GBH News (WGBH) is beginning its first permanent daily radio show on the station since Boston Public Radio in 2013. The Culture Show aims to engage local listeners in a wide array of cultural topics, ranging from music and movies to food and fashion.
Hosted by GBH Executive Arts Editor Jared Bowen, the one-hour program will feature a diverse panel of rotating co-hosts including Callie Crossley, Edgar B. Herwick III, and James Bennett II. It plans to guide audiences to noteworthy cultural experiences in and around Boston, profile local artists, and discuss national cultural topics. Furthermore, the show intends to launch a newsletter to broaden its reach in the new year.
The show will also be available on CAI, the NPR station serving Cape Cod, the Coast, and the Islands. Plans are also in place to stream the program on the GBH News YouTube channel and to integrate video segments into the station’s daily news program, Greater Boston.
The Culture Show will initially air on Fridays starting November 3, but will expand to a daily format from Monday to Friday beginning December 4. Chelsea Merz will executive produce, bringing a decade of experience from her role with Boston Public Radio. Brian Bell will serve as the show’s producer and engineer.
GBH News General Manager of News Pam Johnston emphasized, “The Culture Show builds on GBH’s deep legacy in the arts and culture space. We are proud of our seven-decade commitment to bringing local audiences vibrant and inspirational culture programming. Culture is the lens through which our audiences experience the world. We’re proud to be expanding our arts and culture team, offering people daily engaging conversations about what we see, watch, taste, hear, feel, and talk about.”
Bowen finished, “The arts are vital to articulating and understanding our place in the world. The Culture Show offers an unprecedented opportunity to put the local arts scene front and center for listeners. I can’t wait to join Callie, Edgar, James, and our listeners and guests in a shared exploration of our region’s extraordinarily vibrant cultural landscape.”
