Generations of Joni Mitchell fans across the country can jointly celebrate her music and recent honor in Joni Mitchell: The Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song. The tribute ceremony and all-star concert will premiere on Friday, March 31 at 9:00pm on WPSU. Like many singer-songwriters, Canadian-born Mitchell’s career began in coffee shops and nightclubs, but her first songs in the 1960s were the definition of exceptional, setting a new standard marrying music and lyrics. Winner of multiple Grammy Awards, Mitchell never pursued fame, but with such songs as “Both Sides, Now,” “Chelsea Morning,” “Big Yellow Taxi,” “Woodstock” and “The Circle Game,” she became a household name and her musical genius is an inspiration to her peers. Mitchell redefined the role of women musicians. She oversaw all aspects of her albums, including songwriting, arrangements, performance, production and artwork. (Pictured: Self portrait by Joni Mitchell.)
From The GM's Desk
Happy Almost Spring! I think we are all looking forward to warmer weather and sunshine. In the meantime, we have been busy… Our 31st Annual Connoisseurs Dinner was quite successful, our radio team is busy reporting our local news, our TV Spring pledge drive did well, we’ve aired some wonderful programming and our production services team is remaining busy serving our University clients. If you didn’t get the chance to attend this week’s All-Staff meeting, I encourage you to listen to the recording. The team achievements of the past year are quite inspirational! Thank you for everything you do.
All my best ...
Birthdays
3/28 - Craig Johnson
WPSU Radio Highlights
In Case You Missed It . . .
News Over Noise - Episodes 3 & 4
Episode 3: What’s Missing from Economic News? — Whether your eyelids get heavy at the mere mention of an economic story or you're a seasoned economic news consumer and want to know how you can find reliable, quality reporting, this is a discussion for you. Episode 4: The Danger of the `News Finds Me’ Mentality — Most of us get our information fed to us through our smartphones. Constant bombardment and easy access to headlines, video clips, and sound bites help create the illusion that we are well-informed about the goings-on of our world. But...are we? Listen here.
Shapiro’s First Pa. Budget Pitch Includes $1B Boost For Education, No Tax Increases
Stephen Caruso and Kate Huangpuf of Spotlight PA report on Gov. Josh Shapiro calling for $1 billion in new education spending, permanent state funding for public defenders, and an expansion of a shrinking rebate program for older people. Read here.
Some Layoffs 'Impossible To Avoid' As Penn State Budget Cuts Take Hold
WPSU’s Anne Danahy reported on budget problems for the state-related university. In particular, the College of Engineering is facing what’s being termed a “structural budget deficit” that will make it impossible to avoid some layoffs. Read here.
WPSU Television Highlights
Call the Midwife (Season 12 Premiere). - Sunday, March 19 at 8:00 pm
It is now 1968, and there are changes in the air. Enoch Powell's infamous speech casts a long shadow over the borough. Nonnatus House welcomes a new nun to the team, Sister Veronica, who impresses everyone except for Nurse Crane.
Sanditon on Masterpiece (Season 3 Premiere) - Sunday, March 19 at 9:00 pm
Fiance in tow, Charlotte arrives back in Sanditon for Georgiana's 21st birthday party, but seeing Colbourne again leaves her feeling uncertain. Meanwhile, Georgiana receives a shocking threat, and Edward tries to prove he is a changed man.
Marie Antoinette (Season 1 Premiere) - Sunday, March 19 at 10:00 pm
Marie Antoinette is just a teenager when she’s forced to leave Austria to marry the Dauphin. But she’s as unprepared as her awkward teenage husband. How will this free spirit react to Versailles with its ridiculous rules of etiquette?
American Masters “Dr. Tony Fauci” - Tuesday, March 21 at 8:00 pm
Follow Dr. Anthony Fauci across two years as the scientist, husband and father grapples with the COVID-19 pandemic and his own legacy as America's foremost public health advocate.
Conversations Live! “Sharenting” - Thursday, March 23 at 8:00 pm
It’s commonplace for people to share aspects of their lives, not just with friends and family, but with the public. Parents especially enjoy sharing content of their children. But what happens when parents overshare? Our panel discusses "sharenting”.
American Masters “The Movement and the Madman” - Tuesday, March 28 at 9:00 pm
In the fall of 1969, two antiwar demonstrations -- the largest the country had ever seen -- caused President Nixon to cancel what he called his "madman" plans for a massive escalation of the U.S. war in Vietnam, including his threats to use nuclear weapons. At the time, protestors had no idea what they had prevented and how many lives they had saved.
