NPR News Chief Michael Oreskes' Remarks At PRNDI 2017
Remarks delivered by Senior Vice President of News and Editorial Director Michael Oreskes at the Public Radio News Directors conference in Miami, on June 23, 2017
Good morning,
It has been two years since I first joined you here at PRNDI.
I was just a few months into my new job and I began by apologizing for the many sins of NPR. And then I tried to paint an ambitious but achievable goal.
I said I hoped we could work together to achieve the same level of dysfunction between NPR and Member stations that already existed within NPR.
So today I want to thank all of you and say we are well on our way to that goal.
Ok, seriously, we have achieved a lot. We are cooperating and collaborating and coordinating to produce exceptional, award-winning journalism.
In fact, can I take a moment to brag about us?
The Edward R. Murrow Awards were announced this week. Basically, there was public radio and everybody else.
316 prizes altogether and 235 of them were won by public radio.
Congratulations to all of us.
But we are winning more than awards. We are seeing the power of independent journalism in serving the country.
Our biggest reward has been the audiences flocking to us. You all know the numbers. It is not just that public radio is up double digits since 2015...
More than four million new listeners.
Our audiences are growing far faster than commercial news competitors.
We are delivering journalism that audiences
