Condolences

RESOLUTION
PUBLIC SESSION

BOARD OF DIRECTORS
CORPORATION FOR PUBLIC BROADCASTING
WASHINGTON, D.C.
Tuesday, February 13, 2024

 unanimously

Resolved,

That the Board of Directors

of the

Corporation for Public Broadcasting

Expresses its Heartfelt Condolences

to the Family and Friends of

Nellie Moore (Iñupiaq)

Pioneering Alaska Native Public Media Journalist

We will long remember with gratitude Nellie Moore, one of Alaska’s first Indigenous reporters.

At 19, Nellie became the first news director at public radio station KOTZ in Kotzebue, Alaska, above the Arctic Circle, in 1973, when many Alaka communities depended on radio to communicate with the outside world. In a career spanning 44 years, she also worked as a reporter for KUAC in Fairbanks and KNBA/Alaska Public Media in Anchorage, the first urban Native radio station in the nation, where she was one of the early hosts of National Native News. She also worked as a consultant to Children’s Television Workshop to produce six television segments on the Inupiat people for “Sesame Street.”

Throughout her long career, she introduced local news to Native communities and was a voice for Native people.

The CPB Board of Directors marks Nellie Moore’s leadership, vision, and extraordinary service to public media and the American public with deep respect and appreciation and offers our heartfelt condolences to her family and friends.

RESOLUTION
PUBLIC SESSION

BOARD OF DIRECTORS
CORPORATION FOR PUBLIC BROADCASTING
WASHINGTON, D.C.
Tuesday, February 13, 2024

 unanimously

Resolved,

That the Board of Directors

of the

Corporation for Public Broadcasting

Expresses its Heartfelt Condolences

to the Family and Friends of

Gary Fife (Creek)

Founding host of National Native News

We will long remember with gratitude Gary Fife, the pioneering journalist who served as the first host of National Native News, which launched in 1987 as the first national public radio program to cover Indian Country and continues to this day.

A radio journalist living in Minneapolis, Gary was recruited by the Alaska Public Radio Network to start the program because he had reporting and broadcast experience, a deep knowledge of Native history, politics and issues, and was well-connected across Indian Country.

Gary embraced the challenge because he believed that media was a modern extension of traditional storytelling and could be used to uplift what was then an invisible minority of Native Americans. He used his platform to educate journalists about the diversity and complexity of Indian Country.

The CPB Board of Directors marks Gary Fife’s leadership, vision, and extraordinary service to public media and the American public with deep respect and appreciation and offers our heartfelt condolences to his family and friends.

RESOLUTION
PUBLIC SESSION

BOARD OF DIRECTORS
CORPORATION FOR PUBLIC BROADCASTING
WASHINGTON, D.C.
Tuesday, February 13, 2024

 unanimously

Resolved,

That the Board of Directors

of the

Corporation for Public Broadcasting

 Expresses its Heartfelt Condolences

 to the Family and Friends of

Bob Edwards

“Morning Edition” Host, 1979-2004

We will long remember public radio host Bob Edwards, whose wide-ranging interviews shaped NPR’s “Morning Edition” over nearly a quarter of a century and helped give NPR its gravitas and credibility.

Bob joined NPR in 1974 and co-hosted “All Things Considered” before being tapped to host “Morning Edition.” His authoritative baritone voice and understated delivery set the tone for what became the network’s flagship morning program. He conducted more than 20,000 interviews for “Morning Edition,” including regular talks with cowboy poet Baxter Black and former Major League Baseball announcer Red Barber, which made the program what he called “a little island of civility and purpose.”

Bob was the recipient of numerous awards, including the Peabody Award, the Alfred I duPont-Columbia University Award and CPB’s Edward R. Morrow Award for outstanding contributions to public radio. He was inducted into the Radio Hall of Fame in 2004.

The CPB Board of Directors marks Bob Edwards’ leadership and extraordinary service to public radio and the American public with deep respect and appreciation and offers our heartfelt condolences to his family, friends, and colleagues.

RESOLUTION
PUBLIC SESSION

BOARD OF DIRECTORS
CORPORATION FOR PUBLIC BROADCASTING
WASHINGTON, D.C.
Monday, December 11, 2023

unanimously

Resolved,

That the Board of Directors

of the

Corporation for Public Broadcasting

Expresses its Heartfelt Condolences

to the Family and Friends of

Samuel C. O. Holt

Author of the Public Radio Study

Senior Executive of PBS and NPR

Winner of the 1983 Edward R. Murrow Award

We will long remember with gratitude Samuel C. O. Holt as a visionary researcher who helped lay the foundation for NPR and PBS’ national programming services.

