South Florida PBS Supports the Miami Dade School Board in its Efforts to Make WLRN All it Can Be!

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Miami Dade County Public Schools issued a request for proposals from qualified firms for media management services for WLRN Public Radio and Television in July.

South Florida PBS responded enthusiastically with a proposal that met all qualifications and offered innovative and constructive suggestions for enhancing the service of the WLRN stations to the community while providing a higher level of financial accountability. After a committee scored SFPBS as the highest of the two proposals, Superintendent Carvalho recommended that the School Board accept South Florida PBS’ proposal. Friends of WLRN has initiated a protest of the Superintendent’s recommendation, wanting to remain in place along with its affiliate.

The School Board will vote on Superintendent Carvalho’s recommendation of South Florida PBS soon and once approved by a majority of votes; it will pass. There has been some tenuous press generated by reporters who are either employed by the protestor or are in partnership with it. South Florida PBS would like to set the record straight on why we are the most qualified organization to manage WLRN Public Radio and Television:

• South Florida PBS is committed to keeping the “public” in public media – by listening to diverse communities through Listening Sessions which will include civic as well as M-DCPS leadership and responding with the presentation of world class local content on radio, television, digital outlets and classrooms.

• South Florida PBS has a proven record throughout our WPBT and WXEL’s combined 100-year history, in which we have produced and/or aired a multitude of programs that reflect the diversity of our South Florida communities. The 1970’s series, Que Pasa USA, created by WPBT2, was the first weekly television program to feature a bi-lingual Hispanic family on public television. More recently, original content distributed by South Florida PBS highlights our community’s local diversity; programs include Sweet Dillard, Major League Baseball, A Journey to the Soul of Guna Yala, Everyone has a Place, Haitian Voices, Taste the Florida Keys, Between the Covers, Café con Leche, Taste the Islands, La Cocina Cubana: Secretos de mi Abuela, Tradiciones, a Holiday Celebration and Your South Florida to name a few.

• South Florida PBS will ensure the broadest diversity of content possible, oversee collaborative scheduling, presentation, promotion, and fundraising across all of WLRN TV & FM, any digital multicast channels developed for WLRN, WXEL, WPBT, the Health Channel, PBS Kids, and Create, the how-to channel.

• Presently, although WLRN has the capacity of up to three additional digital channels, it operates only one. South Florida PBS hopes to facilitate the creation of new digital channels for educational and community purposes.

• South Florida PBS will work with WLRN staff to develop content that celebrates the great teachers and institutions of learning in South Florida by compiling short-form documentaries on challenges and successes; bringing to television, radio and the Internet the stories of Miami-Dade schools’ children and their teachers.

• Contrary to protestor’s allegations, South Florida PBS is financially strong and fiscally stable. We manage a budget that is twice the size of WLRN’s. In all of its years of operation, no error or omission has ever been found by any regulating body, including PBS and CPB. This has not been the case with Friends of WLRN. We have a $13 Million-dollar plus endowment. Equally important, South Florida PBS has a management team in place that has demonstrated its ability to bring in the fundraising dollars needed to fund operations as well as organizational growth and which has shown it has the ability to fund the development of a remarkable public broadcasting future to uniquely serve the communities of South Florida.

• The South Florida PBS proposal presents an agreement that will be cost neutral to the Miami-Dade Public School Board. The financial structure presented does not require a single penny beyond current costs and, additionally, anticipates a more robust fundraising strategy than the one currently in place at WLRN.

• South Florida PBS will bring its successful track record of raising millions of philanthropic dollars through individuals, foundations, and government grants for new projects to serve the diverse South Florida communities.

• South Florida PBS will strengthen the WLRN enterprise and its service to the community by maintaining and growing the current level of employment.

• South Florida PBS proposes to adapt its internship programs for M-DCPS high school students’ integration into WLRN TV & FM. In addition, we would be happy to manage and support any existing internship programs that M-DCPS would propose to continue at WLRN or to add.

• As one of the most technologically advanced stations in the Miami market, South Florida PBS will work together with WLRN to achieve an educational impact that will be nothing short of amazing with interactivity, from point to point. Teachers will be able to impart educational individualized lessons through interactive programming delivered in multi-platform settings and use innovative technology such as virtual reality, motivating students to be life-long learners with full immersion and ownership of their learning.

• South Florida PBS will bring its staff’s educational content development expertise and newsroom experience to bear in guiding WLRN to successes with content and services like KidVision Pre-K, news and public affairs programs like Nightly Business Report and Your South Florida, Emmy award winning arts and cultural programs like Art Loft, and next-gen technology (virtual reality, 360-degree videos, etc.).

• South Florida PBS’ staff members have a combined PBS and National Public Radio experience of over 200 years and has a Board of Directors with over 50 years of both radio and television experience.

Below are two op-eds that were submitted to the Miami Herald, Sun Sentinel and Palm Beach Post by some of our supporters: Jack Lowell, former South Florida PBS Board of Directors member and Tony Newbold, South Florida PBS Community Advisory Board member.

Most logical choice to manage WLRN? South Florida PBS

Opinion By JACK LOWEL

In response to the Miami-Dade School Board’s interest in securing new management for WLRN radio and television station, South Florida PBS has submitted a proposal outlining its position as the most experienced public broadcasting partner in Florida.

With the singular ability to deliver the financial transparency, management rigor, robust educational programming and diverse community support desired by School Board leaders, South Florida PBS is the logical choice to move WLRN to the next level in partnership with Superintendent Alberto Carvalho and Miami-Dade Public Schools.

Both organizations that have submitted proposals — South Florida PBS and Friends of WLRN — have committed to continue broadcasting all School Board programming, assume the financial cost of running WLRN, retain jobs and facilities, and provide a seamless transition. In fact, South Florida PBS anticipates adding jobs as a result of new funding for new projects.

However, the significant difference between the two is South Florida PBS’ many years of experience successfully operating a multi-faceted media company versus the non-management, fundraising-specific role of Friends of WLRN. Simply put, WLRN is too important a South Florida asset not to have experienced management at the helm.

For many years, South Florida PBS has successfully operated a robust, award-winning media company that serves diverse audiences and produces nationally-recognized programming. With supporters from Palm Beach to Key West and multiple sources of funding, the organization is a model for a financially strong, transparent and technologically innovative public broadcasting organization.

Its community-based Board of Directors is highly engaged in providing expertise and input on programming, funding and outreach.

South Florida PBS envisions an increase in educational programming, less duplication in programming, cross-promotion between radio, and all of public TV in South Florida, and more original productions in all formats addressing our local needs and interests. Some immediate benefits of South Florida PBS’ management would be:

– Targeted health and wellness information offered by Health Channel, a recent South Florida PBS initiative.

– More environmental programs, such as the award-winning series, Changing Seas and Battleground Everglades.

– New educational content aligned to the Superintendent’s goal to provide exceptional learning opportunities for students.

All this can be achieved with South Florida PBS’ management of WLRN, while also delivering confidence in management that will provide a secure future for public television and radio in South Florida.

The combined strength of South Florida PBS and WLRN will create a powerful public media presence in South Florida, reaching twice as many people as WLRN can today, and delivering opportunity across the board for WLRN, the School Board and the listeners. The community deserves nothing less.

Jack Lowell is a past South Florida PBS board member and Executive Vice President, Colliers International.