Ira gives you a tour of the TAL app
Jake posted on Friday, February 5th, 2010 | Blog | No Comments
It’s become de rigeur to offer quick video tours of new iPhone apps – something we also did for the Public Radio Player 2.0 release.
But when you’re developing an app for This American Life, who better to narrate the tour than the host of the show, Ira Glass himself?
Voilà! The TAL App tour by Ira. Evidently it’s hitting its mark, here’s one of the YouTube comments:
Ira, you’re a good salesman. I have had an iPhone for 2 years. This is the very first app that I’ve ever purchased. I began watching the video, saying to myself that if this app wasn’t free, I wouldn’t download it. I ended up buying it while the video was still playing.
PRX: The Envelope Please
John posted on Tuesday, February 2nd, 2010 | Blog, Station Newsletters | No Comments
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This American Life iPhone app: For immediate distribution!
Rekha posted on Monday, February 1st, 2010 | Press Releases | 4 Comments
We’re so excited about our latest iPhone production that we came up with a press release about it:
This American Life App, Developed by PRX, Now Available on iTunes
Archives going back to 1995 and exclusive show content for iPhone and iPod touch users
Cambridge, Mass., February 1, 2010 — Those who resolved to listen to more radio in the new decade are in for a treat. This American Life, the hit public radio show from Chicago Public Radio, has collaborated with Public Radio Exchange (PRX) to launch an app for iPhone and iPod touch on the iTunes App Store.
The This American Life App gives unprecedented on-demand access to the 
full show archive going back to 1995. New episodes are added automatically and users can search by episode or contributor — including David Sedaris, Sarah Vowell, John Hodgman, and dozens more. Episodes can be streamed for free or purchased from iTunes for offline listening. Additionally, all episodes of the This American Life television show on Showtime can be downloaded for a fee.
The app also has free cartoons and other bonus content from the This American Life television show. Customizable features include a favorites list, sharing by email, Facebook, and Twitter, and alerts for the live weekly broadcast from WBEZ in Chicago, which can be streamed from within the app. Exclusive content includes behind-the-scenes video with the show’s producers, some of David Sedaris’s and host Ira Glass’s first radio stories (from the early 90s), audio of NPR’s Terry Gross interviewing Ira Glass (and vice versa), clips from live stage events, special staff picks lists, and more.
“We’re excited to provide an app that includes our entire archive of nearly 400 radio episodes, and we’re grateful the talented folks at PRX came to us with this idea,” says Ira Glass, host of This American Life. “We hope lots of people will find unfamiliar episodes they’ll like.”
“This American Life rocks, and we were thrilled to work with Ira and his team to create an app worthy of the groundbreaking show we all know and love,” says Jake Shapiro, CEO of PRX, which developed the app. “Fans and new listeners alike are getting an audiovisual feast.”
About the live feed that’s part of the app, WBEZ President Torey Malatia says, “Note, ours is the only app providing a hand-held Geiger counter for the live show that drives interactive media inexorably backwards to 1968.”
The This American Life App is available for $2.99 from the App Store on iPhone and iPod touch or at www.itunes.com/appstore/.
This American Life has also engaged PRX to provide the program’s archives for sale in the iTunes Store.
This American Life is a public radio show produced by Chicago Public Radio and distributed to more than 500 stations by Public Radio International (PRI). 1.8 million people listen to the show each week on radio, and another half million download the weekly podcast, making it the most popular podcast in America most weeks. From 2006-2008, a television version of This American Life aired on Showtime, winning three Emmys.
PRX is an award-winning public media network focused on innovation at the intersection of technology and talent. The PRX platform is an open distribution marketplace connecting thousands of producers and local public radio stations, creating public radio’s largest archive of on-demand programs for broadcast and digital use. PRX is also the lead developer of the Public Radio Player App which has been downloaded over 2.5 million times from the iTunes Store.
This American App: PRX and TAL partner to launch This American Life iPhone app
Jake posted on Monday, February 1st, 2010 | Blog | No Comments
The official press release is coming soon, but we can’t contain ourselves here at PRX now that the This American Life iPhone app is live in the iTunes store!
http://tinyurl.com/thisamericanlifeapp
This American Life iPhone app
The app is a smorgasbord of TAL – the complete show archive, exclusive audio and video extras, staff lists of favorites and contributors, a link to the live broadcast each Friday night from Chicago Public Radio.
This has been many months in the making, with lots of hard work from the PRX tech team together with Ira Glass and his gang. Congratulations to everyone!
