Newsletter Fall 2014 Volume 2, Issue 1

In This Issue

Programming Highlights

Support KJZZ

Employer Matching Gifts

Corporate Underwriting

Listen to KJZZ Outside the Phoenix Metro Area:

91.7 FM - Fountain Hills, AZ

92.1 FM - Glenwood, Silver

City, NM

106.9 FM - Little Acres, Globe, AZ

98.9 FM - Tucson, AZ

Dear KJZZ Listeners,

Sarah Ventre

It's always a little tough to explain to someone what it is that I do as a producer. Mostly that's because if a show or a story has a really good producer, listeners won't ever realize it. All they'll hear is a thoughtful piece or conversation with lots of sound, and nothing that sticks out as strange or out of place. It's sort of like someone coming to you with a drawing of a cake. It's really pretty and they tell you what they want it to taste like, but don't give you a recipe. "Moist and chocolaty with just a hint of mint, but not too sweet. And lots of buttercream frosting. And make it bright pink." And then your job is to figure out how to do that, make it taste good, and make sure the people that eat it have no idea how many eggs you broke in the process.

So as a producer for KJZZ original productions, my day-to-day job consists of coming up with lots of story ideas, thinking of creative and interesting ways to incorporate sound into stories, writing copy, booking and pre-interviewing potential guests, gathering field sound, collaborating with the hosts, directing and/or board-oping our live shows, and doing lots and lots of sound editing. And because the job lends itself to so much creativity, two different producers working on the same story will often come up with very different end products. They'll have different ideas about how and where to use sounds, and what the shape and arc of a story should be.

Photo: Tinier Desk Concerts were a project I did as an NPR Music Intern. They're like Tiny Desk Concerts (a video of a band playing in our office) except with teens/young musicians performing...and they did them at my desk. (Which believe it or not, was tinier than the Tiny Desk!) This is a band called The Polka Dots from Virgina that I loved.

Sometimes this means making editorial decisions about content - like what stays in and what gets cut. Other times it means choosing a really great piece of music that will help add color to a story, or thinking about how to incorporate field sound in order to set a new scene. But mostly it means figuring out how to make each story resonate, and using the power of radio to tell listeners unique stories and take them to new places.

Sincerely,

Sarah Ventre

KJZZ Senior Producer

Programming Highlights

KJZZ Original Productions

By Jon Hoban, Chief Content Officer

We have a new online space for KJZZ's original programming. We have created and reorganized our stories from KJZZ's Here and Now and KJZZ's The Show. You can dig into all of the stories and facts from our community including the special segment called "Did You Know".

Explore KJZZ and have some fun learning more about our city, county and state. KJZZ is your community news station.

KJZZ's Snap Judgment

By Jon Hoban, Chief Content Officer

Have you heard Snap? It's on KJZZ Sunday's at 5 pm and it's one of the best storytelling programs on KJZZ. Snap Judgment tells intriguing stories about extraordinary and defining events in people's lives. The program's raw, intimate, and musical brand of storytelling dares listeners to see a sliver of the world through another's eye.

Our host is Glynn Washington takes listeners on a narrative journey - leaping from one person's frying pan into another person's fire. Deejay-driven musical delivery drops listeners into the very heart of what matters. Snap Judgment's fast-paced (sometimes dark, sometimes playful) narrative highlights people from across the globe who put everything on the line.

If you want to hear something surprising - check out Snap Judgment.

Staff Introductions

Andrew Bernier
Senior Field Correspondent - Science and Innovation
Andrew Bernier joins KJZZ as the Senior Field Correspondent for Science and Innovation with more than a decade of academic and professional experience in scientific research, instruction and broadcasting.

Read more

Kristena Hansen
Senior Field Correspondent - Business
Kristena Hansen covered commercial and residential real estate for the Phoenix Business Journal for the past two years, which involved a range of topics from housing trends, publicly traded home builders and real estate investment trusts (REITs), and commercial development.

Read more

Inside Your Membership

Leadership Society Leadership Society Members of the Month

Back to Radio Night
It's time for our annual Back to Radio Night, a special tribute to Leadership Society members and an opportunity to meet your favorite on-air hosts and reporters.

Watch for your invitation to Back to Radio Night by mail or email in October.

Sustaining Members Sustaining Members of the Month

Introducing Pledge-Free Streaming

A benefit for sustaining members who give $15/month or more

Get ready to stream regular programming during pledge drives!

As a KJZZ listener, we want you to be the first to know that pledge-free streaming will be available during our next pledge drive in October. You'll be able to enjoy regular programming wherever you go.

Pledge-free streaming is available FREE to sustaining members who give $15/month or more, simply log in to your e-member account or create one now to enjoy this new benefit.

