NPR welcomed Gary Knell as its new President and CEO on Dec. 1. He started his day with a visit to Morning Edition to observe the broadcast in person. Later that afternoon, he joined Neal Conan on Talk of the Nation to answer questions about the future of NPR and public broadcasting in general, and continued talking with listeners afterward with a Twitter chat. You can also read a news report about the network's change in leadership.

 

The end of the calendar year is a time when many are thinking about maximizing their tax deductions and looking for worthy non-profit organizations to benefit. At KGOU, it's the mid-point of our fiscal year, and time to take stock of our progress toward our financial goals.

KGOU General Manager Karen Holp has reported to listeners that we are not quite as far along financially as we were at this time last year. If you made a pledge of support to KGOU this year and have not yet sent in payment, or if you want to initiate a donation for the 2011 calendar year, this is a great time to give! You can pay by credit card anytime before the end of the year, or mail a check to the address at the bottom of this e-newsletter. Together, we can make 2011 a successful year for KGOU!

 

Poverty in Oklahoma is at a 10-year high, according to U.S. Census Bureau estimates released last week. StateImpact Oklahoma will be taking a closer look at poverty throughout the state in the coming weeks and months, talking to Oklahomans who are faring well as well as those who are struggling.

In keeping with the StateImpact focus on the state budget, reporters Joe Wertz and Logan Layden will be examining how state money affects local economics in communities with high poverty. The first online report includes an interactive map showing poverty rates by county.

 

There are new signs that unemployment in the U.S. is slowly easing, but improvement can't come fast enough for the more than four million Americans who have been out of work for a year or more.

In a series of reports on-air and online, NPR examines the plight of the long-term unemployed -- how they get by, who they turn to for help, their attitudes about government programs and retraining efforts, how their distress may shape political views in the 2012 elections, and more. The coverage begins Monday, Dec. 12 on Morning Edition with the release of results from a major survey by NPR and the Kaiser Family Foundation.

 

BBC AMERICA and NPR are bringing Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! to television. BBC AMERICA will televise a "2011 Year in Review" version of Wait, Wait... on Friday, Dec. 23 at 7 p.m. CT. The audio portion of the special will be broadcast on KGOU and other NPR member stations that weekend, Dec. 24 and 25. The show taped in front of a live audience at the Chase Auditorium in Chicago on Dec. 2.

Host Peter Sagal, along with official judge and scorekeeper Carl Kasell, will lead a panel of both U.S. and U.K. talent, including comedians Paula Poundstone and Alonzo Bodden. The special will look back at 2011's biggest events from an American and British perspective and will also include listener contests and celebrity guests from both sides of the pond. To avoid the shock of seeing (as opposed to just hearing) the Wait, Wait... hosts in action, here's a photo primer.

If you're in the midst of making your list or checking it twice, NPR's arts and entertainment editors have some suggestions that would be nice to give or receive. Check out their picks for the best books and best recorded music of 2011, and vote for your favorite album of the year at NPR Music. And if holiday cheer is on your wish list, it's available on demand from the Holidays 2011 page at NPR.org, with perennial favorite stories, recipes and more.