In 2019, Joshua Johnson left 1A, a nationally syndicated public affairs show produced by WAMU in Washington, D.C., and distributed by NPR, for MSNBC. Unlike some predecessors, Lansing doesn't face a particularly fraught political landscape. And its tied to the same variables you would know yourselves, which is, how fast can the vaccines be deployed? As we moved through the summer, that deficit remained at about $25 million. NPR On an annual budget of roughly $300 million, Lansing says, revenues are likely to fall short by close to $30 million, although that gap could reach $32 million. So its a constant commitment to communication, to training, to accountability. NPR Facebook Post with Comments. So Im pleased to see that that short era is over. Lansing also spoke to Current about the challenges of implementing his DEI plans, the organizations financial outlook and his thoughts about the recent controversies at USAGM. Were they targeted to specific spending areas or just for general costs? Copyright 2023. Weve seen a gradual comeback. It shouldn't be on any journalists of color, or anybody of color, to have to go and 'solve this problem' in somebody's company. Four years ago, Lansing was named by President Barack Obama to be the first chief executive of the broadcasting outfit that was renamed the U.S. Agency for Global Media. It was a reckoning for all of us together collectively at NPR. What we now call the North Star of our strategic plan is our DEI efforts as it filters through everything that we do with all of our work. Mohn fired head of news Michael Oreskes on Halloween 2017. Prior to that, Lansing was VP and GM of Scripps ABC affiliates. NPR will cut 10% of its workforce, CEO John Lansing said Wednesday. And its something that I think will strengthen the ability for news programming, marketing and member services to be more responsive and to offer greater service to audiences in a more agile way. John Lansing is a former Obama appointee who was named president and CEO of NPR on Thursday. The emphasis, he says, must be on drawing in "the future audience to make NPR sustainable for the next 50 years. He will now lead the nation's top audio producer and broadcaster. That's something that perceptive journalists should be able to pick up pretty quickly. The budget for the new fiscal year is set below last years actual based on our forecasts on continued downward pressure on corporate sponsorship. ", "It's always difficult in these situations, and I don't want to minimize the impact that it will have on our colleagues and in some cases, you know, our ability to do what we do," Lee says. I hear that all the time. As I said, its hiring, its emphasis on diversity in leadership, diversity in sources, diversity in voices, diversity in the stories we tell, training around our organization. Current: Why are NPR and its partners looking to sell the Pocket Casts podcast app? "However, when you think how we look out longer term, right, not just for 20 years, but several years out, it's really about building a sustainable financial future for NPR.". He defined NPR's mission as "serving the public with information and an excellence and quality about it that makes it 'must see' on a variety of platforms.". CEO John Lansing says ad revenue for podcasting shriveled even as general economy seems on mend. He has previously announced he would be staying on as president emeritus to help the network raise major gifts, and along with his wife, Pamela Mohn, he personally committed $10 million to the network. Were working with member stations on topic teams for, say, political reporting or criminal justice reporting across the system. John Lansing, a media executive with government broadcast and cable television experience, has been named by NPRs board to succeed its current chief, Jarl Mohn who announced the plan to step down after his 5-Year term ended. We had begun a lot of work under [Chief Diversity Officer] Keith Woods' leadership to really move us forward. NPR has a new CEO. I just think we have a special and unique thing as a company. How are you working to shore up NPRs place in the podcasting landscape and compete with deep-pocketed tech companies? Coming into public media, which I love, I noticed something that would be unusual in commercial media, in that there really wasnt a great investment in marketing podcasting to outside audiences off of our platforms. The second pillar is to transform our workplace culture. We've made some good forward progress around hiring, with requiring that our hiring panels be diverse, requiring that our finalists have diverse representation at a minimum, but of course there's no maximum, in terms of a list of finalists. Current: With broadcast listening declining during the pandemic, what is NPR doing to address and adjust to those trends? It has become enshrined in our three-year strategic plan as the centerpiece of all of our work. According to Nielsen data supplied by NPR, its programs and newscasts had an overall audience of 27.4 million in spring 2019. The union represents 570 people at NPR. I, and the management team, all of us, we