by Ken Walker
WBGO, Mayor’s Office Win Best Call-In Show
June 25, 2009 in Uncategorized by Ken Walker
WBGO’s Newark Today, a monthly call-in show co-hosted by Mayor Booker has been awarded the Public Radio News Directors award two years running. They appreciated the actionable nature of the show content, driving City Hall or the caller to resolve issues.
It’s really stunning to see how the Mayor’s office has made a discipline around transparency in every medium they can leverage for their message. Booker doesn’t just walk the walk, but includes and involves others to join whether through his in-person office hours, call-in radio show, and, yes, even Twitter.
More from the Mayor’s communications office:
I am happy to report that the Mayor’s monthly radio show we created in 2006 has garnered national recognition for the 2nd year in a row.
PRNDI Awards – Division B (Public Radio News Directors Inc. handed out its national awards on June 13th in Portland Oregon.)
Call-In Program: First Place: WBGO “Newark Today”
Newark Mayor Cory Booker never fails to light up the phones and this edition of “Newark Today” is no exception. The judges liked hearing Booker interact with his fellow mayor from Jersey City – the conversation was more about action than opinion. One judge praise the ample amount of listener takeaway from this entry. The program quickly goes beyond “oh wow” excitement to “what do we do now.”
In his interview, talking about the creation of a water authority, the Mayor of Newark in his own words indicts his administrations red tape and endorses a form of government that is less democratic and far removed from the electoral process. The Mayor (a lawyer) reveals that he is uninformed about the loss of control by the city when a MUA is created. He should read the “Municipal and County Utilities Authorities Law” and read the letter from the State Office of Legislative Services to Sen. Ron Rice that outlines this loss of control. Given his reputation for transparency it is a surprise that he will not meet with the Newark Water Group.
The Newark Water Group is a nonpartisan group of Newark residents committed to keeping the city’s water and sewer system and watershed property in direct control of the people. We oppose creation of a Municipal Utility Authority (MUA) that would remove control of the water supply from the public. We feel water is a civil right and too important to be treated like a commodity such as oil. The revenues derived from the sale of city water should be used to keep the water system running as a first-class operation and not for the profit of outside investors. We want our water supply to be under the direct control of our elected officials and accountable to the voters of Newark. We advocate for the best-managed water department in the United States and for the employment of Newark residents.
http://wbgo-web.streamguys.net/audio/onDemand.php?podcastID=653