The Evolution of NPR

In 2009, NPR went under a massive transformation. New CEO, new program director; essentially the whole company underwent a facelift and a tummy tuck. With that rejuvenation, NPR evolved from a simple, bland news sources into a major dynamic news corporation. In a Fast Company feature that went to press in 2009, Anya Kamenetz summed up the transformation like so:

It's a bit of a mystery how NPR managed to grow its audience so dramatically even as other news outlets suffered. Brand-new CEO Schiller has one of the most popular theories. On her ninth day of work, her office is still full of congratulatory flower arrangements — the perfect setting for her rosy take on the source of NPR's true strength: the human element. When her appointment was announced, she explains, she got more than a thousand emails from family, friends, and old coworkers, and each had a personal anecdote about a local station or drive-time ritual. "I've worked in a lot of big media companies now," she says. "I mean, this is my fifth [The New York Times, Discovery Channel, CNN, TBS], and I've never seen such a connection between the institution and the audience members. The power of that is extraordinary. The journalism and the credibility — that's the obvious stuff. It's the personal connection that's the secret sauce." -  Anya Kamenetz, Fast Company

The secret sauce comes with a dash of improved technology and a change in audience tastes. As listeners demand more nationalized coverage, NPR is killing their member stations by stealing listeners with online content and satellite radio deals. With NPR's "free" price tag, it is more affordable than most news sources. As Kamenetz found NPR has replaced print newspapers that have gone bankrupt in cities across America. The Minneapolis Star Tribune, recently  fell victim to this.

It is all understandable. Media that stimulates auditory senses is more appealing than visual reading. With glossed over production, NPR is doing fantastic with targeting people. Their production quality is equivalent with the quality one would find in top quality movies.

NPR you keep on doing what you do, because it works.