Last month, we convened our annual Media Impact Forum at the American Philosophical Society—the home of America’s oldest learned society—in Philadelphia, where we paid special attention to the role of radio and audio in creating and sustaining crucial connections with communities. See the full program here.

Radio might be one of our oldest platforms, but in terms of reach and and impact, it is also one of the most innovative—and philanthropy is playing a vital role in its resurgence. Grantmakers and the cultural organizations they fund are investing in audio and media across traditional broadcasting, podcasting, and on-site properties in order to foster greater context, reach, and conversation with constituencies.

And we have the numbers to prove it. As a complement to the Forum, we also released a report that shows how radio is garnering significant support from philanthropy across a range of programming themes. While perhaps considered a less dynamic media format in recent years, compared to extraordinary growth in web- and mobile-based media grantmaking, the funding picture tells a different story. Read the report.

Below, you’ll find video clips for each session in chronological order so that you can watch any portion of the day. You’ll also find links to the notes we took from the breakout sessions.

Need an even quicker recap? Check out our Twitter Moment.

And give this recent article by MIF Executive Director Vince Stehle a read. In it, he argues that grantmakers could be doing more to support such a vibrant medium.


Agenda

Building Community Through Radio

Using Radio to Create Vibrant Musical Ecosystems

Hitting the Right Notes: Creating Environments in Which Music Can Thrive

Breakout Sessions
Read the notes.

Local Radio Around the World

Podcasters Aren’t Born—They’re Trained

Breakout Sessions
Read the notes.

Critical Minded: A Collaboration to Elevate Cultural Critics of Color

Off the Walls: How Art Museums Are Reaching People Where They Are

  • Valerie Gay, Deputy Director, Audience Engagement & Chief Experience Officer, Barnes Foundation
  • Barbara Wong, Director, Community Engagement, Barnes Foundation
  • Kalela Williams, Director of Neighborhood Library Enrichment, Free Library of Philadelphia

And Now, In Closing, Let’s Take It … From the Top

  • Peter Dugan, Pianist
  • Laura Futamura, Flautist
About the Author
Nina Sachdev

Nina Sachdev

Director of Communications

Nina Sachdev brings more than 20 years of journalism, news editing and marketing experience to her role as a communications director for Media Impact Funders (MIF). Nina served as MIF’s communications director for more than five years before joining the Rita Allen Foundation to lead communications there. After a brief stint, Nina re-joined MIF in February 2022. Nina cut her teeth in journalism at The Dallas Morning News, where—as an intern on the copy desk—she was tasked with editing the obituaries of famous people who hadn’t yet died. Since then, Nina has worked at The Santa Rosa Press Democrat, The Philadelphia Daily News and The Philadelphia Weekly in almost every editorial capacity imaginable, including senior editor, A1 editor (when that used to be a thing) and slot (does anyone remember that being a thing?). Nina is the creator and editor of the award-winning The Survivors Project: Telling the Truth About Life After Sexual Abuse, which exposes the reality of healing from the effects of sexual abuse. Nina holds an M.A. in journalism from Temple University. She lives in Philadelphia with her family.