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Chicago Public Media

Chicago, Illinois

Grants

2024 (3 years)
$240,000

Chicago Public Media (CPM) is home to WBEZ, the Chicago Sun-Times, and Vocalo. Its mission is to amplify the public conversation by reporting fact-based unbiased news, and by telling stories that provoke thought, entertain, capture emotion, and inspire action. The WBEZ newsroom, which is the Chicago affiliate of National Public Radio, includes enterprise reporting desks focused on Politics and Government, Criminal Justice, Education, and Race, Class, and Communities. Vocalo 91.1FM launched in 2007 to engage a younger audience of Chicagoans through hip-hop, rhythm and blues, and dance programming that features independent artists with an emphasis on Chicago’s distinctive sound. Beneficiaries include more than 3.5 million weekly audience members across broadcast, print, and digital platforms. This award provides general operating support to CPM in the Culture, Equity, and the Arts area of the Chicago Commitment strategy.

2023 (1 year)
$100,000

Chicago Public Media (CPM) is a nonprofit public media organization rooted in community and dedicated to serving the Chicago region across audio, digital, and print platforms. Its mission is to amplify the public conversation by telling the stories that matter; stories that provoke thought, entertain, capture emotion, and inspire action. Under the Chicago Public Media umbrella, there are three primary brands, WBEZ, Vocalo, and The Chicago Sun-Times. This grant provides flexible support to CPM to strengthen and expand Vocalo, the nation’s first 24/7 urban alternative public radio station focused on music and culture created to serve an audience that is younger and more diverse than public media audiences have been historically. MacArthur funds support the increased capacity of Vocalo to produce original content and better reflect the cultural interests and current events coverage of all of Chicago’s diverse communities. The intended outcome of this work is that Vocalo continues to become a more robust platform for music, news, and cultural coverage serving diverse Chicagoans.

2022 (1 year 1 month)
$100,000

Chicago Public Media is a nonprofit public media organization rooted in community and dedicated to serving the Chicago region across audio, digital, and print platforms. Its mission is to amplify the public conversation by telling the stories that matter; stories that provoke thought, entertain, capture emotion, and inspire action. Under the Chicago Public Media umbrella, there are three primary brands, WBEZ, Vocalo, and The Chicago Sun-Times. This grant supports Vocalo, the nation’s first 24/7 urban alternative public radio station focused on music and culture created to serve an audience that is younger and more diverse than public media audiences have been historically. MacArthur funds support the increased capacity of Vocalo to produce original content and better reflect the cultural interests and current events coverage of all of Chicago’s diverse communities. The intended outcome of this work is that Vocalo continues to become a more robust platform for music, news, and cultural coverage serving diverse Chicagoans.

2022 ( 2 months)
$2,500

Chicago Public Media is a nonprofit public media organization dedicated to serving the Chicago region across audio, digital, and live event platforms. With this professional development grant, staff members attend the Public Media Development and Marketing Conference in Chicago.

2021 (1 year)
$125,000

Chicago Public Media (CPM) is a nonprofit organization that operates WBEZ (Chicago’s public radio station) and Vocalo, an urban alternative radio station that has been at the forefront of crafting new formats to engage younger and more diverse audiences and serves as a model across public radio in the United States. The Race, Class, and Communities desk focuses on issues that have a disproportionate impact on Chicago’s communities of color and the implications of systemic racism. Vocalo focuses on community engagement through the lens of music and culture and serves a growing audience. WBEZ and Vocalo increasingly cross-pollinate their content and collaborate on events in order to reach wider and more diverse audiences across the Chicago area. This grant supports the continuation of this increased collaboration and activities in service of CPM’s overarching goals to create a more equitable, diverse, and inclusive organization. The intended outcomes of these activities are greater public access to inclusive news and culture coverage for all Chicagoans.