determined that was going to be a priority for the year 2021. Every time I hear it, I think that's a success by itself because we all have that as our guiding light. Lansing: That was conducted back in September. Share Your Design Ideas, New JerseysMurphy Defends $10 Billion Rainy Day Fund as States Economy Slows, What Led to Europes Deadliest Train Crash in a Decade, This Week in Crypto: Ukraine War, Marathon Digital, FTX. There's always going to be things here and there that have to be worked out, because that's just the way a company is, but I've never been in a company before where it was so understood that we're here to serve the American people. Its not something weve baked and were just going to hand it down. Built with the Largo WordPress Theme from the Institute for Nonprofit News. U.S. Agency for Global Media We discovered in our most recent climate survey that that was an area that we needed to put more effort into. We did a climate survey of our employees, and we learned about a particular weak spot for us with women of color at NPR who didn't feel it was a place to grow their career, a place to be their whole selves, a place where they are seen and respected. Lansing, who is 62, is. Lansing served for ten years as a visiting faculty member at the Poynter Institute for Media Studies. Mr. Lansing, who began his career as a teenage cameraman at a television station in Kentucky, spent two decades at Scripps Networks. "We are delighted to welcome John, whose deep experience as a media industry executive and practicing journalist make him ideally suited to lead NPR into its next chapter," said Paul Haaga, Chair of the NPR board. As President, he held strategic and operational oversight of Scripps Networks Digital division and Scripps Networks Interactive, which includes six cable networks: Food Network, HGTV, Travel Channel, DIY, Cooking Channel and Great American Country. It is our work our North Star and our work are the same thing. John Lansing, a veteran government broadcast and cable television executive, has been selected by NPR's corporate board to succeed its current chief, Jarl Mohn. Lansing also spent almost 20 years working at Scripps, including eight years as President of Scripps Networks. Now, he says, it must drum up more creative income sources, like the licensing of the popular show How I Built This to Amazon's streaming services, which he says generates $8 million annually. Experts say the behavior could have constituted insider trading. ", Lansing, formerly a top television executive for the E.W. But after the pandemic hit in mid-March, we got together with our cohort and said, Why wait 18 months? promoting Keith Woods to chief diversity officer, regional newsrooms in Texas and California and the Midwest and in the Gulf, I brought in Michael Smith as our new chief marketing officer, looking to sell the Pocket Casts podcast app, Suspension of NPRs Kroc fellowships disrupts talent development, career plans of student journalists. What was it like for you to watch that happen? Such distinctions between news and programming are tricky, however, as programming oversees podcasts, including those that perform journalistic functions, such as Code Switch, It's Been A Minute, Planet Money, and Throughline. Under his leadership NPR has been reaching new audiences as the country's top podcast publisher and through platforms like smart-speakers and connected cars. So its an ongoing effort. Current: Do you have any examples of how digital operations would be integrated into divisions throughout the organization? Current: What challenges have you faced in implementing your DEI plans? Lansing, 62, who is currently chief executive officer of the government agency that oversees Voice of America, Radio and Television Mart and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, among others . Pozen Fellow At the Shorenstein Center. While member stations on average receive about 10% of their funding from the federal government, fees from the stations make up a significant part of the NPR budget. I subscribe to the notion of leadership as a servant leader, that the role of leaders is to support the team to do their best work. I established DEI as our top priority on Jan. 5 of 2020. Vox Media cut jobs by 7%; Gannett and Spotify by 6%. Lansing says even that proved overly optimistic. ", "I am thrilled to work with NPR's exceptional management team, staff and journalists," said Lansing. After becoming part of Warner Bros. How cool is it to be at NPR? So I think thats being offset by some listening through smart speakers and even online, and thats helping to offset some of the reduction in listening within vehicles. Current: How much were those anonymous gifts? I would enjoy being on a podcast talking about politics. It goes on to say that Mr. Lansing, 62, is currently the chief executive of the government agency, The U.S. Agency for Global Media, that oversees Voice of America, Radio and Television Marti, and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, among others. We can share resources and story ideas, and we can help organize and support