John Hockenberry and Adaora Udoji To Host a New Drive Time Morning Show From WNYC Radio and PRI

Show to be Produced in Collaboration with The BBC, New York Times Radio, and WGBH Radio

Emmy and Peabody Award-winning journalist John Hockenberry and award-winning international and legal journalist Adaora Udoji will host a new drive-time morning news program set to launch in early 2008.

The show marks John Hockenberry's return to his roots in public radio—where he was one of the medium's original innovators—after 15 years in network and cable television. For his work at ABC and NBC, he has earned four Emmy Awards, three Peabody Awards, an Edward R. Murrow Award and a Casey Medal. Hockenberry is known for his pioneering online content, and currently sits as a Distinguished Fellow at the prestigious MIT Media Lab.

Adaora Udoji comes to the show from Court TV, where she serves as an anchor and trial correspondent. Previously, as a correspondent with ABC News and CNN, Udoji covered some of the most critical domestic and international stories of the past decade, including the 2004 Presidential election, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Udoji was part of the CNN team that earned a Peabody Award for its heralded coverage of Hurricane Katrina.

"With the abdication of serious news coverage by network and cable television," said Hockenberry, "the in-depth journalism and context that public radio provides is needed more than ever. But public radio needs to meet the demands of current news consumers. There's no replacement for the live and in-real-time delivery of news and analysis, and morning drive is the place to do it. I'm thrilled to be part of the team meeting this challenge."

"Having reported from all around the globe, I'm keenly aware of the gaps in our understanding of international stories and the impact they have on our nation," said Udoji. "This collaboration between some of the most innovative producers in American public radio and the strongest global news organizations—at such a critical time—will help us make sense of our interconnected world, through a distinctly American lens. John and I are looking forward to bringing a new spirit and depth to morning drive."

The program will officially launch in early 2008, but will make its debut through a series of four Election 2008 specials, kicking off on November 6th, 2007 from New York and airing throughout the winter from other cities around the country. The specials are intended for evening broadcast, but will reflect the tone, pace, and newsgathering capabilities of the editorial participants, giving listeners a taste of what the morning show will sound like.

"The show will be co-produced by WNYC Radio and Public Radio International, in collaboration with multiplatform journalistic leaders The BBC World Service, New York Times Radio and WGBH Radio Boston. Harnessing the reputation and reach of each participant, the show will deliver in-depth national and international news through a vibrant team of contributors around the table and around the world. The show will forgo public radio's traditional format of packaged interviews and long features, favoring a wholly live presentation of news and cultural stories through live reports from the field, engaging conversations, and in-depth analysis and opinion. Maximizing the digital expertise of each partner, the show will allow listeners to respond immediately to news and participate in editorial decision-making, as well as build a significant online community around the content.

The morning show will be produced out of WNYC's new headquarters in Lower Manhattan. Graham Griffith, formerly Executive Producer of NPR's On Point, is Executive Producer.

The development of this project is funded in part by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

Public Radio International (PRI) is public radio's leading source for innovative programming, providing diverse voices and global perspectives for the public airwaves. Through partnerships with BBC World Service and station-based and independent producers, the Minneapolis-based network provides over 400 hours of programming each week, content that is broadcast and streamed online by almost 800 PRI affiliates nationwide, which reach 29 million listeners each week. PRI owns Public Interactive LLC, public broadcasting's leading Web services company. PRI is also the managing partner of the satellite radio company American Public Radio LLC, established with Chicago Public Radio®, WGBH Radio Boston and WNYC, New York Public Radio®. PRI programming is available via XM Public Radio and Sirius Satellite Radio. For more information on PRI and its programs and services, visit www.pri.org.

WNYC, New York Public Radio is New York's premier public radio station, comprising WNYC 93.9 FM and WNYC AM 820. As America's most listened-to public radio stations, reaching more than one million listeners every week, WNYC FM and AM extend New York City's cultural riches to the entire country and air the best national offerings from affiliate networks National Public Radio®, Public Radio International® and American Public Media®. WNYC 93.9 FM broadcasts a wide range of daily news, talk, cultural and classical music programming, while WNYC AM 820 maintains a stronger focus on breaking news and international news reporting. For more information, visit www.wnyc.org.

BBC World Service is an international radio and online broadcaster delivering programs and services in 33 languages. It uses multiple platforms to reach 163 million listeners globally. It has around 2,000 partner radio stations which take BBC content, more than 400 of which are in the U.S., and numerous partnerships supplying content to mobile phones. The BBC World Service also co-produces PRI's The World. Its international online sites, which include audio and visual content and offer users opportunities to interact directly with world events, receive over 650 million page impressions, attracting around 44 million unique users a month. Listen to BBC World Service on bbcworldservice.com. To find out more about the BBC's English language offer and subscribe to the free e-newsletter, Email Network, visit bbcworldservice.com/schedules.

The New York Times Company (NYSE: NYT), a leading media company with 2006 revenues of $3.3 billion, includes The New York Times, the International Herald Tribune, The Boston Globe, 15 other daily newspapers, WQXR-FM and more than 30 Web sites, including NYTimes.com, Boston.com and About.com. The Company's core purpose is to enhance society by creating, collecting and distributing high-quality news, information and entertainment.

WGBH Radio engages listeners worldwide through a rich array of on-air, high-definition and online radio services. In addition to co-producing PRI's The World, WGBH Radio offers listeners a diverse selection of musical, cultural and public affairs programming, including a 24-hour all-classical HD radio channel as well as streaming audio heard by Web surfers around the globe. WGBH Radio Boston broadcasts on WGBH 89.7, Boston's NPR® arts and culture station; WCAI, the Cape and Islands NPR® Station; All-Classical WGBH HD2; and a variety of on-demand streams and podcasts. Visit WGBH radio on the Web at www.wgbh.org.