MORE WCBE: MANAGER HID DEBT FROM LICENSEE, MYSTERY DONOR APPEARS • ERIC NUZUM HAS A NEW BOOK DEAL

Dan Mushalko

WCBE general manager Dan Mushalko had a secret. 

According to published reports in the Columbus Dispatch [link] and the Columbus Biz Journal [link], Mulshalko concealed from WCBE’s licensee, Columbus City Schools, the fact that the station owed $869,462.70 to NPR. 

The unpaid invoices date back to 2015.

Last week Mulshalko revealed the debt to his immediate supervisor, Columbus Schools' Communication Director Scott Varner. Mulshalko was immediately suspended as GM of WCBE and placed on administrative leave, pending the results of an internal investigation.

The station’s financial audits for the past two fiscal years don’t mention the obligation, which was unknown to the district’s administration until last week. 

Now administrators of the City School district are realizing that they are likely on the hook for the money. The news has generated anger in the community and questions about the veracity of the districts oversight of the station.

WCBE has been operating as an informal self-supporting unit of the district. Though members of the Columbus City School board, had long recommended that the ownership of  WCBE be transferred to a separate nonprofit entity, the board never acted on it. Because the school board had dithered, taxpayers may be ultimately responsible for paying the debt.

A SAVIOR APPEARS, WITH STRINGS ATTACHED

Don McTique

According to The Dispatch, Don McTique, a Columbus area lawyer who had once been on WCBE’s community advisory group, sent a letter to the school district with a sweetheart offer to pay off the entire debt in exchange for assuming control of the station.

In the letter, dated last Tuesday (2/5), McTique said he represented a non-profit corporation called WCBE Ohio Inc. 

McTique incorporated WCBE Ohio in 2013.

McTique said his client is offering to reimburse the district for the full cost of the obligation to NPR.   

In exchange for paying the debt to NPR, McTique said his client wants a long-term agreement to control the station.

The Dispatch also reported that Stan Bahorek, the school district’s treasurer, said in an email to school board members earlier this week that Mushalko had discussed the WCBE’s situation with a representative of WBCE Ohio prior to informing the school district of the hidden debt.

Regarding the offer from WCBE Ohio, Bahorek also said:

“We have not and will not respond to this letter pending the outcome of the investigation.”

ERIC NUZUM IS PUTTING HIS PODCAST & PROGRAMMING TECHNIQUES INTO A NEW BOOK

Eric Nuzum

Former NPR VP of Programming and Audible Senior VP of Original Programming Eric Nuzum has a deal with Workman Publishing to publish a forthcoming book entitled Make Noise: A Creator’s Guide To Podcasts And Great Audio.

The book is inspired by Nuzum’s experiences in podcasting, at both NPR and more recently at Audible. Nuzum described the forthcoming book in a press release:

“This book reflects principles, exercises, and ways of thinking I’ve created and collected over the past two decades. I have always seen my role as serving creators, who then serve audiences. I help creators refine their thinking and express their vision with clarity, purpose, and momentum.”

According the publisher, Make Noise is scheduled for release in January 2020.

Make Noise is Nuzum’s fourth book. He authored Parental Advisory: Music Censorship In America in 2001. That book told the true story of the congressional hearings about music lyrics championed by Tipper Gore during the 1990s. Parental Advisory is considered by scholars to be the definitive reporting about the hearing. It is available from Amazon [link].

 

Nuzum’s two other book are The Dead Travel Fast: Stalking Vampires from Nosferatu to Count Chocula and Giving Up the Ghost: A Story About Friendship, 80s Rock, a Lost Scrap of Paper, and What It Means to Be Haunted. Both books are also available from Amazon.

In other Nuzum News, check out his contribution to NiemanLab’s Predictions for Journalism 2019 [link]. In an essay titled The Year of DIY Podcast Network, Nuzum encourages podcast newbies to jump in the pod-water:

Nuzum:  “As a number of opinionated folks, including me, have observed over the past few years, there’s a growing chasm between the “haves” and “have nots” in podcasting. One example of this playing out is podcast networks. And by networks I mean distributors who produce and acquire content, then make it available to audiences — companies like Gimlet, iHeartRadio, Radiotopia, Barstool Sports, Wondery, as well as many dozens of smaller boutique networks and groups.”

“While podcast networks dominate the “Top Podcasts” charts, command the best advertising deals, and are routinely covered in the press, networks actually represent very few podcasts. Less than one percent of podcasts are associated with a network.”