Louisville Public Media Annual Report (2010)

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Kentucky Public Radio, Inc. d/b/a Louisville Public Media

2010 Annual Report

Preserving Local Journalism and Cultural Programming

1.) About Louisville Public Media

Public Service = Community Strength

2.) Digital Newsroom Project

3.) Ohio River Radio Consortium 4.) Arts & Humanities

5.) Partnering with the Community

6.) Financial Report

7.) Awards and Recognition

8.) Leadership

9.) Gratitude

OUR VISION

As a trusted non-profit, community-owned institution, Louisville Public Media

(LPM) exists for the benefit of our community. Its stewardship is guided not by

commercial or corporate interests, but by a vested interest in the well-being of our

citizens. Combining our mission with a history of award-winning journalism, public

affairs and cultural programming, LPM stands uniquely qualified to secure, develop

and deliver a trusted local and independent news service and safeguard a place on-air

and in free live performances for essential cultural programming. Our vision is to

meet the news, public affairs and cultural needs of our community in the 21st century

— on-air and online.

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About Louisville Public Media Locally owned and operated 501(c)(3)

Louisville Public Media (LPM) is a not-for-profit corporation serving our

community with three distinct public radio stations: 89.3 WFPL, Classical 90.5 and 91.9 WFPK. Each format fills a specific need in our community. Each station sustains a growing audience that shares a desire for rigorous, unbiased, independent journalism, long-form coverage of local news and culture, insight into national and international issues, and expansive musical exploration.

We reach more than 150,000 listeners a week, broadcast 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and provide a full spectrum of digital offerings to enrich the listening experience and to serve those beyond the reach of our transmitters. Our community receives 504 hours per week of trusted local, national and international news, insightful features, and inspiring arts and cultural programming. It’s a rare level of service that is unique to Louisville.

Louisville’s NPR News Station is the trusted source for independent, fact-based news. We offer 24/7 local, national and international news, culture, and public affairs. As other media outlets narrow their scope and reduce local coverage, we are working to expand the breadth of local news and give voice to multiple perspectives. We know that local news informs, engages, and draws a community together. Take part in the conversation online and on-air. WFPL.org

Louisville’s Fine Arts Station gives life to our city’s cultural community. With 24/7 classical music and fine arts features, interviews and event listings, we offer a unique local connection. We champion area artists and cultural institutions and offer an escape from our raucous world with music that feeds the soul and expertise that illuminates the art. Join us online and in the studio for free weekly performances by local and visiting artists on Lunchtime Classics®. WUOL.org

91.9 Radio Louisville is our region’s award-winning hub for independent, adult alternative music and American gems like jazz and bluegrass. WFPK introduces you to significant new music, connects you to Louisville’s best and plays your long-time favorites for an eclectic mix that can’t be heard anywhere else. We nurture local, regional, and national artists, and explore their music with you 24/7. WFPK is an interactive community on air, online, and at our live performances. Visit our studio each week for our free Live Lunch®. WFPK.org

louisvillepublicmedia.org

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Public Service = Community Strength

When Louisville’s civic leadership founded 89.3 WFPL more than 60 years ago,

they launched a tradition of innovation, entrepreneurship and uncommon public service.

Inspired to meet the evolving needs of our community, Mayor Charles Farnsley and

Clarence “Skip” Graham, the director of the Louisville Free Public Library, created

Louisville’s first public radio station. Both leaders fully understood the value of

information, education and culture in the quality of life and development of

Louisville and its citizenry. They saw the need for innovative ways to provide access

to learning and recognized that a public radio service could “become a vital community

agency for social cultivation and strength.” Louisville’s vision for 89.3 WFPL predated

NPR’s first broadcast by 20 years, and the Public Broadcasting Act by 17 years.

In 1993 Louisville made public radio history when the three public radio stations

were brought under one umbrella organization. The partnership maximized efficiencies

in station management and content and removed duplication in programming with

station-specific formats. What began in 1950 as a single 10-watt radio station has

evolved in tandem with the community to become a multi-platform public service with

global reach. In 2008, the name of the organization was changed to Louisville Public

Media to better reflect the organization’s commitment to the new, interactive media

platforms that our community now demands.

LPM serves as a community convener for public affairs, civil discourse, and

culture. It presents free public concerts of local and up-and-coming national musicians,

and leverages community resources through partnerships and media sponsorships (with

more than $300,000 provided annually in free promotional support). The breadth of

LPM’s impact in our community is cultural, economic, intellectual, and

inspirational. Its footprint is as large as its reach – all of Metro Louisville.

