WPSU transfer deal to WHYY nears finish line. ‘Grateful to the university community’
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- A deal to transfer WPSU’s assets and operations is expected in the coming weeks.
- Penn State will lease the outreach building to the station so it remains on campus.
- The contract will be filed with the FCC and the approval process will take 60 days.
More than nine months after Penn State’s decision to end its decadeslong ownership of WPSU, transfer of the station to Philadelphia-based WHYY is expected to reach a major milestone in the coming weeks.
Under a plan the board of trustees approved in the fall, the university said it would shut down WPSU by June 30, with a deal expected to be finalized by the date. While that deadline is not likely to be met, WPSU board member Greg Petersen said they are aiming to reach agreements soon and that the university is willing to operate the station throughout the whole transition period.
“Penn State has been a very good partner throughout the negotiations. The process has simply taken longer than anyone anticipated because WPSU has been deeply integrated into the university for so many years,” Petersen said.
Penn State and WHYY have been negotiating a contract that includes the purchase of WPSU’s physical and programming assets such as equipment, broadcast rights and other intangible assets, as well as a transitional services agreement that would allow the station to remain on the Innovation Park campus and continue receiving certain operational services, Petersen said.
“We’re going to be leasing space in the outreach building, where they currently are,” he said, adding that it “will allow for a much smoother transition.”
Under the agreement, Penn State will lease the outreach building located at 100 Innovation Blvd. to the station and provide ancillary services as landlord during and after the transition, with details being worked out around facility use and operational support, Petersen added.
Bill Marrazzo, president and CEO of WHYY, said most of the material terms and conditions for the contract have been completed and that a deal is expected in the coming weeks.
“My guess is that we’re talking maybe a couple of weeks, not months, and probably weeks and not days,” he said.
Once the contract is finalized, it will be ready to file to the Federal Communications Commission, which needs to approve the official license transfer. That’s expected to take another 60 days.
Petersen said Penn State will keep the station operating until a deal is signed and the FCC approves the license transfer.
The board of trustees approved the sale last year with an agreement that WHYY would fundraise the $17 million that the university said is needed over five years to subsidize the post-closing operations.
Marrazzo said an estimate of $12 to $15 million is needed over the five years after closing, and more than half of that amount has already been secured on a pre-closing basis. He expects to raise the other half after the deal closes.
“We’re pretty confident once the deal closes and we can begin to message to the community our commitment to preserving WPSU’s operations that we can raise the rest of it,” he said.
Sustained local support remains critical during the transition, as Marrazzo said memberships are the single biggest point of leverage to sustainability.
“The business model here is to generate enough local content for WPSU audiences up and down central Pennsylvania and across northern Pennsylvania, that is so unique, so valuable, that they will elect to support it and become members of WPSU,” he said.
What will change at WPSU?
The station will work on maintaining strong connections to the communities it serves, Petersen said, adding that there will still be Penn State-related programming such as Weather World produced by the College of Earth and Neurosciences.
“Penn State has always been a great source of people to have on the air for stories or news stories,” he said. “WPSU sees the value in those connections. There’s no reason to just get rid of them, because you have some of the best world‑class information right across the street here.”
The WPSU call letters will remain unchanged, Marrazzo said, emphasizing how that is part of the trusted and known brand.
“It’s part of our strategy to preserve that part of WPSU’s brand, which is viewed by people as a highly local public media company, and we don’t want to alter that brand equity,” he said.
A strong local leadership team will be critical to achieving those goals, he said, adding that WPSU’s 32 current employees are expected to reapply and interviews will be held for positions with WHYY.
The station will keep the overall number of employees, but the distribution of talent will change in order to fulfill functions that the station has long relied on Penn State for such as fundraising and administration, Marrazzo said.
WHYY is currently hiring for the role of vice president of advancement, an executive position that will look over fundraising operations.
“We’re incredibly bullish about the imperative to preserve free access to WPSU for the 1.5 million people that reside in central and northern Pennsylvania, and we’re grateful to the university community for the way in which this deal has come together,” Marrazzo said.
“With their help we’ve been able to figure out a way forward that keeps WPSU operational.”
Anyone can donate to the station by visiting WPSU’s donation portal or calling the WPSU MemberLine at 814-863-5635.
