Upcoming Events

February 2026 Webinar

Details coming soon!

Past Events

Innovate with Current: The Future of Public Media (2026)

Thursday, January 15, 2025. 10 AM PT / 1 PM ET

Recording coming soon!

Join Public Media Innovators and Current for our second annual conversation about what the year ahead holds for public media. Suffice to say, 2025 didn’t go the way many of us hoped. So, now what? How can public media position itself for a successful 2026 amid ongoing uncertainty and change?

This session will feature a panel of leaders from across public media sharing their perspectives on where the industry finds itself today and what may be coming next. This conversation is designed for anyone thinking about the future of public media strategy, audience, and sustainability and looking for candid perspectives on the year ahead.

About the Panelists

Steve Bass served as president and chief executive officer of Oregon Public Broadcasting from 2006 to 2024, leading OPB’s transformation into a journalism-focused organization while significantly growing OPB’s news staffing, support from members, and endowment. Over a 45-year career in public media, he has held leadership roles at PBS, WGBH, WGBY, and Nashville Public Television, and served on the boards of NPR, APTS, and Greater Public. He currently serves as vice chair of the board of PRX, a public media podcasting and technology organization. In 2025, he founded Lakeland Consulting, where he advises public media organizations and philanthropies on strategy and collaboration and is widely regarded as a thought leader on the future of public media.

Nathalie Hill is the Chief Audience Officer at KCRW in Los Angeles, where she leads audience growth and engagement across marketing and art, membership, social, events, and digital products. She previously served as VP of Strategy and Content Marketing at Giant Spoon and has a track record of building community-centric programs that deepen connection and drive participation. Her work blends creative strategy with data-informed decision-making to expand how audiences discover and engage with media. She reluctantly brags about being on Forbes 30 Under 30.

Erik Langner has spent 20 years in national leadership roles in public broadcasting, and serves as the Executive Director of the Public Media Bridge Fund. Most recently, he co-founded Information Equity Initiative, a nonprofit organization that partners with PBS member stations to repurpose spectrum to provide educational content to people who lack access to broadband. Previously, Erikspent fifteen years at Public Media Company, where he structured dozens of mergers, acquisitions and strategic partnerships that raised several hundred million dollars to secure and expand public media services for millions of Americans.

Prior to dedicating himself to public media, Erik was a corporate attorney at Kirkland and Ellis in New York City and Latham and Watkins in San Francisco, and worked at the United National Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in Geneva. He holds a JD from the Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law and a BA from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Loira Limbal is President & CEO of Firelight Media, a nonprofit organization that supports, resources, and advocates on behalf of documentary filmmakers of color. She is a multidisciplinary artist who works in documentary film and video installation and as a DJ. She is the director of Through the Night (2020) (Tribeca Film Festival, du-Pont Columbia Award, and NYT Critic’s Pick), which aired on PBS’ POV Series, and Estilo Hip Hop (2009), which aired on PBS. Her recent accolades include a Guggenheim Fellowship, a Creative Capital Award, a USA Fellowship, a NAACP Image Award nomination, and a Sundance Institute Fellowship.

SEO + AI: Best Practices for 2026

Thursday, December 11, 2025

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2025 was the year we all learned the phrase “Google Zero.” But whether you believe Google will completely stop delivering traffic to your organization’s website or not, AI is definitely changing how we get information from and find content on the internet.

Join PBS’s Richard Traylor, SEO Manager, and Emily Clark, Manager of Multiplatform Marketing, for a talk about what is changing (and more importantly what is not) now that AI has entered the chat on search and web browsers. If you saw Richard speak at the PBS Annual Meeting in Atlanta, this will be an evolution, 6 months on, of the information presented there. And if you missed that one, you don’t want to miss this one.

About the Panelists

Emily Clark is a Manager of Multiplatform Marketing at PBS where she specializes in paid media and paid search strategies.

Richard Traylor is the SEO Manager at PBS where he specializes in search engine optimization and strives to improve the search discoverability of public media content across Google and emerging search engines.

Powwow Bound: Co-Creating Through Culture and Play

Thursday, November 20, 2025

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What does authentic collaboration look like in public media? Join us for a behind-the-scenes conversation about Powwow Bound: A Menominee Homecoming, a new interactive story game developed through a unique partnership between PBS Wisconsin, Nebraska Public Media, Vision Maker Media, and members of the Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin.

This webinar will present a model for collaborative project execution that stations can emulate, highlighting how artists, writers, language experts, musicians, and cultural advisors from the Menominee community worked alongside public media creators to shape an authentic storytelling game.

