Public Radio in Mid America
Board of Directors Meeting Minutes
June 18, 2014
Called to Order: 2:30PM
Board Members Present: Dan Skinner, Mike Savage, Steve Schram, Tim Eby, Christina Kuzmych, Regina Dean, Karen Olstad, Paul Maason
Guest: Tom Hunt, Greg Petrowich
- PRIMA meeting in Winter or Spring?
Consensus was to hold meeting separately from another conference so that people could be focused and not have so many days out of the office. Also that we should have it in a central location in the PRIMA region so that it would be economical to attend. We will look at dates in early May. Tim Eby volunteered for Saint Louis Public Radio to host the conference. Vice Chair Paul Maason will work with Tim on a program and logistics including dates. Dan asks for suggestions as to topics and guests to invite. PRIMA members are encouraged to make suggestions. - NPROne Mobile App
It appears that there hasn’t been much information from NPR as to the status of the project. There are technical issues with getting station produced pieces into the app which is one of the most important features for stations. Tim reiterated that he has yet to receive an answer as to how it will be marketed–not to existing listeners but to potential new audiences–and wonders what other station leaders’ thoughts are. Consensus of board members is that stations aren’t inclined to promote it, we are focused on promoting our own apps, but that there should be a national strategy to reach new audiences for this product.Greg—the future is more for connected cars where internet will be there. Steve agreed based on what he heard at various auto industry conferences. It is important to get NPR as a brand in the center stack in dash. - ME / ATC Clock Project
There will be an announcement regarding specifics of the new clock soon. Steve reported back from his experience on the committee and after conferring with his program director that his take is that these were situations that had to be addressed. There were no perfect solutions, but he is satisfied with the result and supports the changes. - New Voice of NPR Credits
There hasn’t been discussion in any forums; what do PRIMA board members think? Consensus was that her sound was amateurish. This is an important voice on our stations and affects our stations’ sound. Should we engage with PRIMA stations to get feedback to share with NPR? Steve’s understanding was that the limitations were that the person had to be in DC, had to be able to record the credits themselves and be able put them into the system. Suggestion was to contact Eric Newsom at NPR to express our concerns either individually or through PRPD. Steve will discuss with his PD who is chair of PRPD. - PMDMC – PRIMAmembers who are attending will meet up informally.
- Upcoming Conference Call with Joyce Mac re: National Public Media
Monday, June 30th at 3:00 EDT. Dan will be sending information to members. - USA Update (Tom) – Surveying stations regarding A Prarie Home Companion, Legal Fees, and Economic Impact on Stations (3 separate surveys). Please complete the latter even if you are not a USA member, the information is very valuable.
Adjourned at 3:30 PM.
Next meeting will be July 16 at 2:30 PM EDT.
Respectfully submitted,
Karen Olstad
Secretary