CAB MINUTES: April 2012
CAB Meeting Minutes, April 19, 2012
27 People Total, 9 Members of the Public
CAB Members in Attendance:Tiffany Hall, Shavonne Johnson, MJ Robinson, JoyceLannert, ReneeCherow-O’Leary, John Dewitt, FredFriedland, AllisonMeserve, Matt Bancroft, LisaLabardo, Ken Stewart, Leslie Ehrlich, BethKnobel, Dan Barnett, SteveRapkin, JudithMoldover, DavidTereshchuk, Michael Bauman
CAB Members Absent:Michelle Reed and Elinor Fuchs*
*Excused absence
NY Public Radio Staff in Attendance: Brenda Butts-Williams
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Tiffany opens meeting
Thomas Hjelm, Vice President and Chief Digital Officer at New York Public Radio made a presentation to the CAB and members of the public
Key Points from Hjelm’sDigital Strategy and Business Development Presentation:
- At NY Public Radio for 1 year and two months
- In Digital Media since 1995; Worked for NBC, Live Planet; AOL (in DC)
- Websites his department oversees: WNYC, WQXR, Green Space
- Hjelm is in charge of Business Development
- Hjelm highlights that the audience is migrating and listening to radio on new platforms. Listeners are engaging through audio players such as Pandora, Slacker, Stitcher.
- Hjelm is working to build-up core digital media team (almost 20 staff and about 50 work total in some form of digital content – data news, editorial content, etc.)
- Hjelm looks for new tools and trends in the industry and stays on top of what other major players in public radio are doing (SF, Boston, etc.)
Hjelm detailed the operations of each team in Digital Strategy and Business Development:
Operations
- Project Management
- Research and Analytics - Looks at the data; assesses audience traffic
- Quality Assurance - Developers, Code Testers to make sure the website functions
- Budgeting -Financial Cost and Benefits
- Technical Partner Management
Technology
- Programmers/Developers – Front-end and Back-end developers
- Mobile and tablet app development (WNYC, WQXR, Radio Lab app coming soon.)
Product Developers and User Experience
- Build prototypes and ensures information flows and is organized on website to make itcoherent
- Product Business Analysis
- Specialize in focus groups
- User experience
Digital Content Team Operations:
Editorial Team - Attached to each major brand
News Room Team - Digital Editorial Team for each brand that produces content for each.
Data News Team - Taking public record data and create new ways to tell stories about them. John Keiff has been building a small data journalism team to use technology and data to tell stories. (Example: Hurricane Irene Flood Zone Evacuation Map-Google and City of NY linked to site for this map); (Example: Working Title - “Electoral College of Me” posting and finding other people who have like-minded election issue interests as you.)
Green Space
- New website launched a few months ago.
Emerging Trends and Big Opportunities:
Power and Presentation
- People are using smartphones increasingly to access digital media (it is a new kind of transistor radio).
- Working to track the content you prefer and then WNYC can make recommendations to enrich and create a more personalized listener experience.
Discovery and Curation
- Creating a Pandora-type experience around News and Classical Music (this could help classical thrive and survive, but admits it is a big undertaking to get all that content categorized appropriately.)
New Platforms
- Smartphone and Apps - New platforms and operating systems
- Forging alliances with bigger companies [Intel (board member connection), Microsoft (board member connection), Using Apple, and other companies to develop new apps]
Data Visualization
- Open Data/Data News Movement - This means using public government information and turning it into news stories. Looking to tap into this resource again for Election 2012
Our Digital Mission: Own “Social Radio”:
- Two Big Advantages to achieving this are: 1) Content/Shows, and 2) A since a parody WNYC feeds audience content and then audience feeds content and digital media can facilitate this; Real-time audience engagement.
- Make content available and easily accessible on every device.
- Creating shared experiences - Having your peers curate your content experience for you. This means NY Radio content needs to be as sharable/linkable as possible and as quickly as possible.
- Redefining online membership for public media - How can they encourage an online audience to give? How to create the right message and incentive to give?
