Public Radio Exchange

PRX, the White House, and Innovation

Jake posted on Tuesday, September 1st, 2009 | Blog, PRX in the News

Vince Stehle of the Surdna Foundation (long-time much-loved PRX backers) posted an interesting piece for The Chronicle of Philanthropy on the dynamics of federal intervention in seeding innovation in technology.

PRX merits a mention, and indeed we are an example of successful collaboration between federal and foundation dollars to fuel an entrepreneurial approach to technology.

…Surdna was an early supporter of the Public Radio Exchange, an effort to harness the power of networked technology to deliver radio programs more cheaply and more broadly. In recent months, the exchange has led the development — with partners at Minnesota Public Radio and National Public Radio — of the Public Radio Player, a wildly popular iPhone application that delivers content from hundreds of public radio stations to iPhone owners everywhere.

As a grant maker, Surdna is occasionally congratulated for supporting innovative efforts like Public Radio Capital and Public Radio Exchange. It’s flattering. But the truth of the matter is that some of the most successful and innovative work we have supported was simply following in the footsteps of seasoned bureaucrats.

In particular, the first grants to the Public Radio Exchange and Public Radio Capital were both shepherded by the late Richard H.Madden, vice president for radio at the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, who was a remarkably sensitive and farsighted steward for public radio, associated with many of the most enduring program innovations in the field of public broadcasting.

The full article is here.

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