Tag Archives: Florida Public Media
Jeff George Appointed Director – Florida Public Radio Emergency Network
May 12, 2022 – The University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications (UFCJC) today announced that meteorologist Jeff George will join the College as Chief Meteorologist and Director of the Florida Public Radio Emergency Network (FPREN) on May 31, 2022.
George will have oversight over both FPREN and the South Carolina Emergency Information Network, which are partners with the states of Florida and South Carolina, respectively, to provide online weather and other emergency information to public media outlets throughout the states.
He will also oversee the WUFT Weather Department, which provides weather updates on public media stations WUFT-TV and WUFT-FM, and commercial TV station WRUF-TV. The department consists two meteorologists and a producer/editor who focuses on public safety and emergency management content for public television and radio stations in Florida and South Carolina. George will also manage the Meteorologist in Training program within the College and its various media properties.
George most recently was chief meteorologist at KOKH-TV in Oklahoma City for 15 years. In that role, he won awards for the best severe weather coverage from the Associated Press. Prior to that, he served as meteorologist or chief meteorologist at stations in Toledo, Ohio, Abilene, Texas, and Bismarck, North Dakota.
George was active duty in the U.S. Air Force from 1991 – 2000. Starting in 2019, he served as an Equal Opportunity Advisor for the U.S. Air Force Reserve at Tinker Air Force Base in Oklahoma, and will continue in that role at a Florida base, where he will be responsible for promoting a positive human relations environment and providing advice, consultation, education, mediation, and referral services to enhance mission effectiveness.
From 2016-2019, he was a weather forecaster for the Oklahoma Air National Guard Joint Task Force, where he provided lead weather support and acted as Meteorologist Liaison assisting in decision-making regarding natural disasters. From 1995-2000, he was a weather forecaster for the U.S. Air Force.
As Chief Meteorologist in Oklahoma City, George was heavily involved in the community as spokesman or emcee for JDRF, Special Olympics, and the Susan G. Komen Foundation, and served as Executive Board Member for the American Lung Association, IMCI (It’s My Community Initiative), and OK Bikes 4 Kids. He created and published the cookbook Firehouse Favorites with proceeds benefiting local children’s hospital, and created a weather safety program targeted to elementary students called Future Forecasters.
WLRN Named Station of Year by Broadcasters
WLRN in Miami was named Overall Station of the Year by the Florida Association of Broadcast Journalists during its annual awards ceremony in Orlando this weekend.
The station also won first place awards for Breaking News and Education Reporting (Series).
It shared a first place award with WJCT in Jacksonville for producing the statewide public affairs program, The Florida Roundup. The program is hosted by WLRN’s Tom Hudson and WJCT’s Melissa Ross.
It also shared first place awards with WUSF in Tampa/St. Pete for Series (Franchise-Hard) and Feature Reporting (Cultural & Historic).
WLRN’s Leslie Ovalle won an individual award for producing.
“The work by WLRN and all of the public radio stations in Florida is remarkable,” said Patrick Yack, executive director of Florida Public Media.
“It is deeply satisfying to see them recognized by these awards.”
WLRN also was part of a statewide news initiative, Class of COVID-19, which won a first place award for Digital Programming. Stations throughout the state contributed to the initiative.
WUSF won numerous first place awards including:
Best Radio Newscast, Continuing Coverage, General Assignment Reporting,
General Assignment Reporting (Long), Series (Franchise Light), Feature Reporting (Hard), Use of Sound, Online/Digital, Sports Reporting,
Investigative Reporting, Investigative Reporting (Series), Health Reporting (Single) and Health Reporting (Series).
Kerry Sheridan of WUSF won an individual award for reporting. WUSF also was part of the Class of COVID-19 project.
Other first place award awards won by Florida public radio stations included:
Climate/Environmental Reporting (Single). WMFE. Orlando.
Environmental Reporting (Series). WUWF. Pensacola.
Consumer, Financial, Economic Reporting. WUFT. Gainesville/Ocala.