those efforts. NPR's John Lansing Discusses the Importance of Integrity in Journalism By Nicole Jones - October 30, 2020 0 463 NPR National President and CEO John Lansing joined the Belmont community for a conversation about integrity in journalism, highlighting its importance especially during an election year. But were going to continue to follow up on that going into this year. "In terms of mission, understanding of media, the depth of experience, his strategic leadership, his commitment to people and culture, I would say those were really the key things that we were looking for," said Goli Sheikholeslami, vice chairwoman of the NPR board of directors and CEO of Chicago Public Media. And it really opened the funnel. You have stated that DEI is your top priority at NPR. I dont know if youve been on the highway recently, but theres a lot more traffic on the highway today than there would have been last May and June. With a nationwide network of award-winning journalists and 17 international bureaus, NPR and its Member Stations are never far from where a story is unfolding. If you had to create a podcast, what would it be about? Current: When was the climate survey conducted? LANSING, John, Jr., (Uncle of Gerrit Yates Lansing), a Delegate from New York; born in Albany, N.Y., January 30, 1754; studied law in Albany and in New York City; was admitted to the bar in 1775; secretary to General Schuyler 1776 and 1777; engaged in the practice of law in Albany in 1778; member of the State assembly 1781-1784, 1786, and 1789, and served as speaker in 1786 and 1789; Member of . And what a breath of fresh air Whitney brings into the organization. It's not just what happened this week on the Hill, although that's important. I remember we had several all-staff discussions about a variety of issues that branched off of that, including the Code of Conduct, for example, as it relates to NPR employees at public demonstrations. Your email address will not be published. So I wouldn't create a politics podcast because there are too many, and we have the best one of many already. Were finishing up in the next two to three weeks the specific lists of actions and activities under these pillars. Not exactly. In recent remarks online, Johnson, who is Black, focused on a more competitive landscape for NPR journalists, including people of color. Certainly in the aftermath of the George Floyd murder on Memorial Day weekend, our efforts accelerated and we doubled down on communication, training and listening. And were pleased to work with them. Lansing: We arent in a position to answer that until we know for sure when the pandemic is going to subside. Considering the demise of local newspapers around the country and the growth of our member stations newsrooms around the country, were really working hard to support their local journalism, because its so important to us. NPR undertook a strategic reorganization last fall, reinstating the position of a chief content officer overseeing both the newsroom and the programming division. The work of those pillars will be done through the lens of improving our efforts on DEI. And so I had a very visceral reaction to that happening in my hometown, and that it was so egregious the murder of an innocent person captured on video, on a phone. He promises NPR will build on its mission and values but adds, ""This will be a major loss." My story: npr.org NPR says it's cutting jobs by 10% as ad revenue drops Others have waded into the podcast fray with a vengeance. NPR strives to create a more informed publicone challenged and invigorated by a deeper understanding and appreciation of events, ideas, and cultures. NPR was seen to align itself with federal workers at VOA who essentially conducted an internal uprising on government time, while NPR made quite clear in its coverage where it stood. Yet the tech and media industries' prospects stand at odds with a tight labor market and low unemployment more broadly. What steps does NPR still need to take in this area? So we were pleased to see SAG-AFTRA join our efforts. During the depths of the Covid-19 pandemic, NPR was at risk of laying off staff when sponsors canceled their spots on the network, said John Lansing, NPR's chief executive. At the same time, we have to think creatively. He soon made DEI the top priority at NPR. The agency has an annual budget of $808 million. Tech companies that also rely heavily on advertising are undergoing layoffs too. He will be the 11th permanent president or chief executive in the radio network's nearly 50-year history. Learn more at npr.org/about or by following NPR Extra on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Scripps Company, Held senior management positions at Scripps-owned affiliates, including WEWS TV in Cleveland, Ohio and WXYZ TV in Detroit, Michigan, Early in his career Award-winning Photojournalist and Field Producer, Assignment Manager, Managing Editor, and News Director at several television stations. NPR's president of operations, Loren Mayor, was the leading internal candidate for the chief executive position. NPR's chief news executive, Nancy