Pressroom
For Immediate Release October 1, 2007
The Corporation for Public Broadcasting Announces "Talent Quest" Finalists
Washington, DC -- The Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) is pleased to announce the six finalists of its "Talent Quest." They are:
Mark Bittman. Mr. Bittman is a best-selling cookbook author and creator of the popular New York Times column, "The Minimalist." His book, "How to Cook Everything" is currently in its 14th printing and has sold more than one million copies. He is a regular guest on the Today Show.
Majora Carter. Ms. Carter is Founder and Executive Director of Sustainable South Bronx, an organization whose mission is to bring environmental and economic rebirth to the South Bronx in New York City. Newsweek magazine included Carter in its 2007 "People to Watch" list. In 2005, Carter was awarded a MacArthur genius grant in 2005.
Al Letson. Mr. Letson is a self-described "performance poet," playwright, film director, actor and author, who has become nationally recognized for his soul-stirring, multidisciplinary work. Letson was awarded the Individual Artist Fellowship by the State of Florida in 2005. He appeared on Russell Simmon's Def Poetry on HBO, performed a promotional spot for CBS that aired before the NCAA Final Four tip off, and won the Atlanta Grand Slam and placed 3rd at the National Poetry Slam in 2000.
Julia Sweeney. Ms. Sweeney is an actress and comedian. She is best known for her role "Pat" in Saturday Night Live where she was a cast member in the 1990s. Her award-winning monologue "God Said Ha!" was released as a film by Miramax in 1998 and was produced by Quentin Tarantino. Many of her monologues have been featured on the public radio program "This American Life."
Glynn Washington. Mr. Washington is the Executive Director of the Council for Responsible Public Investment, a non-profit organization which works to amplify the benefits of public money for the public welfare, focusing attention on investment and shareholder practices of public pensions and endowments.
Rebecca Watson. Ms. Watson is the founder of Skepchick (www.skepchick.org), an online magazine focused on women and critical thinking. Her articles and essays have appeared online and in newspapers and magazines across the United States. She is also the co-host of "The Skeptics' Guide to the Universe" podcast.
Conceived with the aim of finding and developing new talent for public radio, "Talent Quest" has engaged the efforts of two teams -- Public Radio Exchange (PRX) and Launch Production Inc.
The teams took different approaches to recruiting talent: "Launch" sought out talented people who they thought would be good on radio; "PRX" conducted its talent search as a multi-stage web-based contest in which over 1,400 people submitted entries.
Each team named three finalists that they will work with over the next few months to produce pilot shows. "Launch" named Mr. Bittman, Ms. Carter and Ms. Sweeney. "PRX" named Mr. Letson, Mr. Washington and Ms. Watson. "Launch" and "PRX" will present the pilot shows to CPB which, in turn, will decide which pilot to fund for development. CPB will announce the Talent Quest winners early next year.
"This has been an exciting process and we're looking forward to introducing America to the next generation of public radio talent," said Pat Harrison, president and CEO of CPB. "Public radio will indeed be a source for new and different voices."
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.