In late 1968, Sam Holt was commissioned by CPB and the Ford Foundation to report on the state of educational radio and make recommendations to build the new public radio system. Many of his recommendations from his 1969 Public Radio Study were implemented when National Public Radio was founded the following year.

As a founding member of PBS’ staff in 1970, Holt coordinated programming, helping to create programs including “Masterpiece Theatre” and “The MacNeil-Lehrer Report.” In 1977, he joined NPR as Senior Vice President for Programming and helped launch such celebrated programs as “Morning Edition.” He won the Edward R. Murrow Award from the CPB in 1983, which recognizes outstanding contributions to public radio.

The CPB Board of Directors marks Samuel Holt’s leadership, vision, and extraordinary service to public media and the American public with deep respect and appreciation and offers our heartfelt condolences to his family and friends.

RESOLUTION
PUBLIC SESSION

BOARD OF DIRECTORS
CORPORATION FOR PUBLIC BROADCASTING
WASHINGTON, D.C.
Monday, December 11, 2023

unanimously

Resolved,

That the Board of Directors

of the

Corporation for Public Broadcasting

 Expresses its Heartfelt Condolences

 to the Family and Friends of

Maria Martin

Pioneering Latina Public Radio Journalist

Creator, Latino USA

We will long remember public radio journalist Maria Emilia Martin, who dedicated her professional life to bringing Latino voices and stories to English-language public radio and helped inspire and launch the careers of a cadre of Latino journalists in the U.S. and Central America.

Maria got her start in 1975 at KBBF in Santa Rosa, Calif., the first Latino-owned community radio station in the U.S. She was an editor on NPR's national show Latin File, then in 1990 became NPR’s first and only Latin American affairs editor on the national desk.

She left NPR in 1993 to create the English-language public radio program Latino USA, which was praised by President Clinton at its official launch on May 5, 1993, at the Public Radio Conference. Latino USA is now the longest running national Latino news and cultural public radio program in the nation.

In 2015, Maria Martin was inducted into the National Association of Hispanic Journalists Hall of Fame.

The CPB Board of Directors marks Maria Martin’s leadership, vision, and extraordinary service to public media and the American public with deep respect and appreciation and offers our heartfelt condolences to her family, friends, and colleagues.

RESOLUTION
PUBLIC SESSION

BOARD OF DIRECTORS
CORPORATION FOR PUBLIC BROADCASTING
WASHINGTON, D.C.
Monday, October 16, 2023

7 approved; 1 absent

Resolved,

That the Board of Directors

of the

Corporation for Public Broadcasting

 Expresses its Heartfelt Condolences

 to the Family and Friends of

Frank Blythe

Founding Executive Director, Native American Broadcasting Consortium, 1976-2006

We will long remember with gratitude Frank Blythe as a visionary leader who was proud of his Native American heritage and who elevated and shared authentic stories of Native American culture.

Frank (Eastern Band of Cherokee/Sisseton-Wahpeton Dakota) was one of six Native Americans on the organizing committee for Native American Public Broadcasting Consortium (NAPBC) and executive director of the organization for its first 30 years.

During his tenure, NAPBC evolved from a library that circulated videotapes and films that public television stations could broadcast locally to an organization that helped create, produce, and distribute films by Native American storytellers. With Frank at the helm, NAPBC launched the CPB-supported $500,000 annual television program fund (now known as Vision Maker Media’s Public Media Fund), for Native producers to produce stories and Native productions. NAPBC also began American Indian Radio on Satellite, which launched The Native Radio Network and Native America Calling as the first daily all-Native live radio talk show, which is still on the air today.

Frank’s legacy is Vision Maker Media, which continues to empower and engage Native peoples to share their stories under the outstanding leadership of Frank’s daughter, Francene Blythe-Lewis.

The CPB Board of Directors marks Frank Blythe’s leadership, vision, and extraordinary service to public media and the American public with deep respect and appreciation and offers our heartfelt condolences to his family, friends, and colleagues.

RESOLUTION
PUBLIC SESSION

BOARD OF DIRECTORS
CORPORATION FOR PUBLIC BROADCASTING
WASHINGTON, D.C.
June 21, 2023

6 in favor, 2 absent

Resolved,

That the Board of Directors

of the

Corporation for Public Broadcasting

 Expresses its Heartfelt Condolences

 to the Family and Friends of

Ron Hull

We will long remember with gratitude Ron’s formative vision and lasting contributions to public media in the United States.

