Next week Gary Reid and I will be headed to the PBS Annual Meeting. We'll be connecting with public broadcasting colleagues from around the country in an event that combines previews up of the upcoming season with valuable discussions on the state of the media landscape, funding updates, a look at our digital future and the latest research on public broadcasting.
There's always a lot of green here at Michigan State University, but today we are seeing much more of it! And I'm not just talking about the trees, which are beginning to show their Spartan colors, or the flowers that are at long last bursting.
Students from MSU's College of Communication Arts & Sciences will be graduating today -- Friday, May 3. We can't help but notice caps and gowns and plenty of Spartan spirit.
I have just returned from the National Association of Broadcasters meeting, which I was privileged to attend with our general manager, Gary Reid, and several of our staff.
I'm an MSU grad and Spartan through and through. So when I heard that the College of Communication Arts & Science and WKAR would host the first Spartan Sports Journalism Classic -- with hosts Steve Smith and Pam Whitten -- I was pretty excited!
Lots of Spartans remember NBA All Star and MSU Athletics Hall of Famer Steve Smith. He's now a sports journalist covering the NBA on television. When he comes back to MSU next week, he's bringing with him a number of the best sports journalists and industry professionals in the field to speak during a lively panel.
When it hits April, it finally feels as though spring is really here! And this week's temperatures and a few green bulb shoot sightings remind us that soon it will be festival season.
Here at WKAR we're looking ahead to the MSU Science Festival April 12-21 here on the campus. You'll find everything from interactive displays to speakers to activities for kids. On April 13 we're teaming up with MSU Extension to offer activities for children at the exhibition tent. It will be busy but fun!
You may have noticed the new "Family" tab on our web page. We are looking to increase the content we have here on WKAR that is related to families and education.
There's lots to like during this wild and wonderful week here at WKAR. On Wednesday I was pleased to be with members of our staff at the Michigan Association of Broadcasters annual awards. Three of our television programs (Off the Record, BackStage Pass and Beneath the Pines) received awards, as did two WKAR Radio features.
Over the past few days I've had the opportunity to be in warm and sunny Florida with my family. Like so many of you have in the past, we enjoyed plenty of amusement park fun, rides, lots of walking and some long awaited sun.
The public television station we saw while on vacation was getting ready for their annual TV membership campaign, just as we are here at WKAR. Ours begins tonight and continues through March 11, and during that time we'll ask you for your support.
On Wednesday, February 13, we have a great treat in store here at WKAR. As part of our ongoing Community Cinema series of screenings and discussions we will welcome Willard K. Walker, Tremaine Philips and Renee Canady to lend their insight onto the civil rights issues presented in The Powerbroker: Whitney Young's Fight for Civil Rights.
The documentary is very powerful but the experience and insight our panel brings to the topic will be significant and one well worth attending.
Every so often, Cathy Zell, our Development Director, arrives and shares the news that we have a special ticket offer, courtesy of our friends at Wharton Center with whom we have a terrific partnership.
This week, we have a special offer. The first is tickets to the performance of Rain at Wharton Center. This well-known group performs Beatles songs with the costumes, make up and spot-on voices of the Fab Four.
BackStage Pass premieres on January 20, at a new time! Look for us every Sunday at 7 p.m., with encore broadcasts at 8 p.m. the following Saturday on WKAR World and at 11 p.m. that Saturday on WKAR.
Last night WKAR hosted another fantastic Community Cinema event featuring the Independent Lens film "Soul Food Junkies." I'd like to thank everyone who came out and participated in a fun and interesting discussion around food and culture.
I'd particularly like to thank our panel of guests: Andrea Collier, Lorraine Weatherspoon and Laura DeLind. They each brought an interesting perspective, including history, health and community.
We had a terrific time meeting so many Downton Abbey fans last night at Studio C! theatre when we previewed the first hour of the new season. It was great fun to meet old friends and new and have such a grand turnout that we had to add a third show!
I want to toss an extra kudo or two to the folks at Studio C. They had to do some rearranging of their schedule to fit in the third screening. We were grateful and so, too, were those who were unable to get a seat when the first two screenings were sold out.
While life in other places of business might slow down between the holidays, here at WKAR we are busier than ever processing year-end gifts to WKAR. I have to tip my hat to our membership team and say thank you to all of you who are keeping them so busy!
I don't know about you but at this time of year it seems as though our senses are stretched in every direction. Beautiful trees and cheerfully wrapped gifts share the stage with crowds at the mall and the frenzy of writing cards or standing in post office lines.
Sometimes it is easy to forget that the holidays are really the time to hold our loved ones close and share moments with them that will be remembered long after the toys under the tree have been left behind.