Series/Franchise (Hard). WUFT.
Feature Reporting (Light). WGCU. Ft. Myers/Naples.
Weather Reporting. WFSU. Tallahassee.
Political/Government/Election Reporting (Single). WMFE.
Political/Government/Election Reporting (Series) WUWF.
WUWF’s Pat Crawford Wins Distinguished University Award
April 1, 2022 – WUWF‘s veteran executive director Pat Crawford was awarded the University of West Florida Marion Viccars Award.
This award was established to recognize superior service of university employees for substantial contributions, outstanding performance, and professionalism impacting operations, service excellence, inter-departmental effectiveness, and community involvement.
WUWF Public Media)
In addition to this milestone, 2022 marks Crawford’s 40th anniversary with WUWF Public Media.
“We are proud of Pat for winning this prestigious award,” said Patrick Yack, executive director of Florida Public Media.
“Pat has made many lasting contributions to WUWF, the university and the community. We can all be thankful for his dedicated service.”
WFSU, WJCT, WGCU Chosen for Poynter’s Table Stakes Program
The Poynter Institute
March 15, 2022 – The Poynter Institute, a global leader in journalism, fact-checking and media literacy education, announced the 14 news organizations selected for Table Stakes: Poynter’s Local News Innovation Program in 2022.
Among the newsrooms selected include Florida public radio stations: WFSU (Tallahassee), WJCT (Jacksonville) and WGCU (Ft. Myers/Naples).
This is the fifth year of the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation-funded and Poynter-facilitated initiative to accelerate digital transformation and sustainability in local news.
More than 60 newsrooms across the United States have realized their performance challenges through Poynter’s program since 2017, while also adapting to the coronavirus pandemic, intensifying racial reckoning and ongoing business model changes.
The Florida initiatives include:
Jacksonville Today, a product of WJCT Public Media, Jacksonville,
FloridaParticipants: Jessica Palombo, Editorial Director; Ray Hollister, Digital Director; and Pete Havens, Local Journalism Business and Donor Relations Manager
Our new digital news offering, Jacksonville Today, launched in October 2021 as a weekday email newsletter, giving readers a concise rundown of top local news, along with original reporting, ways to get civically involved, opinion columns and more. As we build on our initial success, we are hoping the Table Stakes challenge tracking process will help us grow our base of subscribers and engage our audience in new ways, all while building a more diverse team within our newsroom.
WFSU Public Media, Tallahassee, Florida
Participants: David Mullins, GM; Lynn Hatter, News Director; Patricia Moynihan, Digital Director; Kim Kelling, Director of Content; and Crystal Cumbo, Corporate Support
This program is critical in helping us reorient our newsroom on the importance of building our digital audiences. We know that growing audiences will translate to more members and better future outcomes for the station.
WGCU Public Media, Fort Myers, Florida
Participants: Amy Shumaker, Associate General Manager of Content; Corey Lewis, General Manager; and Pamela James, Executive Producer of Content
Our Executive team is leading our entire staff through organizational change to meet the changing needs of our audience. Poynter’s 2022 Tables Stakes program ensures that we will meet our goals and ambitions with greater ease and clarity. Poynter has been there before and we are happy to take their guidance.
Zimmerman Named GM of WMNF – Tampa
Randi M. Zimmerman has been named General Manager of WMNF-FM in Tampa.
Zimmerman, who previously worked for WMNF as a headline news anchor between 1998 and 2005, will assume her role on February 21, 2022.
“Randi is a seasoned professional and we are proud to welcome her back to WMNF and our Tampa Bay community,” said WMNF Board President Isha Del Valle.
Zimmerman co-created and anchored the WMNF Evening News with Mitch Perry, winning the “Exceptional News and Public Affairs Programming” award for her work.
She also developed and taught a practicum in broadcast management at the University of Tampa, teaching students to run their radio station from a non-commercial perspective.
WMNF if a member of Florida Public Media.
