"The Local Option" PRX showcase show launches
[posted on behalf of WMPG]
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
(PORTLAND, ME) January 4, 2006 WMPG-FM, greater Portlands community radio, announced today the launch of a new program, The Local Option.
Airing Thursday nights at 7:30, the program will showcase the best work available from the
Public Radio Exchange (PRX), with a strong local focus.
PRX is an online marketplace where radio producers post content and radio stations acquire it.
Financial support for The Local Option came from the PRX Showcase Show Project, where WMPG won a competitive process for production funds to encourage the creation of programs that use PRX content a local level.
Showcase shows can spark new creativity in community radio, said PRX Executive Director Jake Shapiro. Stations have the opportunity to generate new local programming and producers now have more outlets for independent work.
The Local Option is like a mix tape for Portland, said host, Kerry Seed. It's the greatest radio from around the world with a local twist.
WMPG Program Director, Dave Bunker called The Local Option, a fascinating new experiment in collaborative radio.
The premiere episode of The Local Option airs Thursday, January 5, 2006 at 7:30pm on WMPG, 90.9 and 104.1FM and will stream live at http://www.wmpg.org/. Episode one will feature the voices of area teens and national experts discussing Teens and Technology.
The way young people use technology today is fascinating, said Seed. Their whole lives are so structured, but theyre able to cram so much into a day because theyre always connected to the network.
Guests on the show include Portland High student, Bly Lauritano-Werner, Harvard professor, Chris Dede, and Amanda Lenhart, a researcher at the Pew Center for Internet and American Life.
PRX provided a youth poetry piece with technology as its central image to round out the show.
Future episodes will focus on issues pertinent to Portlanders in 2006, such as Portlands changing cultural identity.
Additional information about this and other PRX showcase shows can be found here:
http://www.prx.org/articles/224
Media Contact:
Kerry Seed, Host of The Local Option
http://localoption.org
letters@localoption.org
207.650.5911