More news and background to come.
PRX staff gathers 'round the laptop for the big moment
PRX and WBUR partner on local station iPhone app
Jake posted on Friday, January 29th, 2010 | Blog | 3 Comments
PRX and WBUR partner on iPhone app
This is going to be a season of exciting announcements for PRX, and here’s another one.
As part of our CPB-funded work to develop innovative applications for public media, we’re partnering with WBUR to develop a local station iPhone app that really pushes the envelope for what’s possible on the device, what users want, and what stations are capable of in the world beyond broadcast.
Our general principles for what this app should showcase are Localism, Journalism, Participation, and Monetization (yes even public radio folks need to figure out how to make money!).
Of course the app should and will make it easy for you to listen to the WBUR stream, get programs on-demand, read the headlines, find out what’s playing. Those are features you’ll find on many other public radio apps – including the Public Radio Player. But we want it to go much further and take advantage both of WBUR’s unique strengths as a local journalistic resource with a large loyal audience, and of the device’s unique properties like geo location, audio/video/image capture, SMS, and – oh yeah – telephony!
Another important thing to point out about this project: PRX plans to offer the resulting code under an open source license to enable other local stations to develop additional apps, and encourage a developer community to help improve and extend the app for subsequent versions.
In the meantime, WBUR is soliciting input on what listeners might want from a WBUR iPhone app, and you can weigh in here.
And yes, we’ll make sure it runs on the iPad…
Sync: Producer royalties, radio matters and PRX on iTunes
Genevieve posted on Friday, January 29th, 2010 | Blog, Sync: Producer Newsletter | No Comments
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State of the Re:Union with Al Letson, from PRX and NPR
Jake posted on Wednesday, January 27th, 2010 | Blog, PRX Projects, Press Releases | No Comments
State of the Re:Union
Apropos of today’s State of the Union speech from the President, and Apple’s “Slate of the Union” introducing the unfortunately named iPad…
We’re thrilled to be working with Al on his “SOTRU” project. Ever since we heard Al’s first 2-minute entry in the Public Radio Quest a few years back we’ve been big believers in his talent and vision here at PRX. We knew to expect great things from Al, and when the Corporation for Public Broadcasting decided to back his new venture with gusto in 2010, we made sure to jump in and lend a hand.
We are also trying out a new partnership with our friends at NPR, resulting in a co-distribution arrangement that will also enable Al to appear on some NPR programs in addition to distributing his show to PRX and NPR member stations. This is kind of how NPR works with some “presenting” stations like WBUR (”On Point”) or WHYY (”Fresh Air”).
Make sure to check out Al’s work on PRX now, and check back for more episodes coming soon. Al and his ninja team in Jacksonville have also revamped the SOTRU website.
Below is the announcement that just went out to public radio stations from our main man on the station marketing front, Izzi Smith:
New for Spring – State of the Re:Union with Al Letson
Fresh Stories on Building and Rebuilding Communities
PRX and NPR are excited to announce the spring season of State of the Re:Union with Al Letson. With generous support from CPB, Public Radio Talent Quest winner Al Letson is producing 5 all-new shows this spring. State of the Re:Union (SOTRU) is presented by PRX and co-distributed by PRX and NPR.
There’s so much talk about “community” that sometimes we lose perspective on the real stories of the people working to make homes, lives, and neighborhoods across the country. In State of the Re:Union, Al Letson is traveling the country to find those stories, and tell them with grace, perspective, and deep curiosity.
Where much of today’s news and media outlets highlight the divisions and conflicts that separate us, SOTRU explores the resonating themes, stories, challenges and cultural components that create communities across the country and celebrate the commonality that links us as a people.
Letson brings his formidable stage and poetry slam skills to the mic in each State of the Re:Union episode. Not since Radiolab have you heard music, rhythm, and pacing used to deepen the story. During the Talent Quest, PRX talked about the value of “hostiness.”
There will be 5, all new hours of State of the Re:Union this spring. Preview audio will be available on March 1, and broadcast rights open April 30, 2010. The programs are available free to all PRX and NPR member stations. Here’s a preview of some of the stories in the spring season:
Greensburg, Kansas -
On one night in May of 2007, a tornado wiped Greensburg, Kansas, off the map. The town’s residents have decided to not only resurrect the town, but to rebuild in a true spirit of renewal. State of the Re:Union examines the profound devastation and the rigors and rewards of this innovative rebirth.
Brooklyn, NY -
State of the Re:Union visits New York City’s most populated borough to examine how this diverse collection of communities handles the friction of change, the pull of tradition, and discovers that special something that makes this neighborhood so celebrated.