Learn more about pledge-free streaming or contact our member services team at 480-774-8400 or member_services@rioradio.org.

Member News Members of the Month

Get The KJZZ App for IPhone and Android

The new KJZZ app for iPhone and Android allows you to listen to our live news stream or Jazz PHX, our 24-hour classic jazz music stream.

Set an alarm to wake up with KJZZ or hear original productions like KJZZ's Here and Now and KJZZ's The Show on demand. Or share your comments with our Open Mic feature. Open Mic lets you record a ten second message to encourage other listeners to support KJZZ.

It's easy. Give it a try. You just might hear yourself on the air. Don't have the app? Well, it's free ... at the iPhone App Store or at Google Play. Learn more

Legacy Society

Leave A Legacy Regional Workshops

KJZZ is sponsoring four Leave a Legacy regional workshops in conjunction with Planned Giving Roundtable and other Valley non-profit organizations in celebration of estate planning and financial planning weeks in October.

The first workshop, Cover Your Assets, A Practical Guide to Asset Protection, is scheduled for October 14 at the Rio Salado Conference Center from 10 am - 12 noon.

Learn about the workshops.

Business Members

Maricopa Community College Foundation Student Success Campaign

Maricopa Community Colleges Foundation

Proud KJZZ Business Member

Maricopa Community Colleges Foundation is embarking on a comprehensive campaign to ensure that students have the resources they need to succeed. Our goal is to raise $50 million over four years to support student success in the following three thematic areas:

Fund scholarships that will directly support student success
Support for faculty and staff innovation, creativity, and excellence to develop new programs, initiatives and methodologies to enhance student success
Support community partnerships that expand opportunity for students

Learn more at the Maricopa Community Colleges Foundation website.

MassMutual
Proud KJZZ Business Member

"The exposure that we receive by being a KJZZ Business Member has really been remarkable."

Visit the MassMutual website.

A Special Thank you

Caf� Lalibela

KJZZ would like to thank Caf� Lalibela for being a partner and underwriter of KJZZ programming for over 17 years.

Located in the heart of Tempe, Caf� Lalibela is a family owned and operated restaurant which has been bringing delicious Ethiopian cuisine to the Valley since 1997 offering a unique dining experience that is far from ordinary.

Visit their website at www.eatethiopian.com

Group 91.Five: KJZZ's Young Professionals

Group 91.Five Welcomes New Organizer

Group 91.Five welcomes KJZZ Communications Coordinator Tricia Moore as the new organizer. Tricia will oversee the "KJZZ What I Wish I Knew..." discussion series, plan local networking opportunities and moderate online group discussions.

Young professionals who are passionate about community, lifelong learning and access to unbiased information are encouraged to join Group 91.Five and help raise awareness of the importance of public radio.

Learn more or email group91five@rioradio.org.

Volunteer Update

Volunteer Programs Merging: KJZZ, K-BACH and Sun Sounds

Volunteers Morrie Hesch

and Joanie Jacobs

The Division of Public Service is in the process of merging KJZZ 91.5 FM, K-BACH 89.5 FM, Sun Sounds of Arizona and SPOT 127 into one volunteer program.

Volunteer orientations are held throughout the year. The next orientation is tentatively scheduled for November 13 from 6-7 pm at the Rio Conference Center, 2323 W. 14th St., Tempe, AZ 85281.

For more information about how to become a volunteer, contact Carol Maffuccio at 480-774-8300 or cmaffuccio@rioradio.org.

Vehicle Donation

Donate Your Car To Support News And Get A 2014 Tax Break

'99 BMW Z3

Thanks to James in Cave Creek who donated his '99 BMW Z3, Yolanda in Sun Lakes who donated her '03 Jeep Grand Cherokee and Thomas in Phoenix who donated his '02 Volkswagon Jetta in July.

These donations are already supporting programs you value everyday like Morning Edition, Wait Wait...Don't Tell Me!, Here & Now and The Diane Rehm Show.

Learn more about donating your car, truck, boat or RV, call 1-855-565-KJZZ or visit cars.kjzz.org

Social Buzz

KJZZ Introduces New Ways To Connect

KJZZ recently expanded its social media presence in an effort to provide members with even more opportunities to connect with the station and with each other. Here's where you can find us:

@KJZZphoenix for tweets on recent news stories, programming updates and a touch of newsroom humor. @yourKJZZ for station and event information, member perks and public radio community chat. Use #KJZZtravel to discuss the KJZZ Travel and Discovery Expo. Use #WeAreTheValleyKJZZ to connect to KJZZ's new community series "We Are The Valley."

KJZZ Facebook connects you to the extended KJZZ community including newsroom and programming updates, membership perks, upcoming events and public discourse on current events and local news stories.

