Announcing The Next Gen Public Media Accelerator Projects

The Joan Ganz Cooney Center and the Corporation for Public Media are thrilled to announce the recipients of the Next Gen Public Media Accelerator Spark Grants. The 12 stations were selected through a multi-step proposal review process that included a committee of 11 young people who shared their perspectives with the Cooney Center and CPB. We received an exciting range of innovative ideas from the public media community and their partners, and are eager to follow along as they pursue these projects!

Over the course of the next few months, the Accelerator will meet as a learning community, sharing their progress and the lessons they learn. Ultimately, the stations will collaborate on a toolkit that will support other public media stations as they develop new programming for tween and teen audiences.

 

  • KBTC-TV (Tacoma, WA) 
    With “Ability Awareness,” KBTC will produce a series of short videos for neuro-diverse teens that address life skills needed for transitioning to the workplace and independent living.
  • KWMR community radio (Point Reyes Station, CA)
    “Indigenous YOUth Nation” (IYN) is a 27 minute radio show engaging youth with their own Indigenous culture in a radio show made by and for youth with support from native media professionals. Indigenous youth face many social pressures and risks, yet traditional culture can be an anchor.  IYN is a path of discovery that “my culture is cool.” A pilot episode of the show will be broadcast on KWMR and distributed via Native Voice One: The Native American Radio Network and PRX.
  • South Carolina ETV 
    “Conversations with Crescent” uses participatory action research to involve teenage Black girls in the creation of standard–aligned learning media for youth audiences. Centering Black girl experiences, interests, and values, the collective production team will build a world around Crescent, an animated character who represents Black girlhood in South Carolina and facilitates courageous and civil conversations, while keeping it real.
  • WSHU (Westport, CT)
    “Climate Change Proof in Bridgeport” will be a podcast produced in collaboration with SHU Discovery Science Center’s after-school STEM accelerator program in Bridgeport, CT that explores the climate concerns of 8th graders. The students will guide the podcast content, illuminating the fact that climate change is real in Bridgeport using the expertise of Science Center educators.

  • Next Louisville Youth Talk Show

    WFPL (Louisville, KY)
    With “Engaging Youth in Local Civic News,” WFPL will increase coverage of issues affecting Louisville’s youth, engaging them in civic dialogue and empowering them through information and resources. Youth voices will be featured in the award-winning talk show, In Conversation, and the station’s 2022 Voter Guide, amplifying issues impacting local youth to those who can institute change.

  • Vegas PBS (Las Vegas, NV)
    “In Our Opinion” will be a digital companion and provide featured segments within currently offered broadcast programming. A student-led Media Crew will work in mentorship with Vegas PBS staff to design and pilot new inclusive content to engage youth in innovative ways, reflect on social issues, cultural disparities and technological changes.
  • WUNC North Carolina Public Radio (Chapel Hill, NC)
    The “LaboraStory” is a media production studio built at a local North Carolina high school dedicated to producing student PSAs. Students will create a PSA and a community-focused action plan to share with their school and beyond in order to create curriculum adjustments, student advisory boards, and awareness about important issues facing young people.
  • WBUR (Boston, MA)
    With “WBUR Youth Takeover,” youth in the Greater Boston area will develop a series of live events that tackle issues that matter to young people today; the project is aimed at empowering high school and college-aged students through conversations and deep exploration of generational issues, led by young people themselves.  Segments will be edited for broadcast on Morning Edition.

  • WQED Film Academy

    WQED (Pittsburgh, PA)
    “Building Bridges and Bridging the Gap” incorporates Steeltown Film Academy into WQED with two Learning Labs, in which youth media makers and adult producers collaborate to create masterclasses with a youth perspective. These sessions will be filmed and shared in order to shape best practices for elevating youth voices in public media.

  • Twin Cities PBS (St. Paul, MN)
    “HYPE 2.0” marks the return of one of Twin Cities PBS’s most celebrated programs, “Don’t Believe the HYPE,” training BIPOC students to craft their own narratives and amplify their voices within a new media landscape.
  • Mississippi Public Broadcasting 
    “MPB Student Council” taps students across the state to participate in storytelling workshops and produce a podcast series about social issues that affect them. This diverse group of students from across the state will lend their voices to societal issues, help bridge the technology/media use and consumption gap, and become advocates for the educational mission of public media.
  • The WNET Group (New York, NY)
    The WNET Group

    WNET Youth Collective Summit

    “Youth Collective: The Amplify Series” explores a direct method of collaboration between public media and Gen Z creators that elevates youth voice, supports youth-produced media, and compensates young creators for their work. Mini-grants will foster young, diverse talent and introduce their work to a larger audience.

     

 

We’re continually inspired by the community of public media professionals who are working together with young people in new and creative ways. We’re looking forward to continuing our work together as a community, both through the Accelerator and the Next Gen Public Media PLC!