Barnes, said Friday she would be leaving the network, prompted by NPR CEO John Lansing's decision to create a new executive role above her. Age: 62, Born on July 31, 1957, in Minneapolis Pat O'Donnell, the executive director of the union's Mid-Atlantic unit, could not be reached for comment for this story. Amazon, Google, Meta and Microsoft have announced more than 50,000 job cuts combined in just the past few months. Discovery, CNN cut hundreds of jobs and killed off its brand-new streaming service, CNN+. And how's that being measured and accounted for? The ratings have tanked because all they talk about is race. Mohn had promised to attract major contributions to NPR before the end of his tenure; to date he has not landed the major eight- and nine-figure donations his stated aspirations suggested. Its something that we certainly support. Lansing also elevated to chief strategy officer a former U.S. State Department staffer who recently pleaded guilty to having defrauded the U.S. Agency for Global Media out of more than $40,000 in government money in 2018, according to federal prosecutors. Obviously, this job that you have as a CEO of NPR is a really huge responsibility. I think you have to be willing to take hard questions. Lansing blamed a slowdown in advertising dollars. People, given the opportunity, will do the right thing in a way that hopefully makes them want to be here for a long time. Lansing, who is . CEO John Lansing discusses NPRs diversity efforts, budget deficit and growing podcast competition. At Colorado Public Radio, I think there was a $300,000 donation that came out of that. Way back when, I was a news cameraman. We established management commitments to the women of color so that we address specifically their concerns. And theyre all expected to articulate a DEI goal thats measurable, actionable, and that they can be held accountable for and will be. You hear me say fairly often it's not a thing that's going to end; it's really a new way of operating with an awareness of this weakness that we need to address and build upon and ensure that it lives on and continues to improve. Why did you undertake this? What is the outlook for the rest of the fiscal year? And I had a lot of interest in how my former team was being treated, but more importantly, just as an American citizen, how the work of USAGM through VOA [Voice of America] and RFE/RL [Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty] was threatening to undermine the interests of the United States government by politicizing journalism that was meant by law to be free of political interference. So I would tell my younger self to be confident, calm down, it's all gonna work out. Selected by the NPR board of directors, Lansing will start in October, succeeding outgoing head Jarl Mohn, Leading the organization through it all is CEO John Lansing, a longtime media executive who has been on the job since October 2019. Or 'How are we doing on the North Star?' Mr. Mohn led the push into podcasting and helped stabilize the organization after years of management turnover and budget deficits. Within a few weeks, Lansing became convinced that projection would be unreachable. He made his mark in his current job with stirring defenses of journalism, free from government interference. Today, those individual situations are happening in the background when everybody's working, whether it's kids that are school age, or kids that are toddlers, or elder care, or spouses working in the same room or in the same apartment. Sometimes you have to hear other people's truth and accept it for what it is, not translate it into your truth, therefore it's no longer what it is. In 2017, Michael Oreskes, NPRs senior vice president for news, left after two women accused him of unwanted physical advances in the 1990s, when he was the Washington bureau chief of The New York Times. We need help now. So we began an intensive set of Zoom meetings that I attended, each one with a member station and a qualified potential donor. Current: Is there a timeline for that process? hide caption. NPR faces financial pressures from two fronts. NPR CEO Jarl Mohn To Step Down After 5-Year Term Ends In June, Tensions Build In NPR Newsroom Over Handling Of Sexual Harassment Allegations, NPR Announces Newsroom Job Cuts Amid Restructuring. NPR has a new CEO. Mohn led NPR through five consecutive years of audience growth and budget surplus. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Current is an editorially independent, nonprofit service of the American University School of Communication. National Public Radio (NPR) CEO John Lansing announced in a Wednesday memo that the network will lay off 10 percent of its staff and freeze vacant positions. Then I moved on to manage TV stations and cable networks. I think there's an awareness, like in the way you asked the question about 'our North Star.' She really has helped us, and she's brought discipline to a process that in the past might have been people talking past each other a little bit and waiting for things to blow over.

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