NPR Board Expands with New Member and Public Appointments

NPR has elected several new members to its Board of Directors, including four Member Directors and two Public Directors, coming from NPR affiliates ranging from Texas to Michigan. The new board members will begin their terms in November.

The newly elected Member Directors are Debbie Hiott of Austin’s KUT News, Maria O’Mara of Salt Lake City’s KUER, Tina Pamintuan of St. Louis Public Radio, and Shawn Turner of East Lansing’s WKAR Public Media. All four will serve three-year terms.

Debbie Hiott is the general manager of KUT News, Austin’s NPR affiliate, and music station KUTX. She also serves as executive director of media operations for the Moody College of Communication at the University of Texas. Hiott previously spent 28 years at the Austin American-Statesman, where she rose from intern to executive editor. She has served on the boards of the Freedom of Information Foundation of Texas and the Texas Associated Press Managing Editors.

Maria O’Mara is the executive director of KUER, Utah’s statewide public radio network, and PBS Utah. O’Mara has led the station through significant growth in listenership, fundraising, and newsroom expansion since her return in 2017. She has an extensive background in journalism and communications, including roles at Deseret News, KSL-TV, and the University of Utah.

Tina Pamintuan is the CEO of St. Louis Public Radio. Previously, Pamintuan was general manager of KALW in San Francisco and has held various roles in audio journalism, including teaching and producing documentaries.

Shawn Turner is the general manager of WKAR Public Media in East Lansing, Michigan, and a professor of strategic communication at Michigan State University. Turner has served in government communications roles, including Deputy White House Press Secretary for National Security.

In addition, Patricia Cahill was ratified for another term as a Non-Board Distribution/Interconnection Committee member. Her role continues to support NPR’s distribution and interconnection functions.

NPR’s Board of Directors plays a critical role in guiding the organization’s strategic direction and ensuring the continued success of public media across the country.

NPR’s 23-member Board of Directors includes 12 Member Directors who are managers of NPR Member stations and elected by their peers, nine Public Directors who are prominent members of the public selected by the Board and confirmed by NPR Member stations, the NPR Foundation Chair, and the NPR President & CEO.

Joanna Lambert and Catherine Levene were also re-elected by the Board and confirmed by the Membership to continue as Public Directors for another three-year term beginning in November 2024. Additionally, Patricia Cahill was ratified as a Non-Board Distribution/Interconnection Committee member by Public Radio Satellite System representatives.