Main Street, Wyoming; 1101; Paula Kerger Intv.

What's the future of public television for holding PBS checks in with the mothership with PBS CEO and president Paula Kerger JQ troubles with the UN. Lun mean. Well hello and welcome to Main Street Wyoming. I'm Jeff and Kara. And tonight we'll be talking with the Public Broadcasting Systems CEO and president Paula Kerger. Welcome to the show. Thank you. Well so you began with PBS in 2006 and before that you were with the education Broadcasting Corporation in New York. Yes overseeing one of the biggest PBS stations in the system w any team in New York. Now you're talking to one of the smallest stations in the system Wyoming PBS and there's lots of things to cover. New technology changing markets all kinds of stuff. And of course whatever good programs you've got coming up. But I think I want to start off by asking you what's happening to television. That's what everybody wants to know. Well it's amazing we're going through probably the biggest change that has

ever happened in the history of our history and it's affecting everyone commercial television and public television as well. You know for years for decades we watched television in a very simple way we said living room we set our bedroom around the kitchen table and we stared into that box and we all watched The Cosby Show us and we all watched it together almost as a collective national experience but now media is available everywhere I was just at a gas station and there were heat. State sets actually on top of every pump. If you go into a cab in New York City there's a TV screen that's on the back of the of the seat of the of the cab. People watch television on their computers they watch television on their iPods they watch television on their cell phones. And so the way that people are accessing content now has has changed profoundly and all of the media is now really grappling with what does that mean. What is it mean when you're no longer several networks and public television. But now many many distribution points of where to see material and

all the media seem to be struggling newspapers are struggling rehabs are struggling it's just so diverse and in a way it's pervasive but it's also there's such variety that isn't the same point well it's exciting in a way. I mean having worked for so many years in creating content and scheduling it so carefully on television and then hoping that on a given night that enough people know that you have a program on and that come that program is is you know is it's been a challenge for broadcasters for many years that the opportunity to create something. That shows on the television broadcast schedule but also that a viewer can access any time they want to access it whether it's through on demand to the television or whether it's their computer really is empowering and exciting. But the key question which you just raised is how do you rise above the fray. How do you make sure that people can find you in this complicated media landscape. And that's one of the great challenges. Well let's we're going to talk about all that I think. I want to start off by giving people a little more information about what PBS actually is how it operates how it relates to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. So

let's talk about that I mean I think a lot of people may think that PBS is in fact kind of the national network that comes out of the government and stuff and I think that's not quite the way you say you know where we're set up a little differently than I think. Certainly we're set up differently than commercial broadcasters as this is not a network public broadcasting is different because it is comprised of individual stations in this country there are three hundred fifty six individual stations that each have their own boards that are completely autonomous. They are locally owned and locally government. And so those stations decide what they're going to broadcast what their schedule looks like and how they meet the needs of their community. The stations came together 40 years ago and decided that each individual station could do good work in the community. But if the stations pooled some of their resources together and created an organization like PBS they could do a couple things one they could create a national system that all the stations would be connected via satellite. They could also create programs like Sesame Street or great performances of The News Hour that really would benefit citizens

across the country and we could create a PBS study work which would amass content the people around the country could benefit from and so that's what PBS is it's the organization that does things that scale for. For the system the Corporation for Public Broadcasting is actually a quasi governmental organization and that's the entity that receives money from the federal government and then passes it to the local stations across the country. So it's a little confusing CPB PBS claiming PBS How does it tie together. But it's if you just remember that CPAC is the funding for that from the federal government. PBS is the membership organization that ties everyone together. And Wyoming PBS is the station that's on the ground that's in this community that's helping to serve the people here in this great state. And I don't know whether you pull all the numbers for all the stations nationwide but but do you have a sense or can you give us the numbers for how much of the money that supports public television. Comes from the federal government through CPB and how much is generated in other ways. Yeah nationally about 10