“…information is an essential community need. It is as real a

need as education, jobs, housing and a vibrant cultural life.” -

-- John S. and James L. Knight Foundation


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MISSION STATEMENT

Our mission is to provide quality news, information and music that enriches, engages, educates and entertains our community through radio and emerging media.

VISION STATEMENT

Our vision is to be the most recognized and chosen media source

throughout our diverse and evolving community.

In August of 2009, the LPM Board of Directors and members of the staff devised a strategic plan to guide the organization over the next several years.

STRATEGIC GOALS

l. To become the leading source for news and information on radio and online in our community within five years.

2. To increase the diversity of our staff and programming to better reflect our community.

3. To use emerging media to reach and serve a larger and more diverse audience.


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RADIO COVERAGE AREA

AUDIENCE GROWTH AND SATISFACTION

� The audience for our three stations has more than doubled in the last fifteen years, according to Arbitron ratings.

� The audience for WFPL 89.3 (news and talk) increased 51.5% from 2005-2009. � Our stations have the second largest radio audience in the market among

persons aged 35-64. � Our listeners are twice as satisfied as the average commercial radio listener in

our area (Media Audit). � While commercial radio listening nationwide has declined, public radio’s

audience has grown 58% since 2000 (Pew’s 2011 State of the Media Report). � The number of listeners who contribute to the station has more than doubled in

the last ten years and is projected to reach 10,000 by the end of the fiscal year.


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The Digital Newsroom Project Preserving Local Journalism and Cultural Programming

A sense of urgency now fuels national (and international) debate concerning the

rapid decline of quality journalism. Central to the discussion by foundations, educational

institutions and governments is the future of local news and what becomes of

communities that lose not only the watchdog journalism protecting their interests,

but a breadth of scope, a depth of educated perspectives, sound local information

that connects them, and a reasoned approach that counters the shouting

extremes on commercial airwaves.

The crisis in American journalism is being felt in our own community. Our local

newspaper continues to lay off reporters and offer less local reporting as the economic

model which sustained it over many decades evaporates. Television newsrooms are

being reduced dramatically and radio news has disappeared from many stations. Strong

local content at radio and television stations is being replaced by syndicated

programming produced by corporations far removed. Democracy is not possible without

an informed citizenry and journalism that monitors the powerful, but that kind of credible

journalism is disappearing at both the national and local level.

“The flow of local news is as important as the flow of jobs, or the flow of traffic, or electricity. It is a resource essential to a properly functioning community – a resource we can no longer take for granted.” -- John S. and James L. Knight Foundation

Acknowledging the compelling need to take action, Louisville Public Media has

amended its strategic plan to focus significant time and resources on broadening its role

as a trusted news provider. We are “building a newsroom of the future” to meet the

expanding needs of our community. Local, inclusive, and interactive, this digital

newsroom promises to innovate and safeguard the quality of news that is indispensable

to our community’s quality of life and lifelong education.


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Ohio River Radio Consortium Improving literacy in environmental issues that are fundamental to our future

What began in 2008 as The Ohio River Project with one reporter’s focus on

environmental issues has grown to become The Ohio River Radio Consortium, a

network of reporters from stations located throughout the Ohio River watershed – from

Pittsburgh, PA to Cairo, IL.

Our mission is to reach the widest possible audience with fact-based reporting about the environment, and to raise the level of awareness and conversation about environmental threats and climate change. The Consortium shares content freely with stations, and seeks community partnership to increase its impact. www.ohioriverradio.org In the inaugural year, LPM:

• Developed a regional reporting consortium to engage reporters and public radio stations throughout a seven-state region; expanding the scope of our reporting from local to regional, and multiplying our listeners significantly – from 80,000 to 800,000 potential weekly listeners

• Provided a consistent source of information on the radio and web that addresses the most pressing issues in the Ohio River Valley region; giving listeners a big picture view of the region’s environment

• Partnered with Hanover College to create a conference for regional reporters and scientists/researchers. It was designed to familiarize journalists with key regional environmental issues and to assist scientists in working with media; with a goal of enriching environmental reporting in the region.

• Partnered with the Louisville Science Center in conjunction with the University of Louisville to present a panel discussion about environmental implications of climate change in our region. It was free and open to the public and well attended, reflecting a strong level of community interest in the subject.

• Broadened our content, audience, and interaction through a project website, complementing broadcast materials and giving listeners regional context (ohioriverradio.org)

We are eager to build on the exceptional momentum gained in the first year of this environmental consortium.


