America's Public Television Stations

All sessions to be held at the Fairmont Washington, D.C., Georgetown,
2401 M Street, NW, Washington, D.C. 20037
(unless otherwise noted)

The Summit is open to APTS member stations and press with valid credentials.
 

PRE-SUMMIT MEETINGS

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 27

 

AFFINITY GROUP MEETINGS

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 27

2017 PUBLIC MEDIA SUMMIT
50th ANNIVERSARY OF THE PUBLIC BROADCASTING ACT

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 27

8:30 a.m. – 7:00 p.m.
Registration for The 2017 Public Media Summit – Ballroom Foyer

11:30 a.m. – 6:30 p.m.
Exhibition Hall Open – Ballroom Foyer

Welcome to The 2017 Public Media Summit by Eric Hyyppa, Board Chair, APTS and APTS Action, Inc., and Director and General Manager, MontanaPBS.

Recognition of Summit sponsors and exhibitors by Tela Hansom-Pitt, Manager, Member Services, and Executive Assistant to the President, APTS.

Patrick Butler, President and CEO, APTS, will give his Annual Address.

Sponsored by Sinclair Broadcast Group

1:45 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.
General Session – Ballroom

The Honorable Joseph A. Califano, Jr., chief domestic policy advisor to President Johnson, Secretary of Health, Education and Welfare for President Carter, and the author of the Public Broadcasting Act of 1967, will share his experiences in the creation of the Public Broadcasting Act and its broad bipartisan support on Capitol Hill. Secretary Caliafano will be presented a Champion of Public Broadcasting Award.

Dr. Robert Hilliard, Chief, Educational Broadcasting Branch of the FCC (1967) and WGCU Board Member, Fort Myers, Florida, will recount the enactment of the Public Broadcasting Act of 1967.

David Smith, Chief Executive Officer, Sinclair Broadcast Group, will address the new service and business opportunities of the Next Generation Digital Broadcast Standard – ATSC 3.0.

3:30 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.
General Session – Ballroom

• Tom Axtell, General Manager, Las Vegas PBS
• Jerry Franklin, President and CEO, Connecticut Public Broadcast Network
• Rich Homberg, President and CEO, Detroit Public Television
• Teya Ryan, CEO and President, Georgia Public Broadcasting

Highlights of The APTS Grant Center for Public Media by Emil Mara, Vice President, Finance, Administration and Membership, APTS, and Meegan White, Project Director, The Grant Center, APTS.

6:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.
Dinner Session – Ballroom

Presentation of the David J. Brugger Lay Leadership Award to Diane Rehm.

Enjoy dinner and program with our host NHK WORLD TV.

• Jay Campbell, President, CAV International
• Takaaki Takai, Head of Programming and Executive Producer of "Five Years, Five Stories," NHK WORLD TV
• Tomohiko Yokoyama, Director, NHK Sendai
• Miki Meek, Producer, This American Life

Sponsored by NHK WORLD TV

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 28
 

7:30 a.m. – 7:00 p.m.
Registration – Ballroom Foyer

8:00 a.m. – 6:30 p.m.
Exhibition Hall Open – Ballroom Foyer

8:00 a.m. – 8:45 a.m.
Breakfast Session – Ballroom

Opening remarks by Ronnie Agnew, Professional Vice Chair of APTS and APTS Action, Inc. and Executive Director of Mississippi Public Broadcasting.

Join us for a session highlighting Washington D.C. area stations' approach to our three pillars of public service: education, public safety and civic leadership.

Sharon Rockefeller, President and CEO, WETA, will speak about her station's leadership in civic leadership.

Larry Unger, President and CEO, Maryland Public Television, will share information on his station's education work.

Jefferi Lee, General Manager, WHUT, will tell us about his station's role in public safety and its celebration of Black History Month.

APTS/APTS Action, Inc. Membership Meetings
Conducted by Eric Hyyppa, APTS and APTS Action, Inc. Board Chair and General Manager, MontanaPBS, and Incoming 2017 APTS and APTS Action, Inc. Board Chair, Ronnie Agnew, Executive Director of Mississippi Public Broadcasting.

Sponsored by Mayland Public Television, WETA and WHUT

9:00 a.m. – 10:00 a.m.
General Session – Ballroom (Closed to Press)
APTS Action, Inc. Legislative and Political Consultants. Moderated by Kate Riley, Vice President, Government and Public Affairs, APTS.