Smelser Named President, GM of WMFE – Orlando
Veteran journalist and broadcaster Judith Smelser has been named President and General Manager of WMFE-FM in Orlando.
Smelser had been serving as WMFE/WMFV’s interim President and General Manager since September 2021.
She has a long history with the station as an award-winning reporter and news director, according to an announcement by the station’s board.
“After a nationwide search and interviewing a number of well qualified candidates, we have selected Judith as the person to lead the station on a permanent basis,” said Donna Mackenzie, Chair of WMFE/WMFV’s Board of Trustees.
“Judith embodies the qualities and experience we believe will allow the station to reach its full potential, enhancing and building the focus on journalism and service to our community.”
Mackenzie announced Smelser’s permanent position to station staff on February 8.
“My ambition was never to lead a station,” Smelser said. “But for me, WMFE is not just any station. My career has taken me all over the country and given me a unique perspective on the challenges and opportunities facing public media and journalism; now I get to put that experience to work for an organization and a community I love and consider my home.”
WMFE broadcasts throughout the greater Orlando area. WMFV broadcasts in The Villages and surrounding communities.
WMFE is a member of Florida Public Media, the professional association of public broadcasters in the state.
Florida Public Media Stations Win Suncoast Emmys
Five Florida Public Media stations were honored with 14 Suncoast Emmy Awards this year.
They included: WEDU PBS, WFSU Public Media, WLRN Public Radio and Television, WPBT2 South Florida PBS, and WUCF TV.
The Suncoast Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences is a nonprofit Florida corporation dedicated to excellence in television.
It offers the annual Regional EMMY® Awards called The Suncoast Regional EMMY® Awards to television markets in the entire State of Florida, Alexandria, Baton Rouge, Lafayette, Lake Charles and New Orleans, Louisiana, Mobile, Alabama, Thomasville, Georgia and Puerto Rico.
“The Chapter is composed of professional people who work in television or students who are studying television in colleges or universities and aspire to become professionals.”
FPM Elects Mullins Chair, Grove Vice Chair, Adds McGowan
The board of Florida Public Media elected David Mullins, General Manager, WFSU Public Media, as its new chair in a special election. Mullins succeeds Phil Hoffman, former Executive Director of WUCF-FM/TV (Orlando).
The board also added David McGowan, President and CEO of WJCT Public Media (Jacksonville) as its At-Large member of the Executive Committee.
Other members chosen for the Executive Committee include:
- Vice Chair. Paul Grove. President and CEO. WEDU-TV. (Tampa-St. Petersburg)
- Treasurer. Amy Shumaker, Associate General Manager – Content, WGCU-FM/TV (Ft. Myers/Naples)
- Secretary. Chris Puorro, Station Manager of WQCS-FM (Ft. Pierce)
- Immediate Past Chair. Randy Wright, Executive Director, WUFT-FM/TV(Gainesville/Ocala)
Florida Public Media (FPM) is the organization of 24 public radio and public television stations in the state. The stations broadcast programming by NPR and PBS, and a wide range of news, public affairs, and music programs.
TV members provide the main distribution of The Florida Channel, and radio members serve as the backbone of the Florida Public Radio Emergency Network (FPREN).
FPREN is headquartered at WUFT on the campus of The University of Florida in Gainesville.
FPM is the state’s leader in educational programming and emergency communications.
Weinstein Named Winner of Public Media Innovation Award
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – July 27, 2021
WFSU’s Tasha Weinstein was named the 2021 winner of the Janyth Righter Innovation Award by the board of Florida Public Media during the group’s July annual meeting.
The award is given to a staff member at one of the organization’s 24 public radio and television stations for their entrepreneurial and innovative leadership.
Weinstein is the Public Media Education and Engagement Manager at WFSU-TV/FM in Tallahassee. She was selected for her innovative response to delivering engaging educational content to educators and families during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Florida Public Media is delighted to honor Tasha Weinstein with this year’s award,” said Patrick Yack, Executive Director of Florida Public Media. “She brings enthusiasm, passion, and a strong commitment to her job, to WFSU and most importantly – to the parents, students, and teachers of the Big Bend area.”
