They were on 250 stations and canceled it??? That seems pretty significant to claim it was a drag on their financials. Skye, I hope you take time to explore the profit motive here and elsewhere in public media. It goes against the ethos of what we believe these nonprofits should be. Wages for editors, executives, and talent are up across the board, and yet as you report here they can’t seem to fill roles in a timely manner for producers who run the damn show. And what’s more, they can’t explain why a valuable show for news consumers is being treated like an underperforming show on prime time cable. Public media is supposed to be above this. Maybe they change their ambitions, and maybe they rethink their focus, but the show doesn’t have to go away. Not if it’s on 250 stations.
Agree — and I'm definitely taking a harder look at pay structures and profit in mission-driven nonprofit radio/podcast orgs these days. I resisted including a link to this article in the piece, but it's eye-opening. If you or anyone reading this have insights re: executive pay (that's more current than currently available tax filings), please reach out to me at skyepillsatwork@gmail.com.
Just seeing this and I can tell you that most nonprofits don't publish nearly this much information (even though they should!) and avoid adding hosts and employees. This feels like an exception. But the most recent 990s (2021) should be available and last year's should be made available after tax filings.
I did look at WNYC but it's frustrating that I can only see up to 2021. I remember that Brian Lehrer was on there because he's a major earner - I think around $500,00 per year. He might have been the only host listed. Andrew Golis was around that same level but of course, we don't know what he's making now.
They were on 250 stations and canceled it??? That seems pretty significant to claim it was a drag on their financials. Skye, I hope you take time to explore the profit motive here and elsewhere in public media. It goes against the ethos of what we believe these nonprofits should be. Wages for editors, executives, and talent are up across the board, and yet as you report here they can’t seem to fill roles in a timely manner for producers who run the damn show. And what’s more, they can’t explain why a valuable show for news consumers is being treated like an underperforming show on prime time cable. Public media is supposed to be above this. Maybe they change their ambitions, and maybe they rethink their focus, but the show doesn’t have to go away. Not if it’s on 250 stations.
Agree — and I'm definitely taking a harder look at pay structures and profit in mission-driven nonprofit radio/podcast orgs these days. I resisted including a link to this article in the piece, but it's eye-opening. If you or anyone reading this have insights re: executive pay (that's more current than currently available tax filings), please reach out to me at skyepillsatwork@gmail.com.
https://gothamist.com/news/former-nypr-ceo-was-paid-almost-19-million-way-out
Just seeing this and I can tell you that most nonprofits don't publish nearly this much information (even though they should!) and avoid adding hosts and employees. This feels like an exception. But the most recent 990s (2021) should be available and last year's should be made available after tax filings.
I did look at WNYC but it's frustrating that I can only see up to 2021. I remember that Brian Lehrer was on there because he's a major earner - I think around $500,00 per year. He might have been the only host listed. Andrew Golis was around that same level but of course, we don't know what he's making now.