The discussion will focus on lessons learned about building trust, sharing creative decision-making, and co-creating stories that center community voices. With perspectives from project partners and Menominee collaborators, this session offers a model for how public media can move beyond representation to true collaboration - creating content that is both innovative and deeply rooted in the community being served.

About the Panelists

Jacob Schwitzer is a member of the Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin and a Software Developer/Game Producer for Nebraska Public Media. He works with a diverse interdisciplinary team to create games that align with the values of public media and uplift underrepresented voices.

Angelina Shi is an Interactive Media Producer at PBS Wisconsin. She works to create innovative interactive content, such as video games, websites, and virtual tours, intended to inform and inspire audiences.

Justin “Jud” Gauthier is a multi-talented artist from the Menominee Nation. As an actor, Jud has graced stages across North America and was featured in the FX on Hulu series Reservation Dogs. As a writer, Jud has worked on an array of projects ranging from narrative podcast episodes to the groundbreaking video game Powwow Bound: A Menominee Homecoming. Jud is honored to have been able to work on Powwow Bound and considers it a major step forward for indigenous culture into the digital mediascape that’s long overdue.

I am Wanānīkwew LaTender or Tail Feather Woman. Bald eagle is my clan and I am an enrolled member of the Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin. I am currently 27 years-old living in the woodlands of West Branch on the Menominee Reservation. Daniel Grignon is my partner, Cherry Grignon is my daughter and Ember Grignon is my son. Together, we are speakers of the Menomini Language and learners of the cultural ways of doing. Our work as Language & Material Culture Revitalization Artists is to gain perspective into the authentic nature of Menomini life. We do this by creating artwork and experiences that are a translation of our unique culture.

Innovate with Current: Powering Public Media with Digital Revenue

Thursday, October 23, 2025

Presentation Slides | Transcript | Chat

Audiences are rapidly shifting from linear broadcasts to on-demand platforms, and commercial media has already followed them by retooling its strategies, moving investments to streaming, and leaving linear channels behind. Public media, however, still leans heavily on the broadcast pledge drive, even as audiences dwindle.

How can we adapt? Our panelists: Tom Davidson, Professor of Media Innovation and Entrepreneurship at Penn State; Tyler Smith, Principal Consultant at Tanager Digital; Christina McPhillips, VP at Carl Bloom Associates; and Alex Curley, founder of the Semipublic Substack and the Adopt-a-Station initiative will share data, case studies, and experiments that show what’s possible. Join them for a session that will highlight interesting experiments taking place within public media and expand your vision of revenue possibilities beyond the broadcast pledge drive.

About the Panelists

Alex Curley
Alex Curley is a product consultant based out of Asheville, N.C., and the author of the Substack Semipublic. He spent a decade at NPR, where he worked on the Public Radio Satellite System, NPR’s SiriusXM channel, national fundraising materials and newsroom promotional strategies.

Tom Davidson
Tom Davidson is the Bellisario professor of media entrepreneurship and innovation at Penn State University. Before becoming an accidental academic, he was a journalist, business executive and product developer at Tribune Co., PBS, UNC-TV and Gannett.

Christina McPhillips
Christina McPhillips is the VP of Client Partnerships at Carl Bloom Associates. Christina has worked with nonprofits for nearly 20 years, specifically with North American animal welfare organizations, public media stations, environmental groups, and public libraries. She identifies emerging fundraising trends and helps organizations integrate those new strategies into their practices. Christina is based in Atlanta, Georgia, and is an avid travel enthusiast.

Tyler Smith
Tyler Smith is Principal Consultant at Tanager Digital, specializing in building effective digital fundraising systems for public media. Since co-founding the firm with former LAist marketing leader Andy Orozco, Tyler has helped stations like KUOW, LAist, WHUT, and APM convert their digital audiences into sustainable donor support. A featured presenter at PMDMC, Tyler helps stations focus on strategic distribution approaches that acquire new supporters year-round, not just during traditional drives.

Creating a Thriving Digital Community

Thursday, September 11, 2025

Resource Guide | Transcript | Chat

Are you looking to cultivate a thriving online community for your audience? Healthy digital communities are more than a collection of “likes” or followers – they’re inclusive, uplifting, and collaborative spaces that involve direct partnership between media professionals and members of the public. This session will introduce concrete tools for starting a new digital “public space,” practices to improve social trust and belonging in your online community, and strategies for establishing meaningful and mutually beneficial relationships with audience members online.

