PUBLIC MEDIA GROWS IN “VALLEY OF THE SUN”

Desert sunrise in suburban Chandler, Arizona

Today’s post is set in Phoenix, Arizona a/k/a The Valley of the Sun. Millions of people have moved there since the invention and proliferation of air conditioning. One hundred years ago there were around 29,000 people living in The Valley. By 1970 the population of the city grew to 582,000. Today it is estimated that over 1.5 million people live in the city and 4.7 million live in the metropolitan area.

ASU’S CRONKITE SCHOOL & CPB COLLABORATE TO GROW PUBLIC MEDIA NEWS CAPABILITY

ASU's Cronkite School in downtown Phoenix

Arizona State University’s (ASU) Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication [link] and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) have announced a new initiative that will provide training for 100 editors to strengthen leadership of public media’s growing newsrooms and collaborations. 

CPB is making a $1.1 grant to the Cronkite School to develop and manage the Editorial Integrity and Leadership Initiative. The two-year initiative is yet another major investment by CPB in public media journalism. In October, Spark News reported [link] that CPB has awarded $32 million for 34 public media journalism collaborations in recent years.

The goal of the Editorial Integrity and Leadership Initiative is to provide mid-career training for 100 editors to strengthen their leadership skills while upholding the highest editorial standards.

The Cronkite School will implement the training onsite and online. The initiative will provide each chosen journalist with a customized curriculum that includes editorial integrity, strategic partnerships, multi-platform editing, data reporting, audience-first engagement as well as metrics. Cronkite School faculty and coaches will conduct the training and provide ongoing mentoring.

Participating journalists will spend a week at the Cronkite School in an interactive learning environment. After that, participants work with a personal leadership coach for 100 days, developing your leadership style. Then participants will return to the Cronkite School to reflect on what they have learned.

Now the initiative needs applicants. This should be no problem because the initiative is offering fully paid hotel and travel expenses. The application window opens on November 15, 2018 through January 1, 2019.

Successful applicants for the first round will be notified before February 1, 2019. Complete information is available here.

[Disclosure: Ken Mills was awarded a Master of Mass Communication degree from the Cronkite School in December, 1986.]

KJZZ & KBAQ ARE LOOKING FOR A NEW GENERAL MANAGER

As Phoenix has grown, NPR News/Talk station KJZZ [link] and full-time Classical music station KBAQ [link] have also expanded. 

The station that is now KJZZ signed on in February 1951, as KFCA, a 10-watt “distance learning” facility licensed to what is now the Maricopa County Community College District.  It was the first FM station in Arizona.

In 1971 and 1972, KFCA joined NPR, moved to 91.5 FM, increased its power to 100,000-watts and changed its call letters to KMCR. The call letters changed to KJZZ in 1985.

KBAQ a/k/a K-Bach signed on at full power in 2006 after a lengthy battle for the license by the Community College District and Arizona State University. KBAQ’s license is now owned by the Community College District and is collocated with KJZZ in Tempe.

KJZZ and KBAQ had combined revenue in FY 2017 $12.3 million. Of that amount, KJZZ brought in over $9.8 million and KBAQ brought in around $2.5 million. Listener-sensitive income (underwriting, pledging and major donors), comprised 88% of the revenue.

The search is being handled exclusively by Livingston Associates. Complete information is available here.

KJZZ IS CLOSING IN ON KTAR-FM AS THE TOP RADIO NEWS/TALK STATION IN PHOENIX

In the October Nielsen Audio PPM ratings, NPR News/Talk KJZZ got closer to commercial News/Talk giant KTAR-FM. 

Less than a 1.0 AQH Share separate the two stations. 

KJZZ also has a substantial lead over conservative talker KFYI.

In the noncommercial station ratings for October both KJZZ and KBAQ either gained or held steady.

Phoenix is one of the most competitive Christian pop music markets in the nation with four rated stations. Only Dallas and Houston have more Christian pop music stations competing.

Out-of-town chains own all four stations. KFLR is owned by Family Life Communications, based in Tucson. KLVK, KLVA and KZAI are owned by Educational Media Foundation (EMF).