[Kzyxtalk] Engaging with the Members and the Public

[Joel Waldman]

Lawyers get me hot!


On Feb 20, 2015, at 11:52 AM, Dennis OBrien wrote:

> Engaging with the Members and the Public
>
> There are several ways that the board and staff of MCPB/KZYX can  
> increase their engagement with the members and the public, all of  
> which are being underutilized or not used at all.
>
> The first is the Community Advisory Board.  The CAB is required by  
> the Corporation for Public Broadcasting as a condition for receiving  
> a grant from them, currently the largest source of funding for the  
> station.  The CAB must be independent, geographically diverse, and  
> hold enough meetings to give the public a realistic opportunity to  
> provide input on the station’s programming and operations.
>
> Although some CAB members are very conscientious about their duties,  
> the CAB itself has not met these minimum requirements.  Its  
> composition is limited; one member has the same address as a board  
> member, which casts a doubt on both independence and geographical  
> diversity.  In the past two years, there has been only one meeting,  
> and that one was telephonic, with many members shut out due to  
> technical difficulties.  And the survey that the CAB was permitted  
> to include with the ballots in last year’s election was flawed; a  
> person had to say they disliked the station’s current policies  
> before being allowed to vote on preferences for change.
>
> In spite of these limitations, the CAB submitted a formal  
> recommendation to the board of directors and station management for  
> a second way they could increase their engagement, by participating  
> in a regular call-in show that focused on the station’s business,  
> perhaps once per month.  But after just one attempt, the  
> recommendation has been ignored.  With the demise of Doug McKenty’s  
> Open Lines show, there is no longer an on-air vehicle for discussion  
> of the organization’s policies and procedures.  The station itself  
> is being underused.
>
> A third way to improve engagement is to institute a Programming  
> Council.  In 2009, the board adopted a policy for a Programming  
> Advisory Council that consisted of the program director, programmer  
> reps, and community reps that would help decide who and what gets on  
> the air.  That policy was never implemented, resulting in all  
> decisions being made by one person, the program director, subject  
> only to the general manager.  A Programming Council that has the  
> final say on programming would help the programming reflect the  
> diverse interests of the listening community, not just those of one  
> or two people.  Even if those one or two have the best interests of  
> the people in mind, their decisions will appear arbitrary and  
> capricious if they do not engage.
>
> A fourth way to improve engagement is via the internet, including  
> the use of an email list.  Our membership letters ask people to give  
> us their email address so that they can be part of such a list.   
> Online donors are required to provide one, a “mandatory field”.  Yet  
> there is still no way to send information to the members other that  
> an expensive direct mailing.  Many organizations, some much smaller  
> than KZYX, use their email lists to send out periodic updates,  
> perhaps quarterly, to keep their members and the public informed of  
> recent happenings and upcoming events.  Of course, members would  
> need to be able to opt out.  But choosing not to set up an email  
> list for such communications – instant, widespread, and tree-free –  
> is a waste of a resource.
>
> There have been other suggestions floated for increased engagement:  
> a call-in comment line for those who prefer voice communications;  
> more frequent board meetings with greater public input; a  
> newsletter, perhaps in conjunction with the membership email list.   
> If the board makes a policy decision to improve the organization’s  
> engagement with the members and the public, then it will be  
> appropriate to direct management/staff to institute these specific  
> changes.  That is not micro-managing; it is fulfilling the duty of  
> every director to give direction to the organization and monitor its  
> performance.  I firmly believe that the lack of engagement with the  
> community has caused many of the problems being experienced by the  
> station, and that increasing engagement must be part of any solution.
>
> One other point.  Increasing engagement does not only help the  
> organization and the listening public.  It helps those who engage.   
> Remember those conscientious CAB members I mentioned?  They were at  
> the last board meeting, full of knowledge, wisdom, and dedication,  
> ready to help the station fulfill its mission, to serve the people  
> of Mendocino County with county-wide public media.  We don’t just  
> provide fulfillment for our own staff and programmers.  We provide  
> it for everyone involved, and for each and every one of our  
> listeners.  We are the stewards of the airwaves, and every moment is  
> an opportunity to better the lives of our listeners.  But if we  
> don’t engage with the community, we will become what they fear, a  
> small, insulated group that only promotes their own interests, not  
> the peoples.  And that will be the death of public radio in  
> Mendocino County.
>
> Dennis O’Brien
>
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