percent of our revenue comes from the federal government so I think that will surprise some people. And I think it does surprise people because I think people think that the federal government in essence funds us that's actually the model of Great Britain the BBC is funded by the taxes that UK citizens pay on television sets it's wholly government funded here in the United States we are funded through an annual appropriations process. We're given a little bit of money and then stations have to go out and raise the rest of the money to make the programming make possible. Now in Wyoming it's a little different because in parts of the country like a state like Wyoming where there are fewer people. The part of the station's budget that comes from the federal government is actually larger So in the case of Wyoming Public Broadcasting It's about 30 percent not 10. And in cases like my old station WMT it was a little less than 5 percent. And so that was the government's attempt to try to make sure that public television is accessible to all Americans and that in areas where there is a

greater ability to pay there are more people that could pay by being members of major donors to the station would not receive as large of federal subsidies. So that's that's really how it works. And in Wyoming we also get a fair amount of support the support from state government as well. That's right. We'll talk about some of the issues connected at the minute but I want to get back to CPB for a moment because I think right before you came in there was a fairly big controversy about the CPB and Ken Tomlinson was the chair then and were they trying to influence the content on PBS. Are you past that is that still going on that controversy the controversy is is is pretty much gone. The I think that there are a couple things during the Ken Tomlinson situation that I think are important to mention and one is the point that I referenced before is that the end of the day what ends up in Wyoming Public Broadcasting is not determined by anyone in Washington it's not determined by CPB and it's not determined by me. PBS It's determined by the wonderfully talented management team at Wyoming PBS they make the decisions of what ends up on the air. But I do think that we need to be very careful that there is a

firewall between our federal funding and the resources that come into public broadcasting and editorial freedom and that is something that I think we all need to be careful that that's preserve the current CEO of CPB Pat Harrison is a tireless champion on behalf of public broadcasting and so I think all this is quite well. They're on time and we work very closely in partnership together. OK and how much how do you get input at PBS from the member stations in terms of the kind of content you're producing on the national level. Well there are a number of ways we have a board and the board is comprised actually that have roughly have actually slightly more than half of the board are station managers in fact Ruby Calvert the CEO of Wyoming PBS was just elected to that board should be. Actually officially put on the board at our meeting in November so we have a lot of influence you are going to help a lot of us a lot. Here in Wyoming they could and and then we also have half of the board our light meter ship and a lot of those people that come aboard that are what we call a leaders are people that have served on boards of public broadcasting stations but we

also we work very closely with our stations we have a number of advisory boards to help us determine the work that we're doing and we listen very carefully with what our stations are telling us they want and frankly it's why I spend time on the road. It's one thing to sit in a meeting and listen to what people are thinking about and talking about it's another thing to travel around the country and to meet with the staff of public television stations and to hear really what the stations are worrying about what they're hearing in their community and also for me to have an opportunity to meet with donors and board members and people that are engaged in the community to hear their own stories of what they think is important what they feel we should be covering. And you can pass out some tips to I know you've been a very successful fundraiser believe NATO elsewhere so. Well I try to be helpful there as much as I can so I'll get one quick pitch. I will look into the camera and say it if you're not a member of Wyoming PBS you need to be a member because it is individual support that makes the station possible. OK well with that one. That means we go home we're done. I'm technology. Let's talk about that because I think I've seen I come from a newspaper background and you know

new technology is wiping out the old system of media systems of me you know. And to talk a little bit about what kind of adjustments you have to make and what you're making for television to survive in this world. Well in the newspaper example is an interesting one because if you talk to people in newspapers and I've spent a lot of time doing that a particular over the last couple years they'll tell you that their readership is actually increasing and it's increasing because people are not only buying newspapers or having newspapers delivered to their home but they're also reading online and so if you cume the two together the audiences are actually increasing the challenge is the resources because online advertising is about 10 cents on the dollar print advertising and so really how do you bring those two pieces together is a big challenge for us. We're spending a lot of time thinking about. Obviously the excitement of all the new media you know programs like Frontline for example have done an enormous amount of work online. In fact all of the last three seasons of frontline you can access if you go through PBS or go Wyoming