Joni Mitchell: The Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song - Friday, March 31 at 9:00 pm
The incomparable, trail-blazing talent of Joni Mitchell is celebrated in Washington, DC's historic DAR Constitution Hall by a cadre of musical stars who all drew inspiration from the woman many consider to be the most influential musical artist of her time. Be it lyrics, composition, playing, singing, or even painting, no artist has demonstrated the creative length, depth and breadth of Joni Mitchell.
Governmental Relations
This week, President Biden’s Administration recommended $575 million in advance funding for public broadcasting in his fiscal year 2024 budget. This represents a $40 million increase in the federal investment for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and is what stations (like WPSU) have been asking Members of Congress for. The $575 million amount would help restore the $100 million in lost purchasing power caused by 10 years of flat federal funding for CPB.
The President’s budget also recommends level funding of $60 million in FY 2024 for the annual station interconnection account, which is the backbone of the public broadcasting system, connecting stations to ensure the operation of nationwide emergency alerting, facilitate the exchange of local, regional and national programming and create operational efficiencies.
In addition, The President recommended continued support and level funding of $31 million for Ready To Learn, a competitive grant program at the Department of Education that supports the creation and distribution of educational media content to millions of children across America over the air, online, on mobile devices and through on the ground outreach in communities across the nation. This program has been proven to help close the achievement gap between children from low-income families and their more affluent peers.
Although not covered in the Administration’s budget, stations are hopeful that Congress will include level funding of $56 million for the Next Generation Warning System at FEMA in FY 2024. This funding would support the local public media station infrastructure that the nation depends on to transmit emergency alerts and warnings to every part of the country. Public broadcasting stations reach 99% of the American people, making us an essential part of the national alert and warning system. A CPB study identified at least $300 million in unmet infrastructure needs throughout the public media system – needs which threaten the reliability of our public safety mission. This program is critical to addressing those needs and enhancing the alert and warning capabilities on which our nation depends. We are hopeful that Congress will provide level funding of $56 million for the Next Generation Warning System in the FY 2024.
If you’ve signed-up for Protect My Public Media alerts, you should have received a message to let your Members of Congress know of your own support for these budget requests. If you haven’t joined this grassroots project, sign up here.
Industry News
NPR’s Scott Simon Reflects On The State Of Journalism
Scott Simon joined a pantheon of esteemed American journalists Feb. 23 upon receiving the 2022 W.M. Kiplinger Award for distinguished contributions to journalism.In accepting the award, Simon expressed gratitude to many people, including the thousands of sources who have let him into their lives and answered his questions. He went on to discuss journalism’s role in society — to report news that people need to know, even when it challenges their worldviews, and to bridge divides between people who think they have nothing in common. Full story here.
NPR To Lay Off 10 Percent Of Its Staff After Revenue Shortfall
NPR's chief executive announced the network would lay off roughly 10% of its current workforce – at least 100 people – and eliminate most vacant positions. CEO John Lansing cited the erosion of advertising dollars, particularly for NPR podcasts, and the tough financial outlook for the media industry more generally. "When we say we are eliminating filled positions, we are talking about our colleagues - people whose skills, spirit and talents help make NPR what it is today," Lansing wrote in a memo to staff today. "This will be a major loss.” On an annual budget of roughly $300 million, Lansing says, revenues are likely to fall short by close to $30 million, although that gap could reach $32 million. "We're not seeing signs of a recovery in the advertising market," Lansing says in an interview. Full story here.
‘Cocaine Cat’ Will Now Live At Cincinnati Zoo
CINCINNATI - An African serval cat that was found with cocaine in its system after an escape at a traffic stop now calls the Cincinnati Zoo home, much to the delight of social media users still amused by the recent release of the movie “Cocaine Bear.” The feline made its escape after its owner was pulled over by police on Jan. 28, according to local animal control officials. It leapt from the car into a tree. Ray Anderson of Cincinnati Animal CARE said that local animal control, Hamilton County Dog Wardens, were called around 2 a.m. in the residential Oakley neighborhood.
In Ohio, it is illegal to own the animals, which can weigh up to 40 pounds. During the rescue mission, the cat named Amiry broke its leg and became more agitated.
Once Amiry was taken in for medical care by Cincinnati Animal CARE, the team ran a drug test in which they determined that Amiry had cocaine in his system. It’s not the first time that Cincinnati Animal CARE, which has been operating as the county animal shelter, has had a wild animal test positive for drugs. In 2022, the group took in a capuchin monkey, named Neo, that had methamphetamine in its system. - [AP 3/10/23]
The Luck of the Irish
“Everybody is Irish on St. Patrick’s Day, but if your name is Eisenhower, you’ve got to wear something green to show it.” – President Dwight D. Eisenhower
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