In 2023, KQED launched an innovative digital community on Discord to reimagine social media and strengthen public conversation across the Bay Area. We’ll share lessons learned from that launch, case studies from our California newsroom partners, and insights that apply across digital media platforms and station sizes.

About the Presenters

Francesca Fenzi, Digital Community Producer, Forum
Francesca Fenzi is a journalist and producer focused on making news media as transparent, participatory, and community-driven as possible. She helps to produce Forum, KQED's daily live public affairs show, reports audience-first digital news, and manages KQED's community on Discord – connecting listeners with journalists, subject matter experts, and each other online.

Ethan Toven-Lindsey, VP News
Ethan Toven-Lindsey is the VP of news for KQED. Before he came to KQED, he worked at WBUR and NPR on the midday newsmagazine Here & Now, in Boston, where he was the show’s senior managing editor. In 2009, Ethan won a Peabody Award for his work as a correspondent for Oregon Public Broadcasting, on a year-long project called Hard Times, documenting how people were responding to the financial crisis. Ethan received his bachelor’s degree from UC Berkeley in 2000, with a major in English literature.

Cultivate Your Creative Hustle While Making Media That Matters

Thursday, August 21, 2025

Transcript | Chat

This August, we’re joined by Creative Hustle authors sam seidel and Olatunde Sobomehin from the Stanford d.school for an energizing conversation about charting your own creative path — one that connects your gifts, goals, and the communities you care about. Whether you’re an educator, producer, or strategist, this session will offer tools and frameworks to help you think differently about ambition, values, and impact.

Expect real talk, practical inspiration, and ideas you can use to reignite your own creative hustle.

About the Presenters

Olatunde Sobomehin
Olatunde Sobomehin is CEO/cofounder of StreetCode Academy, a nonprofit that offers free tech classes to communities of color. He has taught classes at Stanford’s Hass Center for Public Service and the d.school.

sam seidel
sam seidel is the director of strategy and research at the Stanford d.school’s K12 Lab and the author of Hip Hop Genius: Remixing High School Education. Learn more at samseidel.is

Learning to Harness Uncertainty

Thursday, July 10, 2025

Presentation Slides | Transcript | Chat

It’s hard to imagine a more uncertain year for public media. In a year filled with challenges and unknowns, many of us are craving clarity, stability, and answers. But what if certainty isn’t what we need most right now? What if learning to navigate uncertainty is actually the key to moving forward? This month, instead of focusing on technical tools or platforms, we’re turning our attention to how we think, adapt, and lead in uncertain times.

Drawing on her acclaimed book Uncertain, journalist and social critic Maggie Jackson will explore the new scientific discoveries that are upending our outdated notions of unsureness as weakness. Productive uncertainty fuels agility, curiosity, resilience, and creativity, the skills most needed in volatile times. In this session, Maggie will explore three key modes of uncertainty-in-action for 2025, plus proven strategies for wielding unsureness to boost decision-making, team performance, and personal well-being.

About Maggie Jackson

Maggie Jackson is an award-winning author known for her prescient writings on social trends. Her latest book, Uncertain, was named a Top 25 Nonfiction Book of 2024 by the Next Big Idea Club led by Malcolm Gladwell, Susan Cain, Dan Pink and Adam Grant. Uncertain also was chosen as a best book of the year by Library Journal, Greater Good magazine, the Artificiality Institute, and the Independent Publishers of New England. A former Boston Globe columnist and past AP foreign correspondent in Asia and Europe, Jackson contributes to major publications including The New York Times. Her acclaimed book Distracted (2nd ed., 2018) sparked a global conversation on the costs of fragmenting our attention. Jackson has advised leading executives, scientists, educators, and change-makers worldwide and her work has been translated into multiple languages.

The 50+ Gaming Audience You’re Overlooking

Thursday, June 19, 2025

Transcript | Chat

What if your next big audience growth opportunity wasn’t another TV show or podcast - but a game?

In this session, Dr. Brittne Kakulla, Senior Insights Manager at AARP, shares groundbreaking research on the 50+ gaming community - a rapidly growing, highly engaged audience that public media can’t afford to overlook. From Wordle to digital puzzles and beyond, gaming is already a major part of daily life for millions of Americans 50 and older - the same audience public media proudly serves.

Learn why older gamers are an untapped opportunity, what they want from game experiences, and how public media organizations can think differently about intergenerational play, content, engagement, and innovation for this key demographic. Whether you’re in marketing, content, community engagement, or strategy, this conversation will spark new ideas for reaching audiences in playful and powerful ways.