Timber Town -
Back in the timber industry’s heyday, small mill towns in Oregon were thriving. Business was booming. Then in the early 1990s, the saws stopped. The mills shut down and their economies crumbled. State of the Re:Union surveys how a town, that has lost its identity, reinvents itself.
A fall season of six State of the Re:Union programs will be available in September 2010.
Youth Radio’s New Reality Checkers
Emily posted on Tuesday, January 26th, 2010 | Blog | No Comments
Generation PRX’s Youth Editorial Board now boasts a team of incisive critics from a classroom at San Francisco’s Juvenile Justice Center. They’ve been listening to and reviewing tons of youth radio on PRX. About City Youth Now on PRX:
We are a group of young males of color, collectively enduring stress and frustration, hoping that soon we will leave and be able to be free and with our families. We are all from the streets of San Francisco. We grew up in both poverty and violence. As a group, we cannot only be defined as the “gangstas” and “thugs” in which society stereotypes us. Rather, our group of unorthodox young men is unique, loving, understanding, intelligent, and we can’t forget charismatic. While our personalities vary, we share interests in education, sports, music, reading, and an undying appreciation for women. During our incarceration, we have developed our life goals . . . READ MORE
Public radio makers — young and old — are always trying to amplify the voices that get lost in mainstream dialogue. PRX is glad to have the editorial insight and unique perspective of these thoughtful young men. Here’s one of their reviews:
“What’s the Most Pressing Youth Issue?” produced by Y-Press at the Democratic National Convention in 2008, surveys youth about what they believe to be the most important youth issues. The interviewees talk about the following issues: the war, stopping violence, the economy, education, oil, and tuition hikes. While these issues are certainly relevant and important on a national level, our critique lies in the fact that none of the interviewees address the day to day pressing issues facing inner-city lower class youth. READ MORE or LISTEN TO THE PIECE ON PRX
PRX Thinks Haiti
John posted on Tuesday, January 26th, 2010 | Blog, Station Newsletters | No Comments
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PRX Hiring: Junior Producer for Remix
Jake posted on Friday, January 22nd, 2010 | Blog, Jobs | No Comments
This is a great opportunity to work with PRX as part of a collaboration with our friends at the National Black Programming Consortium (NBPC) on our Remix project.
Remix is our emerging channel showcasing new voices, exceptional stories and compelling content from the PRX catalog and beyond. It’s currently running nationwide on XM Satellite Radio Channel 136, and will soon be available as an Internet, mobile, HD and broadcast service for public radio.
Remix is also a place for PRX to explore new partnerships and collab
oration, and we’re excited to work with NBPC and their web venture Black Public Media. You can hear a sample hour on the Remix blog.
Here’s an excerpt of the job description, click for the full description and application. The position is based in Harlem, New York at the NBPC offices, with some visits to the PRX headquarters here in Cambridge, MA.
The National Black Programming Consortium and Public Radio Exchange (PRX) currently have a position open for a junior producer who will primarily be in charge of producing audio segments published online and on the public spectrum of the XM Satellite stream managed by PRX known as Remix Radio.
This is a one-year contract part-time position based in Harlem, New York at the NBPC offices but involving responsibilities and deliverables both to NBPC and PRX via telecommute/virtual collaboration. The position also involves limited travel to some locations for training and partnership building purposes.
The right candidate for this position should have a Bachelor’s in Communications, Journalism, or film and audio production, and be available for at least 20 hours of weekly commitment.
The following are some of the responsibilities of this position:
• Producing twelve (12) original, national distribution quality audio pieces based on NBPC content. (Cut, Edit, and Mix on Pro Tools).
• Develop editorial criteria for the episodes.
• Create sound rich PRX: Remix Radio station IDs and promos.
• Search and audition pieces in the PRX catalog for potential inclusion in episodes.
• Identify and evaluate pieces for broadcast and negotiate licensing terms with content producers.
• Write intros and outros for pieces that require announcing or additional context.
• Convert and edit pieces as needed to fit Remix Radio/XM Satellite format.
• Upload and update server with new pieces and the latest episodes. (Also update the PRX.org and BlackPublicMedia.org websites with new episodes).
• Maintain rotation priorities and manage playlists on XM server.
• Update the BlackPublicMedia.org and remixradio.org blog.
• Organize regular check-ins and updates between PRX and NBPC.
• Additional tasks as assigned by the PRX and NBPC project supervisors.