American Public Media Launches Poetry Radio Project

Contact: Brad Robideau
(651) 290-1113
brobideau@americanpublicmedia.org
www.americanpublicmedia.org

Anne Halsey
(312) 799-8016
ahalsey@poetryfoundation.org

American Public Media Launches Poetry Radio Project

American Public Media and the Poetry Foundation collaborate to bring great poetry and poets to radio

(St. Paul, Minn. & Chicago, Ill.) March 25, 2009—American Public Media™, creator of distinctive, signature programs for public radio and the Internet, and the Poetry Foundation, publisher of Poetry magazine, today announced the Poetry Radio Project, a new initiative using poets and poetry to enrich public radio programming and listeners' experiences.

A partnership between the Poetry Foundation and American Public Media, the Poetry Radio Project incorporates poets and poetry into select features and conversations across several programs produced and distributed by American Public Media, including Marketplace®, Marketplace Morning Report® and Marketplace Money®, Performance Today®, Being®, The Story™, and The Splendid Table®. Through informative and engaging presentations of poets and poetry within a variety of contexts, the initiative is intended to broaden listeners’ perspectives on global events and American culture and to expand listeners’ engagement with contemporary and classical poetry. 

From conversations with poets-on a wide variety of subjects and genres, to the inclusion of archival audio for historical perspectives on current events, to adding a moment of contemplation or complexity to a broadcast, the pilot project demonstrates poetry’s contemporary appeal to a wide and varied audience.

Recent broadcasts of poetry features include:

• The Splendid Table—recently featured a poem by Yale Professor and Inaugural Poet Elizabeth Alexander
• Performance Today—a project which follows the creative process of Pulitzer Prize-winning poet C.K. Williams, who will write a new, original poem inspired by a piece of classical music chosen by the Performance Today audience.
• Marketplace—spoke with former hedge fund recruiter and poet Katy Lederer, who found inspiration for the poems in her latest book from an unusual source—finance.

Upcoming segments are scheduled to include conversations with Rita Dove, Paul Muldoon, Nikki Giovanni, Tony Hoagland, Todd Boss, and more.

For additional information about the Poetry Radio Project and links to other American Public Media poetry features, visit www.americanpublicmedia.org/poetryradioproject.

About the Poetry Foundation
The Poetry Foundation, publisher of Poetry magazine and one of the largest literary organizations in the world, exists to discover and celebrate the best poetry and to place it before the largest possible audience. The Poetry Foundation seeks to be a leader in shaping a receptive climate for poetry by developing new audiences, creating new avenues for delivery, and encouraging new kinds of poetry through innovative literary prizes and programs. For more information, please visit www.poetryfoundation.org.