About Dr. Brittne Kakulla

Brittne Kakulla, Ph.D., is a senior research advisor in consumer insights at AARP Research and the research lead for the enterprise-wide Technology & Digital Connections Impact area. In these roles, Brittne collaborates with partners on AgeTech and digital inclusion, focusing on how technology –and increasingly gaming and intergenerational play– supports social connection, accessibility, and engagement among older adults. This work supports AARP, the marketplace, and policy and decision-makers in understanding, engaging with, and innovating for the 50-plus consumer and their families.

Her recent gaming research, including Aging in Play (2025), Gaming for All (2024) and The 50-Plus Gamer of Today and Tomorrow (2023), highlights the growing influence of gaming in older adults’ lives and informs inclusive innovation for this expanding audience.

Applied AI for Public Media: Marketing, Social, and Digital Strategy

Tuesday, May 13, 2025

Webinar Links & Resources | Transcript | Chat

Looking to make your workflows faster, your content sharper and your social media posts more impactful? This hands-on session is designed for public media professionals working in marketing, communications, and digital strategy — from social media managers and digital content curators to marketing leads on any-sized teams.

Join the MarCom and Public Media Innovators PLCs as we showcase real-world examples of how our peers are using AI today, including how to:

Generate SEO-friendly descriptions for web and video platforms
Draft social media posts that fit your tone and goals
Create alt text for images to support accessibility

You’ll walk away with downloadable prompts, links to custom GPTs, and plenty of inspiration to take back to your teams. This is a practical session built for doers—bring your curiosity, your questions, and maybe even that caption you’ve been staring at too long.

About the Presenters

Jonna Kelley is the Marketing Director at KSPS PBS, where she leads smart, mission-focused marketing that builds real connection with the communities the station serves. With a background in communications, she cares deeply about meaningful engagement and clear, honest messaging. Jonna brings a creative mindset to her work and isn’t afraid to try something new if it helps tell a story that matters.

Mary Anne Lane serves as the Director of Educational Content at Georgia Public Broadcasting, where she oversees the development of content and resources for preK-12 educators and students. Prior to joining GPB in 2016, Mary Anne taught middle school English Language Arts in Atlanta, Georgia.

Jacqueline Lo is the Director of Interactive at South Florida PBS, where she oversees all of the organization's digital efforts. With her almost two-decade career in public media she users her experience and knowledge to collaborate across teams to create strategies that drive audience growth, enhance digital engagement, and advance innovative technological initiatives.

Mark Riechers is a digital content editor for PBS Wisconsin, helping producers and creators use technology to make their content sparkle online. A photographer, radio producer and writer, he has experience telling all kinds of stories, from the history of Milwaukee beer ads to processing death through game development.

AI for Journalists and Content Creators

Thursday, April 17, 2025

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Join KQED’s Ethan Toven-Lindsey and Ernesto Aguilar for a session focused on how journalists and content creators can strategically embrace AI. They’ll share KQED’s approach to AI experimentation, along with real-world tools and workflows that are already making an impact.

In this session, you’ll learn:

How KQED developed an AI policy guideline specific to public media's mission in their community.
How KQED’s ‘AI working group’ operates to support ethical and effective AI adoption.
Practical AI tools in action, including:
- A Slack bot for journalists to brainstorm headlines.
- A transcription tool that helps identify highlights from KQED’s public affairs talk show.
- A metadata and headline generator for newscasts.
Actionable strategies for fostering ways to experiment and think about AI for the long-term.

Whether you’re just beginning to explore AI or looking for practical newsroom applications, this session will provide actionable examples and implementation strategies that can help your station experiment—no matter your size or resources.

Panelists:

Ernesto Aguilar

Born in East Houston, Ernesto Aguilar’s life was transformed by public media. His career has traversed daily newspapers and alternative weeklies to public radio news and program director roles. At KQED, he oversees radio broadcast content and DEI initiatives in the organization’s Content division. He is former co-chair of the KQED DEI Council. In his spare time, he writes OIGO, a newsletter on public media and diverse audiences. Prior to KQED, Aguilar served stations as executive director of the National Federation of Community Broadcasters. He was also part of the founding committee of Public Media for All, an initiative aimed at organizing radio stations around actionable DEI outcomes. A Robert C. Maynard Institute for Journalism Education Fellow, Sulzberger Executive Leadership Fellow, and Public Media CEO/COO Bootcamp graduate, Aguilar has a B.A. in journalism, with minors in sociology and Women’s Studies from the University of Houston.