PBS dot org and you look at if you click on Frontline you can access interviews you can access programs and so forth so that's really all of the research. A lot of the research that has gone into programs you know and in the old days before online and so forth you know that was the stuff that ended up on the proverbial cutting room floor. But to be able to have more of that content available for people that are interested in diving deeper into subject matters is exciting. But we like everyone else we're trying to think about where does the revenue come from to support this trend so we're in slightly different situation in commercial media because we're not as worried about advertising revenue. But what we are worried about is to make sure that people that have historically supported innocent people that would be interested in supporting us know that their philanthropy needs to keep our journalism strong. We have a great example of of the significance of that a few years ago the founder of McDonald's Ray croc's widow made a very substantial contribution to

NPR. And as a as a bequest and that money went into NPR's opening foreign bureaus around the country really shoring up it's a journalistic next. Expertise that kind of father paid could have a transformative effect on public television as well. We are working closely with NPR to try to take advantage of their journalism but I think the need is so extreme and if you care about going beyond soundbites and if you really care about hearing news reports that are put in context and that are thoughtful you have to invest in in the journalism and that's what we're trying to do which is tremendous I mean that and I can say while in Wyoming as this tremendously under-covered environment yes there isn't much media out here. Yeah except the good work that you're doing here. Yes but you know seriously I look at I've I've spent a little time looking at the news while I've been here three and the work that you're doing and the work that the commercial stations here are doing is very different and interactive and is really trying to cover the issues

in at a substantive level and that I think is the role for public television is really to serve the public commercial media's Galo is not at the end of the day too. To be they're not going to judge their success I should say. At the end of the day by how many people they have transformed or are educated they are really accountable against a bottom line. Our bottom line our is is that the citizens that we're serving. And so that if you start from that premise your work is very different. That's true and in fact so much of the national media and the commercial media have pulled back. They have the staffs are shrinking they're not putting people on the field nearly as much. We look at all the kind of developments around here in energy in other fields and think My God there's so much to come out to the other and to really know your story about Britney Spears and so that I think it will make a difference and we will get them then I think that if you're interested in Britney Spears you've got lots of places to go for that information but you really want to know what's going on in the state. If you really want to know some of the key issues that are going on in the

country. We have an election coming up we've been port decisions to make. And so that kind of information is so tremendously important to our democracy. And that's why I feel passionately about our role in news and public affairs because I think it is important it is important for people to be informed and to know that the source that they're going to in this case public television is reliable and trusted that we've done our homework that we're not cutting corners and that we are trying to cover all points of view. Now your funding model being a little different from commercial television actually may have some advantages in this changing world and that is absolutely. But I do read and know that there are some cutbacks taking place yes corporate funding for the News Hour I know corporate funding for the NewsHour has been a big concern. And if you look at the funding credits for the news hours the next time you're watching the news over just look at the scroll at the end of the program and you'll see foundation after foundation after foundation. I worry a lot about the future of The News Hour. And I worry because I know that if we don't bring some more revenue in to help us keep that great journalistic enterprise

going we're going to have some real challenges and so I've been on the trail talking to foundations and talking to CEOs you know the News Hour has over the over the years benefited from forward thinking CEOs that recognize that the News Hour is a program that's watched by opinion leaders and by that I don't mean people in Washington necessarily alone. They're talking about teachers community leaders people that make a difference at the local level. And it's important that we keep the program strong. OK well let's talk about content that's a very popular example of some the content you only get on public television. Yeah. There has been some criticism in recent years the public TV has become more like commercial television the ads or the spots are longer for the folks who are helping to fund things. The some of the content seems to be more like what you would see on some of the cable television stations. How do you respond to that. Well in terms of the underwriting spots it is true that as we work with corporations they really are very interested in supporting public television but they also have their own messages that they want