• J. Keith Kennedy, Principal, Kennedy Enterprises
• Jennifer LaTourette, Vice President, Van Scoyoc Associates
• Domenic Ruscio, Partner, Cavarocchi Ruscio Dennis Associates

10:00 a.m. – 10:30 a.m.
General Session – Ballroom

Judy Woodruff, Anchor and Managing Editor of the PBS NewsHour, will join us to discuss the political climate in the new Washington.

10:30 a.m. – 10:55 a.m.
Break – Exhibition Hall
Sponsored by NAB

• Cait Beroza, Advocacy & Social Media Manager, APTS
• Jennifer Kieley, Director, Government Relations, APTS
• Will Glasscock, Legislative and Policy Consultant, APTS

1:00 p.m. – 2:30 p.m.
Lunch Session – Ballroom

Join Paula Kerger, President and CEO, PBS and PBS Board Member Secretary Chuck Hagel for remarks followed by a presentation and discussion of results of the "Voter Attitudes Towards Public Television Federal Funding" voter survey by Linda DiVall, Executive Chairman and CEO, American Viewpoint; Rebecca Naser, Senior Vice President, Hart Research Associates; and Tucker Eskew, Partner, Vianovo.

Sponsored by PBS

2:45 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.
General Managers Session – Ballroom
The Broadcast Spectrum Auction, Station Repacking and The Next Generation Digital Standard

New FCC Chairman Ajit Pai will present a special message to Public Media Summit attendees.

John McCoskey, Industry Lead Executive – Communications, Media and Technology, Eagle Hill Consulting, will give us the big picture on the broadcast spectrum repacking and the expectations of the Next Gen broadcast standard.

Federal Communications Commission Panel Discussion on the end of the auction and expectations in the repacking process. Moderated by Lonna Thompson, Executive Vice President, COO and General Counsel, APTS.

• Michelle Carey, Acting Chief, Media Bureau
• Hillary DeNigro, Associate Chief, Media Bureau
• Gary M. Epstein, Chair of the Incentive Auction Task Force
• Jean Kiddoo, Deputy Chair of the Incentive Auction Task Force

Closing by Diane Masciale, General Manager, WLIW21 New York

Opening Remarks from Patrick Butler, President and CEO, APTS.

Welcome from Carol Kellermann, incoming Lay Vice Chair of APTS and APTS Action Boards and Lay Representative from Thirteen/WNET, New York.

Remarks by Thomas A. Daffron, former Chief of Staff to Senators Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), Fred Thompson (R-TN) and Bill Cohen (R-ME)

Moderated by Cait Beroza, Advocacy & Social Media Manager, APTS.

Public Media: Fostering a Civil Society

CPB President and CEO Patricia S. Harrison will host a dinner conversation about public media's role in fostering a civil society through content and engagement at the mark of the 50th Anniversary of the Public Broadcasting Act.

Special guests including Candice Millard, journalist, historian, and author will discuss the power and role of in-depth and investigate storytelling and journalism, and lend her voice along with others, to the importance of history, education and civics to our nation's future and a thriving democracy. Ms. Millard's New York Times bestseller Destiny of the Republic became the basis for an American Experience documentary, Murder of a President.

*APTS prize drawing will be conducted at the conclusion of dinner.
(Must be present to win.) 

Drawing by Emil Mara, Vice President, Finance, Administration and Membership, APTS and John Taylor, Vice President, Public Affairs and Communications, LG Electronics USA.

 

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 1

Join us for a rally on the Hill before meeting with Members of Congress.

Remarks by Patrick Butler, President and CEO, APTS.

Remarks by Congressman Earl Blumenauer (D-OR), Founder and Co-Chair of the Congressional Public Broadcasting Caucus.

• U.S. Senator Roy Blunt (R-MO), Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health & Human Services, Education and Related Agencies.
• U.S. Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Vice Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee.

Presentation of the 2017 National Advocacy Award to Roy Clem, Executive Director, Alabama Public Television.

Presentation of the 2017 Pillar of Public Service Award to Lisa Trapani Shumate, Associate Vice President and General Manager, Houston Public Media.

Sponsored by LG Electronics USA

All Day
Capitol Hill Day