Ethan Toven-Lindsey

Ethan Toven-Lindsey is the VP of news for KQED. Before he came to KQED, he worked at WBUR and NPR on the midday newsmagazine Here & Now, in Boston, where he was the show’s senior managing editor. In 2009, Ethan won a Peabody Award for his work as a correspondent for Oregon Public Broadcasting, on a year-long project called Hard Times, documenting how people were responding to the financial crisis. Ethan received his bachelor’s degree from UC Berkeley in 2000, with a major in English literature.

Ed Tech Innovations: Highlights from SXSW EDU 2025

Thursday, March 20, 2025

SXSW EDU 2025 Resources | Presentation Slides | View Transcript | View Chat

Public media plays a vital role in education, but how can we stay ahead of emerging trends to better serve our communities? This year, our annual tech and culture trends recap takes an educational turn, focusing on insights from SXSW EDU - the international education conference shaping the future of learning.

Join us for a dynamic conversation with Greg Rosenbaum, VP of SXSW EDU, as he shares key takeaways designed specifically for public media professionals. Discover how emerging trends create opportunities for your station to:

Adopt innovative storytelling approaches that resonate with diverse audiences
Implement accessibility features that expand your community reach
Integrate arts and creativity into your educational content
Leverage new technologies that align with public media's mission

This webinar will equip you with fresh ideas and forward-thinking strategies to keep your station at the forefront of education and innovation in public media.

Innovate with Current: The Secret History of Public Media

Thursday, February 20, 2025

View Transcript | View Chat | Josh Shepperd - Public Media's Roots (PDF)

We all know the origin story of public media—the 1960s, Lyndon Johnson, the Public Broadcasting Act, the premiere of Sesame Street, and NPR’s Watergate broadcasts. But public media’s spirit of innovation, mission-driven storytelling, and fearless experimentation started long before that—over 100 years ago.

In this webinar, Current’s Mike Janssen leads a thought-provoking conversation with our panel about the long and necessary history of innovation within public media. Together, they’ll uncover how past innovators in public media navigated emerging technologies, shifting audience behaviors, and a constantly evolving understanding of what it means to create media in the public interest—struggles that feel familiar today.

Long before PBS and NPR, pioneers like us rose to the occasion. Join historians Josh Shepperd and Allison Perlman, sociologist Laura Garbes, and Black Public Media Executive Director Leslie Fields-Cruz in exploring stories of innovation that offer inspiration and practical lessons for shaping the next era of public media.

Panelists:

Leslie Fields-Cruz: Leslie Fields-Cruz, Executive Director, Black Public Media (BPM), joined Black Public Media in 2001 to manage its program development fund. She was named director of programs in 2005, VP of operations and programs in 2008, and, in 2014, was appointed to serve as BPM’s third-ever executive director. Under her leadership, BPM has cultivated new partnerships, diversified revenues, and initiated vital programs (360 Incubator+, PitchBLACK, and BPMplus) to support visionary talent and Black content development. She is the creator and executive producer of the award-winning series AfroPoP: The Ultimate Cultural Exchange. Leslie serves on the board of directors for New Era Creative Space and was the board president of New York Women in Film and Television (NYWIFT) 2022-2024.

Laura Garbes: Laura is an Assistant Professor of Sociology at University of Minnesota - Twin Cities. She studies racism, whiteness, and cultural organizations. Her forthcoming book, Listeners Like Who? Exclusion and resistance in the public radio industry, is an examination of the racialization of voice, storytelling, and organizational life in public radio's past and present. It will be released under Princeton University Press in September 2025.

Allison Perlman: Allison Perlman is Associate Professor of History and Film and Media Studies at the University of California, Irvine. She is the author of Public Interests: Media Advocacy and Struggles Over US Television (Rutgers UP, 2016). She is currently writing a history of National Educational Television (NET).

Josh Shepperd: Josh Shepperd is an Associate Professor at the University of Colorado Boulder. He is author of Shadow of the New Deal: The Victory of Public Broadcasting (University of Illinois Press), which received the 2024 BEA Book Award and placed as a runner-up or finalist for the AJHA, AEJMC History, TLA, and New Deal awards. He is currently co-writing the "official" History of Public Broadcasting for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) and Current with Allison Perlman and Mike Janssen. Josh additionally designs applied policy projects as continuing Sound Fellow at the Library of Congress and is director of the Radio Preservation Task Force.

