FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Marissa Norris, Communications Coordinator
216.916.6318 | marissa.norris@ideastream.org
The Ideas family of programs tackles Northeast Ohio public affairs reporting
Local public media organization expands its community issues programming capacity
Feb. 16, 2017 (Cleveland) – ideastream recently expanded its local public affairs television program, Ideas, from one evening a week to five. Ideas, hosted by Rick Jackson, airs at 7:30 p.m. weekdays on WVIZ/PBS. This move not only marks the beginning of a locally focused, in-depth nightly news program on WVIZ/PBS, it also signifies the growth of the ideastream content team and creation of the Ideas family.
The Ideas family of programs is a unique family of companion radio, television, web and community engagement efforts funded in part by the ideastream Campaign for Community and generous support from Westfield Insurance. This includes Ideas on WVIZ/PBS; The Sound of Ideas®, hosted by Mike McIntyre weekdays at 9am on 90.3 WCPN; and Ideas Now 24/7 on the web, social media and mobile platforms.
To tackle the challenge of increasing the amount of content produced while maintaining quality and integrity, ideastream has refocused the roles of existing staff and hired additional talent to create the Ideas family content team.
At the helm of this new team is Managing Producer Joseph Frolik. Frolik is a seasoned journalist who worked at The Plain Dealer for more than three decades and most recently served as the director of communications and public policy for the Cuyahoga County Prosecutor’s Office. During his time as an editorial writer and columnist for The Plain Dealer, Frolik worked with ideastream on several joint projects including the award-winning Quiet Crisis campaign and the ongoing Cleveland Connects series. Frolik leads editorial decision making and determines staff assignments, assists in development of new content project proposals and guides other efforts to advance ideastream content initiatives.
“It’s incredibly gratifying to come into a new situation and work with a team of professionals dedicated to high-quality, responsible journalism,” Frolik said. “Everyone on our team wants to inform, inspire and serve our communities.”
The Ideas family of programs delivers information to the community about Northeast Ohio’s assets and challenges in a timely, intelligent and relevant manner.
“We have high standards and high expectations for the Ideas family, and we can meet them because we have a team of professionals who are incredibly hard-working, idealistic in the best sense of the word and intellectually curious,” Frolik said. “Best of all, everyone here wants to get better at what they do. That enables us to improve our craftsmanship—and have a stronger impact on the communities we serve.”
For more information and to see the work the Ideas family is creating, visit ideastream.org/IdeasNow.
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About ideastream
The mission of ideastream is to strengthen our communities. ideastream pursues this mission as a multiple media public service organization by providing distinctive, thought-provoking programs and services that enlighten, inspire, educate and entertain.