RATINGS, STAFF ANNOUNCEMENTS AND “COOL SUMMER NIGHTS”

posted by Laura McKee

Radio ratings were just released and once again NPR 89.1 maintained its top rank among other news/talk radio stations in the Tucson market. Morning Edition on NPR 89.1 ranked #3 in the market for listeners age 12+(1) and #1 for listeners 50+(2). Classical 90.5 ratings also increased by 15% from the winter 2013 survey(3) and weekly cumulative audience was up 4% over last year(4).

Several staff promotions were announced in recent weeks. Enrique Aldana has been promoted to Director of Development. Aldana was formerly Associate Director of Development. With the recent retirement of Fran Sherlock, AZPM’s longtime Director of Production and Broadcast Operations, three internal promotions were made. Ian Hubbell has been promoted to Post-Production Manager, Martin Rubio to TV Production Manager, and Greg Steed to TV Master Control Supervisor/IT Engineer. Editor, Mitch Riley was also promoted to Producer/Editor and Lili Bell, formerly TV Traffic Manager, has been promoted to Broadcast Schedule Manager. Finally, in the business office, Gus Loaiza has moved up to Accounting Specialist.

Alan Fischer, Public Information Officer for the Planetary Science Institute, joined the AZ Illustrated team as the co-host of Tuesday’s AZ Illustrated Science edition. Fischer is a journalist who has specialized in science and technology reporting and has a strong interest in writing about space exploration. Fischer is a graduate of the University of Arizona with a degree in journalism. Laura Palmisano joins the AZPM news team as a Reporter/Producer. Palmisano holds a journalism degree with a minor in sustainability and has worked in public broadcasting and for the Cronkite News Service. Maria Taracena, a recent graduate of the UA School of Journalism and freelance writer, was hired as an Online Reporter/Editor.

With these promotions and new appointments, AZPM continues to demonstrate the investment in our staff as well as our continued mission to create, acquire, and distribute high-quality, relevant content for and about Arizona, the University of Arizona, and the Southwest. For more information on employment opportunities with AZPM, please visit https://about.azpm.org/jobs/ or the UA Job Siite.

This month brings the first PBS 6 membership campaign of the new fiscal year. Themed “Cool Summer Nights,” these programs will definitely cool you off from the summer monsoon heat and humidity. Music specials highlight the campaign and include, “60’s Girl Grooves,” with host Mary Wilson of the Supremes, “The Jimmy Dean Show: Country Classics,” hosted by Roy Clark, “Elvis, Aloha from Hawaii,” and “Alfie Boe: Storyteller at the Royal Albert Hall,” just to name a few. Check PBS 6 program schedules for dates and times.

I hope you will keep in mind that your financial support of AZPM is critical in helping to provide you with the award-winning, wide variety of engaging and educational programming that you have grown to expect. Thank you for your viewership, listenership, and continued support.

Sincerely,

Jack Gibson

(1)Metro Average Quarter Hour share, age 12+, Spring 2012 – 2013, ©Arbitron, Inc., ©Radio Research Consortium, Inc.

(2)Metro Average Quarter Hour share, age 50+, Spring 2012 – 2013, ©Arbitron, Inc., ©Radio Research Consortium, Inc.

(3)Metro Average Quarter Hour share, age 12+, 50+, Winter 2013 – Spring 2013, © Arbitron, Inc, ©Radio Research Consortium, Inc.

(4)Metro Cume Persons, 12+, Spring 2012, Spring 2013, © Arbitron, Inc, ©Radio Research Consortium, Inc.

SCHEDULE CHANGES FOR RADIO & TELEVISION

posted by Laura McKee

We kick off July with one of our biggest programs of the year, “A Capitol Fourth.” This live PBS broadcast of America’s favorite Independence Day tradition features unrivaled performances from some of the country’s best-known performers, topped off by the greatest display of fireworks anywhere in the nation. Tom Bergeron (Dancing with the Stars) hosts this all-star lineup live from Washington, D.C. on Thursday, July 4th from 5 to 6:30 p.m., with an encore performance at 7:30 p.m. The PBS 6 patriotic celebration continues at 6:30 p.m. with Ken Burns’ documentary “Statue of Liberty,” followed later that evening by the premiere of “Magic Skies: A History of Fireworks” at 9 p.m.

This month there are some program scheduling changes to NPR 89.1 and to PBS 6. On NPR 89.1, the daily news-magazine radio program Here & Now debuts Monday, July 1st from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., replacing Talk of the Nation, which concluded production on June 27th. Tune in and welcome hosts Robin Young and Jeremy Hobson for breaking news and in-depth analysis. To learn more about the program, visit azpm.org.

Starting Saturday, July 6th on PBS 6, Lawrence Welk will air one hour earlier, at 6 p.m. That adjustment affects the Saturday late-afternoon/evening schedule as follows:

-Antiques Roadshow 4 – 5 p.m. Moved up 1 hour
-This Old House 5 – 6 p.m. Moved up 1 hour
-Lawrence Welk 6 – 7 p.m. Moved up 1 hour
-Are You Being Served 7 – 7:30 p.m. New time
-As Time Goes By 7:30 - 8 p.m. New time

Other programming changes include:

-POV will move to one hour earlier on Monday nights, to 10 p.m. from 11 p.m.
-MI-5 switches to five nights a week, Monday through Friday, from 11p.m. to 12 a.m.
-DCI Banks, a new BBC detective drama series based on crime writer Peter Robinson’s novels, takes Doc Martin’s place on Thursdays at 9 p.m., starting July 11th.
-Doc Martin Season 1 encore broadcasts move to Sundays at 9:30 p.m. beginning June 16th.
-Charlie Rose: The Week premiers July 19th and will air on Fridays at 10 p.m. The 30-minute program joins the PBS 6 public affairs lineup to revisit some of the best reports and interviews of the week, while looking ahead to developing business, political, arts and cultural stories.

Visit PBS 6 and *NPR 89.1 for updated program schedules.

July is the start of a new fiscal year for AZPM, and I thank you for your financial support during our 2013 fiscal year-end fundraising campaign. It takes everyone who uses, appreciates and values public broadcasting to support it. Your pledge to AZPM not only provides you with the wide and award-winning variety of programming that you have grown to expect, but your support also allows AZPM to employ the talented journalists, producers and videographers who create and deliver the stories about our unique community that we all value so much.

Jack Gibson