MUMBAI: American pubcaster PBS has announced that Paula Kerger is its president and CEO.
Kerger will direct the operations of America’s largest public broadcasting service, comprising 348 member stations that reach more than 99 per cent of US television households. She will succeed Pat Mitchell, who announced her
plan to step down as PBS president and CEO last year.
Kerger says, “I am honoured and thrilled to become the next president and CEO of PBS. I firmly believe that public television’s greatest days lie ahead, and I am truly excited to be working with this wonderful organization
and all the public television stations across America to realize the full promise of this medium. Now more than ever, Americans need a strong public television system. I am committed to doing all I can to ensure that they have it.”
PBS board of directors chairman Mary Bitterman says, “Paula is an irrepressible champion of public television — proud of its mission and confident of its future. Her demonstrated leadership, outstanding operational capabilities, and proven development skills will allow her to move into this very challenging role well prepared and well equipped to be the leader that PBS needs now and for the years ahead.”
Tag: Pat Mitchell
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Paula Kerger is PBS president, CEO
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Americans reinforce trust in pubcaster PBS
MUMBAI: US pubcaster PBS has announced that its position as an institution that Americans trust is going from strength to strength.
For the second consecutive year, a Roper Public Affairs and Media poll shows that Americans consider PBS to be the countries most trusted institution among nationally known organisations.
According to the study’s 1,001 randomly selected participants, Americans also believe that PBS provides the second best use of tax dollars, following military defense. The respondents ranked PBS programming as more important, compared with commercial and cable television. They also consider PBS news and public affairs series the most trustworthy.
PBS president and CEO Pat Mitchell said, “Results from this comprehensive survey help to demonstrate the importance of PBS programming among Americans as well as its institutional value to supporters of the public television service. The results of this survey affirm the American public’s trust and value in PBS in an age of exponentially growing media choices.
“It is gratifying to see the success of the rigorous standards to which we hold our programming. Clearly, we have achieved our goal of striving to positively impact the lives of millions through the power of media.”
Additional survey highlights:
– PBS is the second most valuable service taxpayers receive, outranked only by military defense by two percentage points. 23 per cent of the respondents stated that PBS was an excellent use of their tax dollars.
– Americans are more satisfied with programming on PBS compared to cable and commercial broadcasters. 38 per cent of respondents are “very satisfied” with current PBS programmes, compared with 21 per cent for cable and 16 per cent for commercial broadcasters.
– 41 per cent of Americans rank PBS as the most trusted source for news and public affairs programs, compared with other network broadcasters.
– 51 per cent believe that the amount of federal funding PBS receives is “too little.” 82 per cent believe that public and private funding given to PBS from government, corporations and individuals is “money well spent.”
– Americans believe PBS programs address various issues “very well”, including: arts and culture, American history, literacy, ethnic and cultural diversity and political and social issues.
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PBS gets grant for public affairs channel
MUMBAI: America’s public broadcaster PBS’ president and CEO Pat Mitchell has announced that PBS has received a $200,000 planning grant from the John and James L Knight Foundation.
The funds will support the planning process for a new digital service focussed on public affairs programming.
The project, which has the working title PBS Public Square, will be shaped by an advisory panel of station representatives, producers and thought leaders from the public sector. They will work with PBS senior programming VP Jacoba Atlas. PBS hopes to get the service off the ground in early 2005.Mitchell was quoted in a company release saying, “This planning grant from Knight Foundation will make it possible for PBS and member stations, with our unique national / local distribution to all Americans, to design an electronic public square. This will be a digital programming service devoted entirely to issues of local, national and global impact. The opportunity to use digital technology to create new ways to inform and engage the public responds directly to our mission and to our commitment as public service media to strengthen and sustain the values of our democracy.”
During the planning phase, PBS will work with a project manager and an advisory panel, which will shortly be announced. Their mandate will be to develop a case study on the need this service will fill and identify the potential audiences that will be served. They will create a programme model for the service as well as a financial model for the service that would include possible revenue sources.
Atlas added, “We envision this service as a way to further enhance the value of award-winning public affairs programming currently on PBS. These include The Newshour With Jim Lehrer, Washington Week, Frontline. This service will also include new programmes and formats designed to deliver timely and compelling television and online content that will engage citizens around the issues of our time.”
PBS already operates two offshoots seen on satellite systems or digital cable. PBS Kids offers children’s programming. PBS You provides adult education programmes.
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PBS, CBS triumph at news,documentary Emmys
NEW YORK: PBS and CBS were the big winners at the News and Documentary Emmy Awards held earlier this week.
PBS took home 14 Emmys, including four for its documentary series P.O.V.. CBS News was awarded eight News and Documentary Emmy Awards, more than any other commercial broadcast network, by the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences which conducts the Emmys. CBS Evening News With Dan Rather won three awards, while 60 Minutes II, The Early Show, CBS News Sunday Morning, CBS Evening News Weekend Edition and CBS News Productions each received one.
Rather was recognised for outstanding investigative journalism in a regularly scheduled newscast. In Energy Crisis, CBS Eevening News correspondent Vince Gonzales took an investigative look into the California energy crisis and its collapse. Best Story in a Regularly Scheduled Broadcast went to the show McVeigh Papers. One week before the execution of Timothy McVeigh, correspondent Jim Stewart was the first to report that the FBI failed to turn over all relevant materials to the defense team.
The 23rd annual News and Documentary Emmy Awards were presented by the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences in New York City. A stellar line-up of prominent newsmakers and industry executives including Barbara Walters, Bernard Shaw and PBS President Pat Mitchell presented the awards. CNN’s Garrick Utley acted as Master of Ceremonies during the event. The awards recognised outstanding achievement by individuals and programs broadcast throughout the 2001 calendar year. Barbara Walters presented the first-ever lifetime achievement award to ABC Chairman Roone Arledge.
The numerical breakdown, by broadcast and cable entities is:
PBS 14
CBS 7
ABC 6
CNN 4
HBO 3
NBC 3
MSNBC 2
TLC 1