Follow @yourKJZZ on Instagram for behind-the-scenes, event, and news photos.

I Love KJZZ Because...

Ms. Julia Langdal

KJZZ Sustaining Member of the Month - August

"KJZZ has been a part of my life since I was 12 years old and has kept me informed about local, national and international news - even when I was too young to understand."

Station News

Jazz Spotlight

Blaise Lantana

The Beauty of Jazz
By Blaise Lantana, Music Director

A quiet guitar playing while you enjoy a conversation with friends, an hour special of pianist Oscar Peterson on the radio, or a hard driving quartet playing to an attentive audience at the Nash, it's all jazz.

Jazz is fast and swingin' like a big band, Jazz is wild and honkin' like bebop, Jazz is the exotic sound of gypsy guitars, Jazz is slow and beautiful like a ballad from the American Songbook. People often aren't sure what jazz is, and well, it's complicated. I'll give you my opinion, but remember there are plenty of different opinions about this.

I believe that jazz is improvisation, creating sound and blending ideas on the fly. We start with structure, a melody and chord structure that the band knows, and musicians with some technical ability, sometimes called chops, and then things start to happen. Musicians trade ideas, delve into the harmony and change it. There is a lot of history to bring to the party, from the chords of Bud Powell, and the lines of Charlie Parker we are evolving to include more unusual time signatures and world rhythms and instruments. I heard violinist Regina Carter play with an African Kora player at the Tempe Center for the Arts. Read more

Check out the jazz calendar, or listen to jazz.

Spot 127: KJZZ's Youth Media Center

SPOT 127 students participate in a group project during Summer Bootcamp 2013

Students Achieve Success at Spot 127

By Manuelita Beck, Senior Editor

SPOT 127, KJZZ's award-winning youth media center, began a new semester of their free after-school program providing instruction and mentoring in digital photography, audio and video production and journalism to Valley high school students. Participants create original content while learning from professional journalists and industry experts.

Last year, two students won a National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Student Production Award for one of their video projects. Neither teenager had any video experience before joining SPOT 127.

Students who complete the program have had stories featured on KJZZ. One of those students, BrieAnna Frank, recently finished a story on how young undocumented immigrants are keeping a close eye on a court case that could determine if they are allowed to get Arizona driver's licenses.

We also recently hired additional student reporters to work on audio stories for our website and for KJZZ. Look for their reports on our website soon!

Friends of Public Radio Arizona

Todd Sanders

Southern Exposure
By Todd Sanders

Chair, Friends of Public Radio Arizona
President & CEO, Phoenix Chamber of Commerce

The border between the United States and Mexico has too often been a political football and campaign talking point, but the land of 121 million people just across that border is a huge opportunity for trade, our economy and coverage of some of our hemisphere's most important markets.

Later this fall, the City of Phoenix and the State of Arizona will open trade and tourism offices in Mexico City to open up the Mexican market to Arizona companies. While California exported some $25 million in goods to Mexico in 2012 and Texas a whopping $95 billion, Arizona's exports to our southern neighbors totaled just $6.3 billion. These offices are a first step towards addressing that imbalance and growing our regional economy.

At the same time, KJZZ is embarking on an important new initiative of it's own in Mexico City. It's taking the form of a bureau of public radio reporters who will cover those trade offices and the relationships resulting from them, while developing programs, projects, courses and career opportunities between journalists in both countries. The Mexico City and Central American Bureau will be housed on the Instituto Tecnol�gico de Monterrey's Mexico City campus and will share studios with the campus radio station, Concepto Radial. This important asset will provide a platform for coverage of Mexico and Central America and shed light on critical issues facing people on both sides of the border.

While many talk about the divide between us, KJZZ is squarely focused on reaching across it and joining the people who will be vital to Arizona's future economic success. It's a story worth telling.

Upcoming Events

October 11, 2014: Three Acts, Two Dancers, One Radio Host with Ira Glass, Bill Barnes, Anne Bass, Mesa Arts Center Ikeda Theater

November 5, 2014: David Sedaris, Mesa Arts Center Ikeda Theater

November 8-9, 2014: KJZZ Travel and Discovery Expo, Phoenix Convention Center

December 31, 2014: An Evening with Paula Poundstone, Presented by, in partnership with Square Peg Concerts, Mesa Arts Center Ikeda Theater

February 13, 2015: Whad'Ya Know? LIVE IN PHOENIX, Chandler Center for the Arts

March 7, 2015: First Press Fine Wine Dinner and Auction, Montelucia Resort and Spa

KJZZ Travel and Discovery Expo

KJZZ 91.5 FM

2323 West 14th Street | Tempe, Arizona 85281

Phone: 480.774.8400 | Fax: 480.774.8475