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Arts & Humanities Preserving a place on air for Louisville’s creative life and cultural organizations

Through reporting, interviews and cultural programming -- on air, online, live in

our studio and offsite in our community -- LPM creates an essential platform for

presenting and supporting arts and culture in our community. As an arts presenter

LPM provides free weekly live performances of local, national and international artists,

including concerts on the Waterfront that draw thousands of residents and visitors to our

downtown. Its success helped Louisville secure an international award as a top city for

festivals. The “Instrumental Partners” program places musical instruments into the hands

of disadvantaged youths. The Young Artist Competition showcases gifted young

musicians.

As part of LPM’s new Digital Newsroom Project, these arts and cultural initiatives

exist to ensure a place in local media for Louisville’s creative life and education; and to

champion our local artists and institutions that sustain an important economic engine in

our city. Together the three stations give voice to our local citizens, champion our area

artists and cultural institutions, and bring visibility and understanding to our community’s

arts and humanities. LPM is determined to fill the void left by commercial media.

Arts Presenter and Cultivator

• The WFPK Waterfront Wednesday® summer concert series at Waterfront Park,

in partnership with the Waterfront Development Corporation, has become a city institution, drawing thousands together on the last Wednesday of the month from April through September. Performers included the Holmes Brothers, Joshua James and Sonos, Josh Rouse, ALO and Backyard Tire Fire.

• Free weekly performances in our studio on Fourth Street are presented by Classical 90.5 on Wednesdays and WFPK 91.9 on Fridays at noon. It’s difficult to single out just a few, but highlights from Lunchtime Classics included the Kentucky Opera, Kentucky Chamber Players, Dror Biran and Sergey Ostrovsky. Particularly memorable on Live Lunch were Ben Sollee and Daniel Martin Moore, David Gray, Leigh Ann Yost and other Louisville artists in Louisville Lullabies.

• The fifth annual Holiday Choral Festival on December 13th at St. Martin of Tours featured the University of Louisville’s Cardinal Singers, Louisville Youth Choir and Voces Novae. The concert was broadcast on Classical 90.5.

• 2009 PNC Wealth Management Young Artists Competition winners included Joy Kim, violin (1st place) and Anne Richardson, cello (2nd place). Honorable Mentions went to Andrew Jones, piano; Chris Robinson, violin; Choong-won Jin, piano; Grace Yu, violin; and Doug Harville, oboe.


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Special Events 89.3 WFPL presented Robin Lustig, host of “BBC News Hour,” for a lunch and discussion on November 17, 2009, followed by a dinner for members of the Signal Society at Le Relais Restaurant. On April 13, 2010, WFPL presented Kai Ryssdal, host of American Public Media’s “Marketplace,” for lunch and a discussion at Vincenzo’s and an evening event for the Signal Society at Rivue Restaurant and Lounge.

Some examples of Partnering with the Community

• 91.9 WFPK and Yum! Brands Foundation presented a Dare to Care Food-Raiser featuring Company of Thieves and Harper Simon with Wussy.

Company of Thieves performing at Headliners

“On top of having an awesome time, we collected 1200 pounds of food and 12 turkeys! That’s well over 1000 meals we’ll be able to serve people in need as a result of WFPK and Yum!” – Dare to Care Executive Director, Brian Riendeau

Photo by Brittnie Meredith

• WFPK took Live Lunch to the University of Louisville’s Red Barn for a concert in the autumn of 2009.

• 89.3 WFPL provided media sponsorship and staff participation to the Michael Quinlan Brain Tumor Foundation’s Walk, Step Up for Hope, on May 8th at the Waterfront Park. The foundation holds a special place for LPM for being instrumental in the life of an extraordinary public radio volunteer, Phil Vancelette.

• As part of the launch of the Ohio River Radio Consortium, 89.3 WFPL partnered with Hanover College in Feb. 2010 to present a conference in Louisville, "Covering the Ohio River Valley: A Convergence of Media and Scientists." It was designed to familiarize journalists with key regional environmental issues and to assist scientists in working with media; with a goal of enriching


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environmental reporting in the region.

• Also in February 2010, 89.3 WFPL partnered with the Louisville Science Center in conjunction with the University of Louisville to present a panel discussion about environmental implications of climate change in our region. It was free and open to the public and well attended, reflecting a strong level of community interest in the subject.

• Hosted a successful blood drive for the American Red Cross Programming

• On 89.3 WFPL, NPR’s “On Point” with Tom Ashbrook replaced “Talk of the Nation” from 2 to 4pm, Monday through Thursday. “Science Friday” continued on Fridays. The change followed a two week test of the program. Listeners were asked to give their feedback. “On Point” is produced at WBUR in Boston and distributed by NPR. The show airs on 150 public radio stations across the country and its weekly audience is 1.1 million public radio listeners. Its audience had increased more than 40% in the past year.

