Indiana's Tool For Economic Development
Morton Marcus was right about the importance of public broadcasting in his recent column in several Indiana newspapers (“Public Broadcasting: a Tool for Economic Development”). Mr. Marcus observed that investing in a statewide network of public broadcasting stations would help inform public discussion about issues vital to the state’s economic future — issues such as tax policy, utility regulation, education, and many others.
Indiana is already served by the Indiana Public Broadcasting Stations (IPBS), a consortium of eight television and nine radio stations stretching from Merrillville to Bloomington and from Ft. Wayne to Evansville. Millions of Hoosiers tune in each week to get their fix of Morning Edition, The PBS NewsHour, Sesame Street, Fresh Air, and many other nationally- and locally-produced programs.
State funding for public broadcasting was reduced over 50% during the Daniels administration. Stations endured these cuts for several years, while content costs rose and some stations lost critical staff and reduced services, which have not yet been fully restored. The Pence administration, which recognizes the return on investment that public broadcasting provides, has restored most — but not all — of public broadcasting funding to pre-2008 levels.
Mr. Marcus is also correct in noting that public radio and television is a draw to corporations that are considering moving to Indiana, and who value an educated work force. The more educated a person is, the more likely he or she is to listen to public radio or watch public television.
Public broadcasting content also appears to be of interest to Indiana audiences. Many of our programs have substantial audiences, both on the air and online. The Indiana Public Media Web site received over four million hits last year. Our radio program, Earth Eats, has a Twitter following of more than 300,000 — a following that many network programs would envy. The Friday Zone, a Bloomington-based TV kids show pictured above — has won five Regional Emmy Awards and airs on seven of the eight public television stations in Indiana.
For more than four decades, PBS stations have led the way in harnessing new technologies to deliver innovative educational content to children, teachers and caregivers, and for career training and lifelong learning.
In his column, Mr. Marcus suggests that it would be a good idea for Indiana public broadcasters to band together and increase our efficiencies. We’re already on it. Thanks in part to grant funding from the Lilly Endowment, IPBS is exploring ways of enhancing, expanding, and sharing news content across all platforms statewide. We are also looking at ways of sharing back-office operations among many stations to save money and invest the savings in programming. These are just two of 13 different IPBS efficiency initiatives.
IPBS has long been dedicated to providing the highest quality news, information, and cultural content. At a time when many newsrooms are cutting staff, we are increasing investment. We already have an Indianapolis-based Statehouse reporter (Brandon Smith) covering the Legislature and state agency news. We continue to fund StateImpact, an initiative that dedicates two full-time reporters solely to the topic of education in Indiana. The caliber of that reporting is such that StateImpact has won several regional awards and two national Edward R. Murrow Awards from RTNDA, a national association of radio and TV news directors.
Beyond the unique and valuable programming that public broadcasting provides in Indiana, we also provide a forum for local non-profit cultural and social service groups to promote their efforts. We offer jobs for professional and technical employees, and internships where Hoosier students can hone their craft as they prepare for careers in broadcasting and multimedia.
Investment in public media has many substantial returns. Hoosiers see less than 50 cents per person per year of their tax dollars invested in providing these services. We hope Hoosiers recognize and appreciate the value of IPBS, and will continue to support it.