The Board of Trustees of New Hampshire Public Radio announced today that Betsy Gardella, President/CEO, will retire on December 31, 2018. Ms. Gardella has led the station for more than thirteen years and overseen a period of unprecedented growth.
A visionary leader passionately committed to quality journalism and community service, Ms. Gardella expanded service to the North Country, invested in more local reporting and crafted and successfully completed two major campaigns – one for a state-of-the-art broadcast center concluded in 2009 and the second a campaign for innovation completed in June of this year.
The Innovation Campaign, which exceeded its $5-million goal, supports three initiatives: State of Democracy, an enterprise and accountability journalism unit in the NHPR newsroom; Outside/In, a podcast and periodic radio show; and NH Commons, a regional journalism and community engagement effort.
“I am so very proud of all that’s been accomplished during my tenure. We have one of the most talented staff in all of public media, strong Board leadership, and, importantly, a committed and generous community of listeners,” said Ms. Gardella. “It has been an honor to serve New Hampshire’s listeners.”
Three of the last four years, NHPR has won National Edward R. Murrow Awards for Overall Excellence, as well as numerous regional and national honors.
“New Hampshire Public Radio has been fortunate to have someone with Betsy’s talent and commitment at the helm. During her tenure, the size of the newsroom has doubled and the audience served – through broadcast and on-demand platforms – has seen tremendous growth,” said Marshall Rowe, chair of the NHPR Board of Trustees, adding “we will soon begin a national search to identify her successor.”
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About NHPR
Since 1981, NHPR has shaped the media landscape in the Granite State and beyond. Our mission is “Expanding minds, sparking connections, building stronger communities.” NHPR is broadcast from 14 different sites, making it by far New Hampshire’s largest (and only) statewide radio news service. Every week, NHPR is the choice of more than 175,000 listeners as a primary source of in-depth and intelligent news coverage, with thousands more viewing NHPR.org and NHPR social media sites. Each day, New Hampshire Public Radio delivers several hours of local news reported by its award-winning news team. Locally-produced programs include The Exchange, Word of Mouth, The Folk Show, Outside/In, Civics 101, and numerous podcasts. NHPR is the exclusive outlet for NPR News in the Granite State and broadcasts national weekly programs such as The Moth Radio Hour, Wait Wait…Don’t Tell Me!, and This American Life.