of the way, it hurts to suggest changing the lineup for broad appeal. Somewhere in 2007, a much snobbier version of myself is calling me a sellout.

WFPK Takes Your iPhone, Bounces It, Then Throws It Through A Hoop

Our sister station WFPK has just posted the first episode of Nothing But Net. It’s a podcast about college basketball hosted by the twin quasars of public radio basketball Matt Anthony and Mark Bacon. Check it out here if you like basketball. I’m not originally from Louisville…do people like basketball here?

Friday Update

I’m out of town today. Posts will resume Monday.

In the meantime, take comfort in the fact that our president is keeping an eye out for evil robots.

I wonder what he thinks of that promo I made.

Questions For Bill Maher?

Bill Maher is coming to Louisville next month for a comedy show. WFPL is sponsoring the event, and I’ll be interviewing Maher this afternoon. I’ve got a few questions ready, but do you have anything you’d like me to ask? I might be overlooking something. Maybe this recent piece of his will get you thinking. Questions are due by 5:00 Tuesday.

Most of my questions center on the role of a politically-minded comedian in the media.

Tooting Our Own Horn

Here’s Louisville Public Media’s press release about last week’s drive. Thanks to everyone who pledged.

Louisville Public Media’s just-concluded fall membership campaign raised over $400,000, it was announced today.  A large portion of this total was donated by 1,133 new members.  The on-air totals exceeded last spring’s by 2%, and the goal set for this fall campaign by 4%.  The most amazing statistic surfaced when comparing this fall’s on-air totals to last fall’s.  Overall, this fall’s fundraising campaign raised 24% more than the 2008 Fall on-air campaign.

“We are deeply grateful for this show of support,” says LPM President Donovan Reynolds.  “We heard from many listeners that in difficult times, public radio is more important than ever.”

LPM Membership Manager Jennifer Goodman had this to say in regards to the encouraging numbers, “Our on-air fundraising this fall was a huge success due in large part to the outstanding quality of programs broadcast on our three public radio stations, but also the focus and commitment of our on-air hosts throughout the week-long event.”
Although the drive has concluded, it is still possible to become a member of public radio or to renew membership.   To become a member, please visit www.wfpl.org, www.wuol.org or www.wfpk.org or call (502) 814-6565.

Some Drive Week News

Thanks for all your pledges, but if you haven’t renewed your membership or become a member, please do. 502-814-6565.

Here’s our news from the last few hours and day.

• Stivers Elected Majority Floor Leader
• High Court Hears Arguments In Domain Name Case
• Study on “Why People Give” Surprises Researchers
• Spurlock Coal Plant Air Permit OK’d
• Study: Louisville Airports Created Nearly 56,000 Jobs
• Kelly Steps Down From Senate Leadership Post
• Belle To Remain Docked For Remainder Of Season
• In Depth: GOP Lawmakers Offer Gambling Amendments

That Time Again

If you’ve turned on WFPL lately, you probably know that it’s our fall membership drive. But don’t worry. I won’t blog about the pledge drive, except for this post and occasional updates on our goals.

We ask for your support twice a year, and for those two weeks, you’ll hear us on the air telling you about the value of public radio. We strive to be the best source of journalism and reportage we can, and our success depends on your support. We’ve been ramping up our news coverage and this blog is part of it. You’ll notice that there are no ads on the site. And sure, it’s a WordPress page, but I’m not at WFPL just to write The Edit. No one was hired specifically to run this site. In between these posts I’m out there with Rick (who edits all of our stories), Stephanie, Kristin and Elizabeth gathering news. And we didn’t set this up to give me more work. We want to dig deeper into stories. We want to share more news than we can put on the air. But most importantly, we want to have a conversation with you that doesn’t involve asking for money.

Comments are starting to pick up here and I can’t wait until there’s a community of active participants on The Edit. I know you’re reading, but let’s start talking. When you make a pledge, this becomes your site, too. WFPL is your news station, too. But news is expensive. We run efficiently (we don’t have news vehicles), but we still have to maintain our equipment and staff. We don’t get any money from the Kentucky state government and our grant from Louisville Metro is always being slashed (or cut entirely, like it was this year).

In an era of consolidated media and at a time when traditional news outlets are shrinking and sensationalizing, we’re growing and staying calm. We treat you like adults and present the news accurately. We know you like the civility, you’re listening more than ever. We’re always thrilled to hear about new listeners and we appreciate all of the support we get from our community. That’s why we’re always trying to get better, to serve our community.

So please give us a call or pledge online. We always ask you to pledge whatever fits your budget, and we mean it when we say any amount is appreciated. When I was a kid I used to make sure my parents pledged to our local station. One of the first charges I ever made on my first debit card was a $14 pledge to public radio. In college I made regular $14 to my local public radio station and was surprised at how warmly I was thanked for my gift.

Now back to the news.

More Changes At Mojo

Last week’s post about Rick Redding’s move has attracted a few hits and a few replies. Mojo Master Keith commented that the site will go through some changes to better fit all of the new content onto the front page. I can’t wait to see it. I just hope it’s nothing like this page from my old hometown. Although, that site’s current layout is better than it used to be, with that photoshopped banner of the St. Louis skyline. Notice how the same building shows up like 5 times? Also, the sky looks like the end of Ghostbusters 2.