FY 2009 BY THE NUMBERS

posted by Jack Gibson

Last month, I reported on the goals we needed to reach to successfully close our 2009 fiscal year. I’m pleased to follow this month with the good news that we exceeded our membership goal for the year. Membership increased 5% over 2008 thanks to more than 30,000 individual supporters, including more than 4,100 first-time supporters. We are now in a position to meet our financial obligations to NPR and PBS. Thank you for your continued support!

Arizona Public Media also smoothly transitioned into the digital age on June 12. KUAS Channel 27 concluded analog PBS program services and will continue with a 30-day “Nightlight” service broadcasting only programs on the digital transition in English and Spanish. On July 12 at 11:59:59 p.m., our analog broadcast service will terminate completely and we will continue to broadcast using digital-only technology on both Channels 6 and 27. With respect to digital service on Channel 6, repairs have been completed to the main digital antenna which was damaged by a severe ice storm on Mt. Bigelow last winter. We expect reinstallation of the antenna in the early part of August and a return to full signal strength shortly thereafter.

According to the Nielsen Media Research from May:

• Channel 6 prime time viewing is up 3.45%
  

• Full week viewing is up 9.1%

• Arizona Illustrated attracted 20% more viewers this May than last

• The Desert Speak, In-Tune and Wavelengths attracted good audiences

On radio, our own Arizona Spotlight which airs on KUAZ-AM/FM, celebrated its 200th show at the end of June. The NPR News section of our website has some features you might not have seen before. You still get links to NPR's hourly newscasts and the top stories, and if you go there or refresh the page when NPR is offering extra coverage of special events or breaking news, you'll find a link to a live stream.

The numbers have been good to us. But the rest of the news is that we start all over again with a new fiscal year beginning July 1, and there are many challenges ahead. We look forward to your continued support as we work to meet them on your behalf.

Sincerely,

Jack Gibson
Director and General Manager
Arizona Public Media®

P.S. Hopefully you had a chance to see Tucson Remembers: The Korean War. If not, info is still on our Web site, here.