Public Broadcasting in the News

FCC Reviews Application of ‘Datacasting’ Fee to Public TV

The U.S. Federal Communications Commission is looking at whether public television stations who use part of their spectrum to provide noncommercial data services should have to pay a 5-percent fee for them, reports Current Newspaper.

New Public TV Series Features Afro-Latino Cultures Through the Lens of Travel

Afro-Latino Travels with Kim Haas, a new travel series, premieres on public television with a two-part special featuring Costa Rica. The series honors and celebrates the history and culture of Latin America’s African descendants.

Vermont Public Media Firms Merge

The boards of Vermont PBS and Vermont Public Radio voted unanimously to merge the two public media firms, Inside Radio reports. The combined entity will be led by the current president and CEO of VPR, Scott Finn.

News Deserts

Do you live in a ‘news desert’? The University of North Carolina’s Hussman School of Journalism looks at the growing gaps in news coverage left by the closures of local newspapers around the country.

...more on 'News Deserts' and what PBS can do about them (older coverage)

Against the growing phenomena of news deserts in the United States – areas where local news outlets have failed or have been gutted by the loss of ad revenue – PBS is being called upon to act. One suggested remedy is overhauling the way the Corporation for Public Broadcasting issues grants for public affairs programming, from a Washington, DC -based metric to spending decided by local news producers. ...