“She works tirelessly to tie the ongoing important work of PBS and WFSU to the Tallahassee community. Tasha is a nationally recognized leader in education, and we are fortunate to have her part of our public media family.”
A signature program for WFSU is the Summer Challenge, a program aimed at preventing summer learning loss in children. Weinstein produced a one-hour broadcast special around the theme of Mountains, Hills & Mounds that took children to various sites in the area to learn about the region’s geology. She linked the content to digital resources and worked with partner organizations to build on this theme.
Weinstein is also credited with leading an effort to tie the PBS KIDS program Molly of Denali to the Muscogee people of Florida. She and her education team created a “virtual” museum that provided a wealth of resources and information about Native American people, their culture, history, and stories.
Pivoting this project from an in person “pop-up” museum to a virtual one allowed WFSU to reach more people with this project and she developed a workshop model for educators to better understand how to use this resource.
“Tasha is a dynamo who has taken the WFSU Education Program to new heights,” said Kim Kelling, WFSU Director of Content & Community Partners.
“Everything she approaches is done with the mindset of how we can be more effective in reaching underserved children and families. With a pandemic impacting in person work for the past 16 months, Tasha has been instrumental in rethinking how we do our work and how we can engage the community. She has worked across all of our departments at WFSU to achieve that goal.”
Established in 2017, the award is named in honor of Janyth Righter, the former executive director of Florida Public Media and a pioneer in public broadcasting in Florida.
Past winners include:
Jeff Huffman – WUFT-TV/FM. Gainesville/Ocala. 2017.
Catherine Hiles – WUCF-TV. Orlando. 2018.
Brent Burton – WSRE-TV. Pensacola. 2019.
Penelope Douglas. WPBT-TV. Miami. 2020.
WFSU TV/FM broadcasts throughout Florida panhandle and south Georgia. Florida Public Media is a professional association made up of the NPR and PBS stations in Florida.
Hoffman Elected FPM Chair; Puorro At-Large Officer
ST. PETERSBURG, Fl. – July 27, 2021
The association of public media elected Phil Hoffman, Executive Director WUCF-TV/FM (Orlando), as its new chair during the group’s annual board meeting this month.
The board also added Chris Puorro, station manager of WQCS-FM (Ft. Pierce) as its At-Large member of the Executive Committee.
“It’s an honor to be asked to serve Florida Public Media,” Hoffman said.
“Public media plays a critically important role in bringing our local communities important information…whether it’s educational content for children, thoughtful programs from Ken Burns, Nova and Nature, or highly trusted reporting from some of the country’s best reporters. Public media has always had a mission to serve all people with great content. FPM enables Florida stations to do that well.”
“I’m thankful to my colleagues across the state for choosing me to be a part of the executive team at Florida Public Media,” Puorro said.
“We look forward to continuing the public media collaborations that have provided our listeners and viewers with a wide array of content, and helped to keep them safe and informed during challenges.”
The board also elected these others officers:
– Vice Chair: David Mullins, General Manager, WUSF-FM/TV (Tallahassee)
– Treasurer: Amy Shumaker, Associate General Manager – Content, WGCU-FM/TV (Ft. Myers/Naples)
– Secretary: Paul Grove, President and CEO, WEDU-TV (Tampa/St. Petersburg)
– Immediate Past Chair: Randy Wright, Executive Director, WUFT-FM/TV(Gainesville/Ocala)
Florida Public Media (FPM) is the organization of 24 public radio and public television stations in the state. The stations broadcast programming by NPR and PBS, and a wide range of news, public affairs, and music programs.
TV members provide the main distribution of The Florida Channel, and radio members serve as the backbone of the Florida Public Radio Emergency Network (FPREN). FPREN is headquartered at WUFT on the campus of The University of Florida in Gainesville.
FPM is the state’s leader in educational programming and emergency communications.