Over a remarkable career that spanned nearly seven decades, Ron was a visionary leader who leaves a lasting legacy in public television -- in Nebraska, across the country, and around the world.

Ron participated in the creation of Nebraska Educational Television in the 1950s. A student of history and supporter of the arts, he brought the work of Mari Sandoz and Nebraska Poet Laureate John Neihardt, two renowned chroniclers of Native American culture and history, to public television. Through NET he also celebrated the work and legacy of writer Willa Cather, known for her novels of life in the Great Plains.

As the second Program Fund director for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, Ron initiated the creation of PBS’s signature history series, "American Experience." He secured funding for “NOVA,” programming from New York’s Metropolitan Opera, brought Bill Moyers back to public television, and provided support that enabled Ken Burns to produce his landmark documentary “The Civil War.” Ron also supported the vision and work of the Native American Public Broadcasting Consortium, which became Vision Maker Media, and the other members of what is now known as the National Multicultural Alliance.

His keen intellect and passion for public broadcasting’s mission made him an inspiring leader.

We offer our deepest condolences to Ron’s family, friends, and former colleagues at Nebraska Public Media.

RESOLUTION

PUBLIC SESSION BOARD OF DIRECTORS

CORPORATION FOR PUBLIC BROADCASTING

WASHINGTON, D.C.

Wednesday, June 21, 2023

6 in favor, 2 absent

Resolved,

That the Board of Directors

of the

Corporation for Public Broadcasting

Expresses its Heartfelt Condolences

to the Family, Friends, and Colleagues of

Newton Norman Minow

Visionary. Leader. Friend.

 We will long remember with gratitude Newton Minow, one of public broadcasting’s founding fathers.

As FCC chairman in 1961, Mr. Minow delivered his celebrated speech “Television and the Public Interest,” which described commercial television as a “vast wasteland,” and advocated for programming in the public interest. One of the most influential American speeches of all time, it led to the creation of CPB and the noncommercial, mission-focused public media system that continues to provide high-quality, educational content and fact-based news and information to the American people to this day.

As FCC Chairman, Mr. Minow advanced the passage of the All Channel Receiver Act, ensuring that new television sets would include a tuner to receive UHF channels, the portion of the spectrum to which most educational stations had been assigned. Mr. Minow was also a pioneer in the launch of communications satellites, which led to the global information revolution and the internet age.

An accomplished lawyer, Mr. Minow was devoted to strengthening the institutions of democracy and envisioned television as a medium for education, stimulation, and inspiration. He played a key role in establishing televised presidential debates. He served as board chair for public television station WTTW in his hometown Chicago, as it held its first membership drive and won its first Emmy Award. He later also served as chair of the PBS Board of Governors.

In 1982, CPB awarded Mr. Minow the distinguished public television Ralph Lowell Award for his outstanding individual contributions to public broadcasting. And in 2012, CPB awarded him the CPB Lifetime Achievement Award.

The CPB Board of Directors marks Newton Minow’s leadership, vision, and extraordinary service to public media and the American public with deep respect and appreciation and offers our condolences to his family, friends, and colleagues.

RESOLUTION

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

CORPORATION FOR PUBLIC BROADCASTING

WASHINGTON, D.C.

October 3, 2022

Unanimously

Resolved,

That the Board of Directors

of the

Corporation for Public Broadcasting

Expresses its Heartfelt Condolences

to the Family, Friends, and Colleagues of

Daniel Tone

We will remember with gratitude Daniel Tone’s commitment to public broadcasting and his significant contributions to the establishment of independent public media stations to serve the communities of northern Nevada and California.

Mr. Tone’s professional career at the University of Nevada at Reno (UNR) included working to expand the university’s educational television services and serving as director of UNR’s Office of Educational Communications and Public Broadcast. His vision, advocacy, and collaboration with the university leadership inspired support for the founding of public radio NPR station KUNR, operated by UNR, and later community-owned, public television station PBS Reno. Mr. Tone worked to qualify the public television station for PBS membership, recruit its founding board and executive leadership, secure equipment grants to bring the station on the air, and establish independent station governance.

The CPB Board of Directors marks Mr. Tone’s contributions to public media with deep respect and appreciation and offers our condolences to Mr. Tone’s family, friends, and colleagues.