to to put forward. They are in fact responding to their own shareholders who want to make sure that their marketing dollars are being well spent so we are we very carefully work with our corporate underwriters to make sure that the messages that they put forward are in fact appropriate in that meet our guidelines. We don't break programs as you know and we're very careful with the partnerships that we forge in terms of the content. I do disagree with you. I don't believe that the programming that you see on public television you find other places hold the answer. Well there may be a few. Well I'm actually we were the first place for ballroom dancing I think. Some folks followed us so. But look at Ken Burns say you know he had an extraordinary series last year on on World War 2. He has an amazing 12 hour series coming up this September on the national park system. He did a lot of shooting here in Wyoming as a matter of fact. American experience in the spring has a major multipart episode on Native American experience in this country a history that has

never been chronicled as carefully and thoughtfully as we will be doing. We Shall Remain we are focusing our work in really three areas News and Public Affairs which I talked about which I think is is a particular obligation and we're doing it at the National as well as the local level children's programming is the second area of focus I think that we have and I think you won't even argue with me on this a great and rich history of of really transforming children's lives beginning 40 years ago with Sesame Street and then moving forward with some programs that we've brought into the schedule this year Sid the science kid by the Henson Company which helps kids get really excited about learning about the world around them. And so we're looking to invest more resources in creating programs that aren't just fun for kids to watch but really help them prepare for school. And then the third area that I care a lot about which I don't see anywhere else is the arts. Where do you see anything in the visual arts on television where you actually see much of the performing arts as to where we're Can you hear opera.

Proper you can hear it on public television. NE was created as a cable company arts and entertainment very soon into its work they realized that they could make more money with reruns of CSI than they could by putting on artistic work and change the program lineup. They don't even call themselves arts and entertainment anyways and bravo bravo started out great guns with lots of arts programming and then had a success with some reality shows and now their biggest shows are programs like Top Chef and Project Runway shows I happen to like but are about creativity but are not the same kinds of programs that we produce in public broadcasting and so we're looking to do more of that kind of work because as well and that's distinctively the personality of public television which I think people do appreciate it also does as a demographic tilt towards an older audience. Of course you have those young people I do hear all the time about that good programming for educational programming and for younger people. It is really clear that. Over the years we've had a very large audience under five and a long very large

audience over 50 and I think that. But the interesting thing is and again as I travel around talk to a lot of people we have a lot of younger people that watch public television. We have. And not every program appeals to a wide audience that's the thing about being variety. Unlike a cable company like history where you do a very specific genre of programming but a lot of younger people are also coming to our website and we have not seeded doing interesting in cutting edge work we did a series last year in partnership with Wired magazine called Wired Science. We have a series this year with Neil deGrasse Tyson from the Hayden Planetarium called Nova Science now which is really you know has a much younger audience. So you know we try to be a little bit of both. But I think that. We probably do put a little more effort on younger children and older people because frankly the rest of commercial media ignores them. They don't really think that they're as big a market as sort of the younger audience and so I feel a certain obligation that they're better served. And if you have that public affairs and you have

areas that really aren't being covered by the more commercial operations that's for any particular other ways that you're trying to target a younger audience I know you do audience surveys every year studies are we do much more than just surveys we do to kind of analyze what what are people interested in what do they expect and what are they getting and what are you learning from. Yes well it's part of what has creating a little bit more science programming because we hear that there are a lot of younger people that are interested in public television type work that are interested in science and and so. And the other thing is that we are spending a fair amount of time now thinking about online and thinking about the material that we are putting up on our website in in video form because a lot of younger people are actually watching more television on their computer than they are on their TV sets. And we're trying to put material in places where they go because part of the problem I think is not so much always the programming or scheduling because I think it is interesting to a broad audience. It's just that people don't always think of PBS is the first place for them to go. And so we

