Accelerating the Future

We spent an amazing three hours at Detroit Public Television recently with Steve Hamp, an insightful cultural and business leader in our region, and I wanted to share a few of his thoughts with you.

Starting with a department head meeting, and moving to a larger group of employees, we updated Steve on our efforts. Then we listened to his vision for the Detroit region, a new economy, business transformation, and the future of public television.

In his thoughtful and carefully chosen words, public television can be, and must be, the conduit, the accelerator, the amplifier, and the storyteller of our region.

He challenged us to be relentless is serving our mission as Detroit’s largest public media organization. He also talked about the importance being true to our brand throughout the organization, and about the importance of driving effectiveness and efficiency.

Steve sees the potential for Detroit Public Television to be at the center of discussions about the future of our region. He challenged us to get there and I hope that you’ll contact me at tellrich@dptv.org with your thoughts about the role of Detroit Public TV in advancing the goals of our region.

In his new world of consulting important organizations and chairing the New Economy Initiative for Southeast Michigan, Steve Hamp is speaking at a variety of venues. Should you have the chance to see him, you’ll find his insights invaluable. Make the time available and you’ll walk away with a fresh view of where the world is going.

My First Pledge Drive

I’m going through my first-ever on-air “pledge period” at Detroit Public Television and, frankly, I’m blown away.

Moving here from a commercial environment, I thrived in a business of 30- and 60-second commercials. We managed every spot, every day. We counted the inventory, measured what it was worth and figured out how to make it worth more. It was the heart of the business operation and how we made a living.

I think you’d find that most folks from that world would be knocked out by the incredible sophistication and professionalism our staff brings to the process of developing our membership and funding the mission of Detroit Public TV.

From the show development and selection, to the computer systems we use to track our members and communicate with them, every element is well thought-out and executed flawlessly. Volunteers, corporate matching programs, on-air hosts (all of whom have huge day jobs)…it's all very, very impressive.

At our “board night” we brought in some of the most successful people in our region to help answer phones in the studio. One executive, who had been out of town, drove directly to the station to staff the phones. When he arrived, his wife and members of his staff were already at work. He joined them gladly and helped all evening long. At one point, he grabbed another operator's phone to personally thank a $1,000 donor. Just incredible.

I’ve learned a lot in the last week and took another step toward understanding all that is Detroit Public Television. The campaign runs for another two weeks. Wish us luck and thank you for watching and supporting Detroit Public TV.



Rich Homberg
President and General Manager
Detroit Public Television

Telling Our Story

I get a lot of email and probably read 150 e-mail "stories" in a month. This week, however, I received an email from our employee Sarah Kittle which, for me, really sums up what we do best. “AAL2" refers to the PBS series African American Lives 2 which aired last month, and was a perfect example of great programming – engaging, entertaining, inspiring – that connected us to important audiences. For example, we held a training event for 200 Detroit educators to help them use AAL2 in the classroom and co-hosted an event with Buick with series host Henry Louis Gates, Jr. at the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History. Sarah also mentions our Reading Rainbow Young Writers and Illustrators Contest, which is underway and will showcase the creative talents of young children in a TV special this June.Here’s an abbreviated version of Sarah’s email. By the way, Andy is her hardworking, indispensible husband.“Last Tuesday, Andy and I delivered AAL2 goody bags to seven schools in and around Detroit. We got hugs from teachers and principals who were shocked that we not only delivered, but hand delivered, on a promise. On the road, we got many a "thumbs up" from people both in cars and on the street. At a red light, a man in a car next to us rolled down his window and yelled, "That's our favorite station!" We replied, "Ours, too!" Kids standing in line elbowed one other and pointed at the truck. You could see them mouthing the words, "Detroit Public Television." It was way cool.

On Friday I drafted Andy once again to help me host the Reading Rainbow Author's Social for nearly 100 school children at Bates Academy. We invited eight fourth-graders who had written a story for last year's Contest, and (miraculously) still had their books, to be the special guests at this event. The young authors each sat at a table with 11 or 12 third-graders and read their stories, then answered questions before switching tables for a new audience. After all the stories were heard, we served juice and cookies while the kids fleshed out story ideas. With the more seasoned authors, we talked about revisions and character development. It was classic! Bates Academy has already expressed interest in doing this again next year.”

This is the kind of effort that our audience appreciates and understands. It illustrates the way Detroit Public Television goes beyond broadcasting to actually touch lives. Thanks, Sarah. Your "week in review" is typical of what we accomplish in a week...and, that is lot.

Rich Homberg

President & General Manager

What’s your DPTV story? Here’s mine.

One of the things that constantly amazes me about public television is how much people are touched by our programming. Nearly every day someone tells me how our programming has changed their lives or given it new meaning.

Me, too. A little history might be helpful.

I’ve always been interested in media, entertainment, culture and news. School plays, talent shows, public speaking, I tried it all. I sang “Gary, Indiana” (poorly) in the “The Music Man,” worked as a gofer in summer stock, and made “Super 8” movies with pals. I can still recite the lines from my kindergarden debut.

Before college, filmmaking and a new generation of television captured my attention. I loved every minute of American Graffiti and The Godfather. Movies like The Graduate and Easy Rider revolutionized film in the late '60s and early '70s; I studied them all. I stayed up late watching Dick Cavett devote entire shows to subjects that The Tonight Show would never tackle.

In 1973, my local PBS station aired a series titled The Men Who Made Movies, written by film critic Richard Schickel. It celebrated some of Hollywood’s greatest directors, including Frank Capra and Alfred Hitchcock. I was mesmerized, watched every single episode and sent away for the materials that were offered with the show. Today, all these years later, I remember getting the materials from the station and reading every word.

In 1974, I went off to Temple University, hoping to follow Francis Ford Coppola or George Lucas. Somewhere along the way, television production and, later, radio took over and I found a career. To this day I shoot a little video, take a ton of still pictures, and try to find a way to turn meetings into entertainment. Someday I’ll show you the video from the talent show I produced for my wife’s 50th birthday.

There's a lot of television on television these days. We constantly talk about a “300 channel universe.” One of the reasons I came to work here is my certainty that one channel plays an incredible role in our lives, Detroit Public Television.

We change lives. That’s pretty cool.

So, that’s my story about public television. I’m looking for yours.









- Rich Homberg, Detroit Public TV President & General Manager