NPR’S MVP – JARL MOHN – RETURNS IN MID-JANUARY

Image courtesy of the Los Angeles Times

Like many folks in the biz, I am pleased to hear that NPR president and CEO Jarl Mohn plans to return to the organization in mid-January. Mohn has been on a medical leave of absence for the past couple of months.

Mohn’s return is good news because his work on behalf of NPR has been inspiring. 

Under his leadership NPR stations have seen spectacular ratings, record fundraising and has become an increasingly valuable presence in our  democracy. NPR is also the nation’s leading publisher of podcasts. Plus use of the mobile app NPR One continues to rise.

A big reason for the recent success of NPR is Mohn’s intuitive feel for the fundamentals of radio. You could say that Jarl Mohn is “native to the platform.”

This is important because stations are still the bedrock of public radio. CPB funding is channeled to the stations. Most people encounter NPR and station programming via on-air signals or streaming audio. Stations are “idea factories” that convey NPR’s good work.

Mohn knows the media business better than anyone else that ever led NPR since the early 1980s. On the right is a list of the CEOs/ Presidents of National Public Radio since Frank Mankiewicz.

Mohn brings something to NPR that none of the past leaders had: A true passion for the art, science and business of radio.

Each of the previous leaders of NPR brought unique perspectives to the job. Some were more successful than others. However, Jarl Mohn’s talents are unique.

His passion comes from public radio’s mission and it's role in our country today. 

Mohn is energized by the challenges. 

At his heart, Mohn is a great broadcaster, entertainer and communicator. Doing something well makes him proud and happy.

Mohn, now 65, can retire any time he wants to. But he’d rather be in the game. He still has the enthusiasm he talked about when he first got the gig in 2014. Here is how he described it then when interviewed on KPCC, Pasadena in [link]: 

I began my career as a disc jockey. I was in radio for years. I became a program director and general manager. I ended up buying some stations in El Paso and Louisville.

Mohn and KPCC-ers in 2014

After selling my stations, I got into the cable television business. I ran MTV and VH1 in the '80s. I created E! (Entertainment Television) in the 1990s. Then I did venture investing in early-stage digital media. Then I got to know about public radio when I went of the Board of Southern California Public Radio.

When [the NPR CEO job] came up, there had been a fair amount of turnover at NPR. I was asked if I was interested. I said, this is the one job in America that I think I'd love doing.  I made a commitment to spend at least five years leading the organization. 

Let’s hope and pray that Mohn will be leading NPR until 2019 or perhaps longer because he has much more to contribute to our collective, public service enterprise.