Innovate with Current: Visions for Public Media’s Future

Thursday, January 16, 2025

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There’s a saying: “What got you here may not get you where you’re going.” PBS and NPR have rich histories of service to Americans. But, frankly, the speed of change in media poses a serious threat to any organization that isn’t prepared to be an innovator of that service.

How do we tackle a future with this much uncertainty? This webinar will present multiple visions for what public media can and should be as we race toward 2030 and a media landscape that looks increasingly alien.

In this webinar, you’ll hear from:

Steve Bass: former President and CEO, Oregon Public Broadcasting
Tom Davidson: Donald P. Bellisario Professor of the Practice in Media Entrepreneurship and Innovation (and formerly of PBS and PBS North Carolina)
Nathalie Hill: Chief Audience Officer, KCRW
Amanda Mountain: President and CEO, Rocky Mountain Public Media
Kristen Muller: formerly Chief Content Officer of the LAist (Southern California Public Radio)

Unleashing Creativity and Applying Standards to Generative AI

Thursday, December 12, 2024

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Presented by Public Media Innovators and Executive Content Managers. Join us for a lively presentation and discussion with Talia Rosen, Vice President, Standards & Practices and Associate General Counsel, PBS. This discussion will focus on the application of standards while using generative AI. We will explore specific use cases and share best practices. Bring your station’s insights, dilemmas, experiences, and questions to make the most of our 90-minutes together.

Steal this (AI)dea

Thursday, November 21, 2024

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Join us for an engaging roundtable discussion on how AI is shaping the landscape of public media. This webinar will be facilitated by the Public Media Innovators PLC and co-led by all of NETA’s Peer Learning Communities—Community Engagement, Content, Cyber, Education, Innovators, & MarCom. The presentations will feature insights from your peers across the industry, offering diverse perspectives on the opportunities and challenges of integrating AI into station workflows. Each group will share practical insights, use cases, strategies (or deliberate non-use) for incorporating AI, providing you with the knowledge to navigate the evolving role of AI in public media. Whether your station is already utilizing AI or still considering its potential, this session will help demystify its impact and foster informed decision-making.

Educational Technology: Experimenting with Virtual Worlds Using Unreal Engine

Thursday, October 17, 2024

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Public media professionals are invited to join us for an exciting session on how immersive technologies are shaping audience engagement. Jason Cooper, Director of Multimedia at Horizon Productions, will share insights into using Fortnite’s Unreal Engine to build virtual worlds and interactive experiences.

This webinar will explore how public media organizations can experiment with these tools to enhance storytelling, create dynamic content, and connect with audiences in innovative ways. Whether you’re looking to expand your digital presence or engage new demographics, this session will inspire you to explore the potential of virtual worlds in your work.

Jason Cooper

Jason Cooper is the Chief Digital Officer at Horizon Productions. Jason has helped evolved this 40-year-old, Emmy award-winning production company into a premier realtime, virtual and augmented reality studio.

Jason leads a talented team that focuses on utilizing the latest emerging technologies, artificial intelligence, and VR/AR for enterprise and serious applications across visualization, research, training, marketing, education, and filmmaking. His team has become the content creation and execution partner for some of the largest companies in the world. They have developed high-end realtime and immersive experiences for a wide array of clientele and Fortune 500 companies for some of the most complex use cases imaginable.

Inside the New York Times Games: A Conversation with Zoe Bell

Thursday, September 19, 2024

Zoe_Bell

Are you a fan of Wordle? Addicted to the New York Times Connections? Join us for an insightful conversation with Zoe Bell, Executive Producer of Games at the New York Times, as we delve into the world of game development.

New York Times Games have become a cultural phenomenon, enjoyed by millions across the globe. These games reach across generations and demographics, and include a significant overlap with public media audiences. This session offers a unique opportunity for public media practitioners to gain valuable insights into the strategies and processes behind the creation, testing, and evolution of popular New York Times Games like Wordle, Connections, Strands, the classic New York Times crossword puzzle, and more.

Zoe Bell will share her expertise on the relevance and impact of games in today’s media landscape, providing valuable insights that can help public media organizations attract and retain a wider audience, explore new forms of audience engagement and innovate in content creation.

Please note: this webinar will not be recorded so be sure to sign up to attend live!