do have material on YouTube. We do have material in places like iTunes and Hulu where younger people are going. And people are sampling things there and then they're coming to PBS or sometimes they're only watching things in these other places but it's I think thinking about where you have material is important thinking about the content and also really looking for opportunities younger people a lot of younger people are also interesting and interested in expressing themselves. And so having opportunities which were really starting to build up now where people can self-publish their own work I think is probably the next step for Public Broadcasting and something I think will also help to bring in a younger audience. And right now people can go to YouTube and the PBS aside and get a lot of these and I get a lot of these are women so you don't have to see it right when it comes you don't have to see it right when it comes and we have a big commitment independent film. And I think that's the other area as well where young people are very interested a lot of you know when I went to school people wanted to write The Great American Novel. Now a lot of young people go to school and they want to be filmmakers and so being an outlet of which we

have historically brought. A significant amount of independent film to a national audience is also a place I think where we get a younger audience of programmes like series like p o v and Independent Lens are also places that a lot of young people do get pushed at all about the question I hate to use the term fair and balanced but about you know balancing Bill Moyers or balancing one thing or another from people view maybe with another point of view it's not a problem at all for PBS. Well we think about it a lot because part of our job is to make sure that we are representing a multiplicity of viewpoints. And so I think obviously the place where I think we strike the absolute best balance is the News Hour and I think there is no one that could criticize the news hours having any agenda and I think that that is reflective of the fact that both Jim Lehrer and Gwen Eiffel are hosting two of the four or moderating two of the four presidential debates this year. But I think you know obviously with our news and public affairs work we do try to bring in different perspectives. And so yes we have people like Bill Moyers and we also have people

like Ben Wattenberg and you know we really try to bring in different points of view and in the work that we do. OK. We're going to run out of time in a while so let's let's have a little more fun than talk about the only thing that's coming. You get into these sort of serious political engine technological things but you know what's coming up and you mention a few things that are coming down the pike with PBS but what would have you got on the boiler plate that will be seen pretty soon. Well we have we have a lot of great things in the schedule for us so for this fall we're rolling out right now the next iteration and in masterpiece you know we went through this huge project this past year in trying to make Masterpiece Theater not only more exciting to viewers but also to bring some wonderful stories and so we have we had a great year this past year with all the Jane Austin this fall will have what we call masterpiece contemporary and some there's some very powerful films as part of Masterpiece Theater this year. Also this fall we're spending a fair amount of time really thinking about the elections of Frontline is doing a series called The Choice which they always

do which are in-depth biographies of the two candidates after the election. Actually I think two weeks after the election they are doing a program called the race which is really they've had reporters at it that's with both of the campaigns and they're going to talk about the campaigns themselves and try to dissect them a little bit and choice these big full fledged profiles will come out in the Tober But yes right show for the election. So all of our news and public affairs producers by the way are also doing additional programs. We are as we look into the beginning of the next year for kids. A lot of people remember fondly the electric company we have been working over the last couple years to sort of redo the electric company bring it back but to bring it back so that its exciting to temporary child and that is something that is coming in in the on the in the bright capital in January and so that's really exciting. The other thing I want to ask you in your tenure and we are almost out of time in your tenure what are some things you'd like to be able to say you've accomplished when you finish up your job at PBS. Well I think if the at the end of the day

what I would like to see for Public Broadcasting is that we get through this enormous sea change of technology with our public broadcasting stations around this country vital members of the communities that they serve. We have historically really served in many ways as a convener for community we've served as a megaphone for some of the great work that's happening in a community and a place really to bring people together to talk about both challenges and opportunities. And so at the end of the day when I walk out of this job and shut the lights off in my office and hand the keys to someone else I am hoping to leave behind a system that is strong that is robust that has stations in every part of this country serving the needs of local communities and really doing the kind of work that was envisioned when Public Broadcasting was created 40 years ago Wolf. Paul thank you very much for spending time with us we're at the Snake River Ranch and people hear the crackling of the fire they're probably more motivated and it is but it's been great having you here. The folks that our guest today has been Paula Kerger she is the president and CEO of one of PBS I was going to say well yes you're always welcome. And

you know coming out of this I thought I'll be talking to the top dog really to my boss and PBS and what I realize as we talk about the structure in the sense we're the boss and then you're working for us and we appreciate that. Thanks for joining us on Main Street Wyoming and come back and see us again.