KQED Exterior Sign. Flickr: TimShoesUnited
Despite the recent layoffs at public radio stations across the country, NPR (and public radio by extension) has actually weathered the storm on modern journalism.
This article in Fast Company has interesting analysis on why the comparatively low-fidelity NPR has seen a huge increase in listeners while newspapers and TV news have seen sharp declines.
NPR board chair and Harvard Business School professor Howard Stevenson says, “As commutes lengthen, the importance of drive-time radio has grown. People don’t have 15 minutes to sit at home and read the newspaper, but you can get accurate, in-depth reporting as you sit in traffic,” or make dinner, or clean out the garage. It’s a screen-free complement to online browsing.
While we’re talking about public radio, here’s a few examples of excellent (environmental) radio journalism and why it’s so effective.
Listen to Part two of Rob Schmitz’s story ‘The New Gridlock” on KQED’s Climate Watch. Schmitz analyzes many of the hurdles in the way of a renewable energy future.
Caitlan Carrol from Marketplace did an interesting story about firms, including SF’s own Levi’s, who are trying to cut back on their water footprints: check out “Water is the New Carbon” which aired on Friday.