• Classical 90.5 launched “Louisville in Concert” on Sundays at 6 p.m. to showcase area performances.

• Next Louisville: Recognizing that the 2010 mayoral race marked a turning point for Louisville, WFPL set out to explore the choices and changes ahead; to understand the competing visions; and to focus on the public as well as the politicians. “State of Affairs” helped give voice to individuals and neighborhoods and the issues important to them.

• PRX StoryMarket: In 2010, Public Radio Exchange (PRX) chose Louisville Public Media as its first partner station for StoryMarket, a project funded by the Knight Foundation. Stories will originate from stations, producers and listeners. Producers will then bid on reporting the story, and listeners contribute funds to see the story through to completion (broadcast and digital distribution).


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Financial Report

Annual Report

For Fiscal Year ending June 30, 2010

Revenue

Net Underwriting Sales 1,734,334

Membership 1,330,147

Grant Income 403,948

Other Revenue 162,721

Total Revenue 3,631,150

Expense

Station Programming & Operations

2,552,966

Fundraising 327,442

Management & Administrative Expenses 652,779

Depreciation 272,187

Total Expenses 3,805,374

Revenue Less Expenses (174,224)

Record-breaking membership drives included a new approach in the 2010 Spring Drive in which LPM raised the most money -- $500,000 -- a record goal in record time. Listeners and members were promised that the drive would end the moment the goal was met. It ended Friday at approximately 4 p.m. In FY2010 the economy took a deeper toll on underwriting sales, which were down approximately 15%. They were down 3% in the previous year. Because of the uncertain economic times, programming changes and consolidations were made for FY2012 in order to ensure that the 2012 budget would be met. This has meant a delay in progressing forward with elements of the strategic plan that require additional staff and investment. Greater emphasis is being placed on increasing the percentage of membership revenue, LPM’s most reliable source of income.

Funding comes from multiple revenue streams: bi-annual membership drives; underwriting sales (business sponsorships); a grant from the Corporation for Public


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Broadcasting; as well as the University of Louisville and Metro Government, as founding organizations. LPM is investigating the feasibility of a major gifts campaign.

REVENUE

Net

Underwriting

Sales

48%

Membership

37%

Grant Income

11%

Other Revenue

4%

EXPENSES

Station

Programming &

Operations

67%

Fundraising

9%

Management &

Administrative

Expenses

17%

Depreciation

7%


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Awards and Recognition

• LEO Weekly’s Readers’ Choice Awards voted WFPK 91.9 “Best Local Radio Station”and WFPK’s host Laura Shine the “Best Local Radio DJ.”

• WFPL’s news department received a national award at this year’s Public Radio

News Directors, Inc. (PRNDI) annual banquet held at the Brown Hotel in Louisville on Saturday, June 26, 2010. WFPL received a second-place award in the Best Newscast category, Division A (staff of five or more) for the 8:00am newscast aired on December 18, 2009.

• Todd Mundt, LPM’s Vice President and Chief Content Officer, was elected Board

Chair of the national Public Radio Program Directors Association.

89.3 WFPL Received 29 Journalism Awards

WFPL was honored with 15 awards from the Kentucky Associated Press Broadcasters

Association, including three first-place prizes, and eight Indiana AP Broadcasters

awards, with four first-place honors. Kentucky Public Radio Frankfort Bureau Chief Tony


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McVeigh received six Kentucky AP awards, including two first-place honors. Tony

reports for WFPL and Kentucky’s six other public radio stations.

The 2010 Kentucky AP Awards were announced April 8 in Lexington:

First Place, Class One (large market)

Best Use of Sound Elizabeth Kramer “Resurgence of Church Organs”

Best Web Site WFPL Staff www.wfpl.org

Best Sports Reporting Stephanie Crosby and Rick Howlett “Rick Pitino”

Best Hard News Feature Tony McVeigh (KPR) “Steve Nunn”

Best Political Coverage Tony McVeigh (KPR) “Speaker Stumbo”

Second Place:

Best Special Series/Documentary State of Affairs “Gay History-Louisville”

Public Affairs State of Affairs “Employee Free Choice Act”

Best Hard News Feature (Tie) Stephanie Crosby “Tobacco for Good”

Elizabeth Kramer “Charter Schools”

Best Continuing Coverage (Tie) WFPL Staff “Flood Aftermath”

Gabe Bullard and Rick Howlett “Football Coach Trial”

Best Enterprise/Investigative Kristin Espeland Gourlay “Biomass Energy”

Best Light News Feature Elizabeth Kramer “Teaching Deaf Children to Sing”