Zoe Bell
Executive Producer of Games at New York Times

Zoe Bell is a 15-year game industry veteran. She got her start at Zynga, working on games with millions of daily active users, like FrontierVille and CityVille2. Zoe transitioned to mobile development in 2013, working at Kongregate, DeNA, and Big Huge Games on a variety of mobile games including AdVenture Capitalist, The Trail, and Arcane Showdown. In 2021 Zoe joined the New York Times as Executive Producer. In her time there she has helped add multiple games to the Games apps, buy Wordle, and launch Connections and Strands.

Adobe + AI: Practical Applications for Public Media

Thursday, August 15, 2024

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Adobe

Join our upcoming "3rd Thursday" webinar series for an enlightening session with Brooke Hopper, Principal Designer of Machine Intelligence & New Technology at Adobe.

In this session, Brooke will delve into the current state of generative AI in the creative field, exploring the transformative impact of machine learning on the industry. Attendees will be treated to a detailed demonstration of various use cases within the Adobe Creative Cloud ecosystem, showcasing the practical applications and innovative potential of these cutting-edge technologies.

Additionally, Brooke will provide valuable insights into how to ethically and effectively integrate these new tools into your workflow, addressing common challenges and offering best practices. This webinar is an essential opportunity for public media practitioners eager to stay ahead of the curve and harness the power of AI and machine learning in their work.

Don't miss this chance to learn from a leading expert in the field and enhance your creative capabilities with the latest advancements in technology.

Brooke Hopper
Principal Designer, Machine Intelligence & New Technology at Adobe

Principal designer, speaker, and champion for artists, Brooke is passionate about building community through creativity and designing better experiences for some of the most talented people in the world — allowing them to focus on what they love, creating. Currently Brooke is exploring the role of machine intelligence & new technology in creativity, how it can deepen and enhance the creative process while also ensuring artists and designers retain credit for their work and help everyone to realize their vision.

Integrating AI with DEI in Public Media: Challenges, Solutions, and Opportunities

Thursday, June 20, 2024

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Join Ernesto Aguilar, Executive Director of Radio Programming and Content Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Initiatives at KQED, and Acacia Betancourt, Creative Director at Brevity & Wit, for a conversation around DEI issues surrounding AI tools. They will share examples of current challenges as well as strategies for how to keep representation and inclusivity at the forefront of how we work with AI.

In this webinar, you'll learn how to spot biases in AI tools and implement strategies to combat these biases effectively. Discover practical approaches to ensure that policies and AI use promote equity and inclusivity in your projects and workplace, helping to create a more diverse and fair media landscape. Whether you are a strategist or a content creator, this session will equip you with the knowledge and tools to critically evaluate and enhance the DEI aspects of your AI-driven initiatives.

Ernesto Aguilar

Ernesto Aguilar

Acacia Betancourt (pronunciation here)

Acacia Betancourt

Acacia Betancourt is the creative director of Brevity & Wit, a small strategy and design firm based in the DC area that partners with socially conscious organizations to create a more equitable and inclusive world. Since 2008, Acacia has worked in a wide spectrum of settings—from being the sole in-house designer at a global nonprofit to leading a design team at a design agency—building cohesive and compelling visual brands that solve problems, resonate with audiences, and bring the soul of an organization to life. Her clients include small local DC businesses, nonprofits, large NGOs, and well-known brands including the ALS Association, Trinity Church Wall Street, Newseum, Royal Ontario Museum, Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History & Culture, and Harry Potter: The Exhibition. In addition to designing, she works to educate other creators on their role in shaping our culture to be more inclusive and equitable, and to wield their creative power responsibly. Acacia also runs a learning account on Instagram called SpottingRacism where followers can learn more about how the images in advertising, design, and culture impact our perceptions and actions.

Navigating the Future with Generative AI Video

Thursday, May 16, 2024

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Join us for a dive into the transformative world of generative AI video with Evo Heyning, a pioneering expert in interactive media, and author of Promptcraft: Guidebook for Generative Media in Creative Work. This webinar offers a unique opportunity to learn from one of the trailblazers in the field, as we delve into the latest developments in generative AI video and how these can be integrated into public media production.

This session is for media producers, digital content creators, strategists, and anyone interested in leveraging generative AI video to enhance audience engagement and content innovation.

PBS KIDS: Innovating Accessibility in Children's Media

Thursday, April 18, 2024

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Join our April "3rd Thursday" webinar series for an insightful presentation by the PBS KIDS team. In this session, Jen Rodriguez, Director of Research and Inclusive Design; Nita Mandar, Director of Product for the PBS KIDS Games App; and Kelly Corrado, Director of Game Tooling & Analytics, will share their latest advancements in accessibility within children's media made possible through the CPB-PBS KIDS Ready To Learn Initiative. Attendees will get a firsthand look and demonstration of the innovative approaches and tools that PBS KIDS is employing to ensure their content is inclusive and accessible to all audiences.