2021 (3 years)
$150,000

Chicago Public Media is a nonprofit public media organization dedicated to serving the Chicago region across audio, digital, and live event platforms. Through its two broadcast and digital services, WBEZ 91.5 and Vocalo 91.1, Chicago Public Media works to nourish the public conversation by telling stories that provoke thought, entertain, capture emotion, and inspire action. This award provides general operating support to Chicago Public Media as part of the Foundation’s Culture, Equity, and the Arts program.

2018 (3 years)
$650,000

Chicago Public Media (CPM) is a nonprofit that operates WBEZ (Chicago’s public radio station) and Vocalo, an alternative radio station that has been at the forefront of crafting a new format to engage younger audiences. Recently, CPM has declared a renewed commitment to journalism that serves and represents the diverse communities of the Chicago region. WBEZ is launching a news desk dedicated to race, class and communities. Vocalo, which attracts a growing base of young listeners of color,  is increasingly using its broadcast and online platform to bring attention to social and policy topics from the perspective of affected people and communities. This grant supports increased crossover activities between WBEZ and Vocalo and with additional community-based news organizations.

2016 (5 years)
$625,000

Chicago Public Media, established by the Chicago Board of Education in 1943, is a community-supported, public service broadcasting institution. Its primary function is to operate the public radio station WBEZ. WBEZ produces its own original content, such as the popular show Wait, Wait...Don’t Tell Me!, a weekly news quiz, and Curious City, which investigates listeners’ questions about the city of Chicago. It also serves as the NPR provider in Chicago. In addition to radio programs, Chicago Public Media uses a broad range of media platforms to serve and connect audiences, including websites, social media, podcasts, and mobile applications for on-demand streaming. Via radio, Chicago Public Media reaches 600,000 people each day within a 100-mile radius of downtown Chicago, including northern Illinois, northwest Indiana, southeast Wisconsin and southwest Michigan. It reaches additional audiences online (45,000 per month) and through its mobile apps (1,100 per month). This award recommends renewed general operating support to Chicago Public Media.

2012 (1 year)
$300,000

This grant will support the purchase of the license of WRTE Radio Arte (90.5 FM) by Chicago Public Media. Radio Arte was established in 1997 to provide non-commercial news and music for the growing Latino population of Chicago. It was developed and has been operated since that time by the National Museum of Mexican Art. Radio Arte will be incorporated into Chicago Public Media and renamed Vocalo 90.5 FM. Chicago Public Media will preserve the community and youth-focused programming that has become Radio Arte’s signature, and ensure that the station remains a non-commercial, participatory media resource for Chicago’s Latino community.

2011 (5 years)
$500,000

In support of general operations (over five years).

2008 (3 years)
$1,000,000

To support Vocalo, a new radio station and web project (over three years).

2006 (5 years)
$345,000

In support of general operations (over five years).

2003 (3 years)
$120,000

In support of general operations (over three years).

2002 (2 years)
$500,000

To support capital expenditures, including facility and technology improvements (over two years).

1996 (2 years)
$125,000

For "This American Life," a national radio program (over two years).

1996 (4 years)
$140,000

In support of general operations (over four years).

1995 (1 year)
$150,000

To support the production of a new weekly radio program that combines high-quality radio journalism with the performing arts.

1994 (1 year)
$6,000

To support three pilot episodes of a series of radio programs featuring Chicago and national artists documenting people's lives through stories.

1993 (3 years)
$105,000

In support of general operations (over three years).

1992 (1 year)
$25,000

To support a search for a vice president of programming.

1991 (1 year)
$100,000

In support of general operations (over two years).

1990 (1 year)
$250,000

To support a capital campaign to upgrade facilities and establish an endowment.

1988 (2 years)
$150,000

To support coverage of local news and issues (over three years).

1986 (1 year 3 months)
$100,000

To support "All Things Chicago" (over two years).

1984 (1 year)
$70,000

To support "All Things Chicago" (over two years).

1983 (1 year)
$35,000

To support "All Things Chicago."

1982 (1 year)
$24,000

To preserve broadcasts of "About Books and Writers," with Robert Cromie, a weekly National Public Radio program.