Best Newscast WFPL Staff

Honorable Mention:

Best Radio Anchor Susan Sweeney Crum

Best Political Coverage Gabe Bullard “Jim Bunning’s Senate Seat”

Best Special Series/Documentary Kristin Espeland Gourlay “Carbon Capture”

Best Light News Feature Tony McVeigh (KPR) “Grand Theatre”

Best Enterprise/Investigative Tony McVeigh (KPR) “Helmet Law”

Best Continuing Coverage Tony McVeigh (KPR) “Beshear Strategy”

Best Radio Reporter Tony McVeigh (KPR)

The 2010 Indiana AP Awards were presented April 10 in Indianapolis:

First Place, Metro (large market)

Feature Reporting Elizabeth Kramer “Teaching Deaf Children to Sing”

News Series Kristin Espeland Gourlay “Carbon Capture”

Public Affairs Program State of Affairs “Employee Free Choice Act”

Best Website WFPL Staff www.wfpl.org

Second Place:

General News Gabe Bullard “Football Coach on Trial”

Use of Sound Elizabeth Kramer “Resurgence of Interest in Church Organs”

Best Newscast (under 5 minutes) 8:00am news December 2, 2009

Honorable Mention:

Enterprise Reporting Kristin Espeland Gourlay “Biomass”


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Louisville Public Media Board of Directors

Board Officers:

Diane Tobin, Ph.D.

Chair

Executive Committee

Committee on Board

Leadership and

Governance

Metro Louisville

Appointee

Daniel T. Goyette

Vice Chair

Executive Committee

Chair, Committee on

Board Leadership &

Governance

At Large Appointee

Christopher Doane

Secretary/Treasurer

Executive Committee

Committee on Board

Leadership and

Governance

University of Louisville

Appointee

Board Members:

Kim Baker

Community

Engagement

Committee

At Large Appointee

Mary E. Barrazotto

Finance and

Operations Committee

At Large Appointee

Christopher I. Boone

Executive Committee

Chair, Development

Committee

Metro Louisville

Appointee

Linda H. Caso

Executive Committee

Committee on Board

Leadership and

Governance

Metro Louisville

Appointee

John Robert Curtin

Development

Committee

Metro Louisville

Appointee

Ralph Fitzpatrick, Sr.

Development

Committee


Appointee

Juliet Cooper Gray

Finance and



Appointee

Gill Holland

Development

Committee

Metro Louisville

Appointee

Helene Katz

Community

Engagement

Committee

Metro Louisville

Appointee

Robert Knaster

Community

Engagement

Committee


Appointee


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Mary Ann Palmer

Executive Committee

Committee on Board

Leadership and

Governance

At Large Appointee

Dr. Brian Shumate

Community

Engagement

Committee

Metro Louisville

Appointee

Lee Powers Smith

Finance and


Development

Committee

Metro Louisville

Appointee

Virginia Hamilton Snell

Executive Committee

Committee on Board

Leadership and

Governance

At Large Appointee

Robert L. Taylor (Bob)

Finance and



Appointee

Russell Zaino

Executive Committee

Chair, Finance

Committee

At Large Appointee

Louisville Public Media Advisory Council Kristen Miller, Chair Josh Abner Aukram Burton Heather Fetner Carl R. Hausman Kate Holwerk Ricky Jones George E. Lee, Jr. Bruce Maples Lorena Marin Dr. Marco Muñoz Claudia Peralta-Mudd Ian T. Ramsey Deborah Benberry Williams

Staff Leadership Donovan Reynolds, President Todd Mundt, VP and Chief Content Officer Dennis Stovall, Chief Financial Officer Gray Smith, Director of Corporate Support Scott Dowd, Major Gifts Stacy Owen, WFPK Station Manager Daniel Gilliam, Classical 90.5 Station Manager Jennifer Goodman, Membership Manager Lloyd Robinson, Chief Engineer Billy Hardison, Marketing and Events Specialist


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Our Gratitude

Louisville Public Media is deeply grateful to our community of supporters: our membership of

more than 10,000 individuals and families; our 564 volunteers; scores of corporate and business

underwriters; local and national foundations and agencies; the City of Louisville; the University of

Louisville and the members of our volunteer board and council – all of whom make it possible to

sustain and further develop LPM’s service to the community. Our supporters help the stations

with financial contributions, but also through the gift of their time, energy, ideas and passion. We

rely on your generosity of spirit to make this public service thrive

We invite you to participate! Become a member at louisvillepublicmedia.org/support or call 502.814.6565.

Louisville Public Media Annual Report (2010)

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Transcript of Louisville Public Media Annual Report (2010)