Pressroom
For Immediate Release November 15, 2005
CPB Board of Directors Announce Reform Measures
Washington, D.C. -- The Corporation for Public Broadcasting's Board of Directors today announced meaningful reforms designed to strengthen and enhance governance, accountability, and transparency in the operations of the CPB.
As a first step, the board is establishing a corporate governance committee and an executive compensation committee. These two committees will be responsible for improving checks and balances within the Corporation; defining the respective roles of the board and senior management; achieving greater transparency to the public; and adopting policies for the hiring and compensation of senior executives, including policies designed to maintain CPB's tradition of nonpartisanship.
The board's longest-serving member, Frank Cruz, has agreed to chair the corporate governance committee. Mr. Cruz, who has served on the board since 1994, founded Telemundo.
"These are bold and decisive actions to respond to important issues," said CPB Chairman Cheryl Halpern. "The board is unified in its views and in its determination to take meaningful steps to maintain and strengthen public confidence in public broadcasting."
The Board unanimously expressed its confidence in the corporation's president and CEO Patricia Harrison, and in CPB staff, noted the reforms will help the corporation meet its continuing commitment to the full complement of the corporation's statutory obligations, including balance and objectivity, diversity, creativity, excellence, innovation, addressing the needs of unserved and underserved audiences, as well as insulating public broadcasting from undue political influence.
In taking these steps, the board embraced suggestions made by the corporation's Inspector General, as well as suggestions received from PricewaterhouseCoopers. The board expressed its appreciation to Inspector General Konz and stated that it looks forward to working with him in the coming months as it moves forward with this program.
About CPB
CPB is a private, nonprofit corporation created by Congress in 1967 and is steward of the federal government's investment in public broadcasting. It helps support the operations of more than 1,100 locally-owned and -operated public television and radio stations nationwide, and is the largest single source of funding for research, technology, and program development for public radio, television and related online services.