During this webinar, you'll gain practical insights into the accessibility strategies that are shaping the future of children's media in digital spaces. The PBS KIDS team will demonstrate some of the cutting-edge tools and research-based guidelines they're utilizing to enhance user experience and engagement. This is a must-attend event for public media professionals eager to understand and apply the principles of accessibility and innovation in their content and services.

Additional Resources:

PBS KIDS Draft Guidelines for Inclusive Research - Focus on Disabilities

Innovation at SXSW: What Public Media Stations Should Know

Thursday, March 21, 2024

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Watch or listen to the panelists' top sessions from SXSW 2024.

South by Southwest (SXSW) is the premier professional development event for practitioners of emerging media, where those of us thinking about the future gather to learn and be inspired. Whether it’s paradigm shifting keynotes, or surprisingly insightful conversations while waiting in line for tacos, it’s a time and place where serendipity and kismet reign supreme. A dozen of your public media colleagues from across the nation will be attending this year’s ‘South-by.’ Join us for a distillation of the most impactful trends from SXSW 2024 with a focus on media innovation and technology (e.g., AI), and their implications for public media. We’ll discuss how these insights can inform your production, engagement, and distribution strategy at your station.

In this session, participants will learn how to harness the latest media innovations and gAI trends surfaced at SXSW to elevate public media production, engagement, and distribution. Participants will also be inspired to learn from their colleagues who are experimenting in this space.

Panelists

David Huppert (Host), Director, Media Innovation Lab, PBS North Carolina.
Melissa Rihm Thibault, Ph.D.: Chief Education & Innovation Officer, PBS North Carolina
Katie Garrett: Associate Director of Media Services Utah Education Network
Anais Cayo: Director, Content Marketing & Production, PBS Multiplatform Marketing
Mikey Centrella: Director of Product, PBS Digital Innovation Team
Chad Davis: Chief Innovation Officer, Nebraska Public Media

"Co-Intelligence: Living and Working with AI" with Ethan Mollick

Thursday, February 15, 2024

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Session Description

Join us for an insightful exploration of AI with the renowned AI expert and Associate Professor at the Wharton School, Ethan Mollick. In this engaging webinar, "Co-Intelligence: Living and Working with AI," Mollick will offer a wide ranging and thought-provoking look at the current and future potential of AI, presenting its transformative effects in our work, education and creative processes. He will discuss how AI has transitioned from a futuristic concept to a present-day co-intelligence, augmenting human capabilities in unprecedented ways.

In this talk, Mollick will share live demonstrations of AI tools in action, showcasing their practical applications in real-time, and will discuss how to effectively partner with AI as a co-worker, co-teacher, and coach. In his work, Mollick challenges us to utilize AI's enormous power without losing our identity, to learn from it without being misled, and to harness its gifts to create a better human future.

About Ethan Mollick

Ethan Mollick is an eminent thinker, researcher, and a leading voice in AI, known for his work at the intersection of AI, innovation, and entrepreneurship. Through his writing, speaking, and teaching, Mollick has become one of the most prominent thinkers and explainers of AI, focusing on the practical aspects of how these new tools for thought can transform our world. As an Associate Professor at the Wharton School and the co-founder of Wharton Interactive, he combines academic insight with practical applications. Mollick's work is widely recognized, and he regularly shares his knowledge through his "One Useful Thing" newsletter and a substantial social media following.

Innovate with Current: A Live User’s Guide to Generative AI Tools

Thursday, January 18, 2024

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Session Description:

In this session, participants will learn how gAI tools can help augment your creative work as well as create more efficiencies in your workflows. And, based on this event, we hope you’ll be encouraged and inspired to make your own explorations into the world of gAI.

This session is open to public media staff and leadership who are curious about the emerging media frontier of generative AI, and how they or their teams can best fold gAI tools into their daily work routines.

Panelists

Mike Janssen (Host), Current’s digital editor.
Ernesto Aguilar, Executive Director of Radio Programming and Content Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Initiatives at KQED.
Mikey Centrella, leads the PBS Innovation Team as a Director of Product
Alex Goldmark, Executive Producer for Planet Money at NPR.
Lauren Paatela, Video Game Producer at Nebraska Public Media Labs.”