NYPR Digital Roadmap 2011-12:
- Building team
- Mobile - Apps launched in Fall 2011 (WQXR and WNYC free apps on both Apple and Android you can also donate) RadioLab App to launch in June 2012
- It’s A Free Country website re-launched Nov/Dec 2011
- Green Space website re-launched in January 2012
- RadioLab website given a “facelift”
- WQXR website re-launched back in September 2011
- WNYC website will get a reconfiguration of its homepage and structure of the site, which will makecontent more shareable and message board for accessible.
- Audio Storytellers
- Pilot new online/on-air formats for WNYC AM in Spring/Summer 2012
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Q&A Period with Thomas Hjelm (“TH”):
(Note: Member of the Public: PM)
PM: Why is music louder than speech on terrestrial radio?
TH: Quality audio differs between radio shows online
PM: I don’t listen online
Fred: What are the different types of software engineers?
TH: System Architect - Servers cashing servers (cash, save what you searched the first time making loading faster the second time and from then on.) Front-end developer: HTML, Javascript, etc. the aesthetics and organization of the website. Back-end developer: Build infrastructure (Drubble, Jango).
John: WQXR, Q2, Jersey public radio stations - It is difficult to “Click to listen” on the online site. There is no such option on WQXR and it is tagged improperly for visually impaired user desktops.
TH: Indicated that this information will be shared with the design team.
Ken: Do you use Arbitron? Is it reliable?
TH: Can’t give you great demographic data, but better minute data like how long someone visits a particular page.
David T. Redesign of WNYC.org; How will you win in a very crowded market place?
TH: Redesign will happen in stages. Continue what we do best. Produce award winning content that engages the emotion and intellect of our audience. ISP is charging for data that you consume WNYC would like to convince the FCC and Congress that public radio/media should be free through your mobile data plan.
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Tiffany: Comments from the Public?
No comments
Election Process:
Matt Bancroft led a discussion regarding the Election Process Recommendation that was presented in January 2012
Fred: Made a motion to vote for one year terms for officers; Shavonne seconded the motion
One in favor; All other CAB members present opposed t
Mattmade a motion to vote on the Election Process Recommendation and Fred second - Unanimous vote by present CAB members
By Law Revisions
JoyceLannert led a discussion regarding Bylaw amendments:
Joyce moves that the revised bylaws be accepted; John second
Ken: Raised issues with By-laws:
Suggestion for Article III, Section 1: Regular Meetings
Regular meetings of the CAB may be held at such time and place as shall be determined by the Chair, but at least six (6) such meetings will be held on an annual basis**. The date and time of regular meetings shall be determined at the first CAB meeting in September or such other month as the CAB shall decide.
Article III, Section 5: Comment by Non-Board Members of the Public
Several CAB members indicated that the majority of paragraphs in the section should be removed.
The revision: 1st paragraph of Article III, Section 5 should remain. Following that paragraph, the section will read “Time shall be set aside to enable non-board members of the public to make comments on each policy issue being considered by the CAB as part of the scheduled agenda of a meeting. The Chair shall call each speaker in order, shall determine the allowed speaking time per individual, and shall act as the timekeeper or appoint a timekeeper.” The final three paragraphs should be deleted.
Ken: Article III, Section 6: Heading -- “Participation at meetings” should change to “Remote Participation at meetings”
Ken: Commented on Article IV, Committees of the CAB - Section 4
Fred: Moved to vote that theChair should not be able to appoint committees in his or her discretion. Further, he proposed that CAB members should vote for committee members with respect to the number of people on each committee and who should serve. Motion was not seconded.
Fred: Moved to vote on modifying the process of dismissing board members who have excessive absences. Motion was not seconded.
Voting on Bylaws with amendments: Ken made a motion; vote seconded; unanimous vote by present CAB members.
CAB Strategy Update;
Tiffany: First Inter-face meeting will be held September 2012 in Montclair, NJ. The meeting will focus on a New Jersey issue. The May meeting willinclude brainstorming with station representatives. Pleasesend suggestions for NJ topics to Renee by May 10 meeting.
Meeting Adjourned
