WBEZ President/CEO Torey Malatia Resigns

By Chuck Sudo in News on Jul 26, 2013 7:00PM

Torey Malatia resigned as President and Chief Executive Officer of Chicago Public Media Friday, ending a 20-year career where his leadership polarized WBEZ's listeners and supporters.

Malatia joined WBEZ in 1993 as the station’s vice president of programming and was named the station’s general manager in 1996. He created the syndicated public radio juggernaut This American Life with Ira Glass, for which the pair won a Peabody Award, was instrumental in the creation of the popular Wait Wait Don’t Tell Me and was awarded the 2003 Public Radio International (PRI) Award for Innovation and Entrepreneurship.

But Malatia’s tenure at Chicago Public Media wasn’t all sunshine, as Robert Feder (who broke the news) notes:

Under his leadership, WBEZ eliminated jazz and other music from its format to focus entirely on news, talk and public affairs programming… among his most controversial initiatives was the launch of Vocalo, a radio station and web site designed to appeal to a younger audience.

Feder writes that, while Malatia’s resignation was a surprise, tensions between Malatia and the station’s board of directors had grown in recent years. In a statement, Malatia decided to focus on the positives.

"For 20 years I've kept Chicago Public Media planning and acting ever forward. We've led artistic and digital change nationally and internationally with the nation's most loved podcasts and broadcasts. Our audiences locally, nationally, and internationally number in the millions weekly.

"In my years as Chicago Public Media’s CEO, we have shown how digital media married to broadcast technologies can provide a nexus for polycultural discussion and insight, that entertaining experiences crafted with underlying substance can enthrall multi-platform audiences, bringing Chicago Public Media both respect and solid fiscal health.

"Most importantly, in these years, we--all of the trustees and I with my staff--have built one of Chicago's most needed journalistic resources at a critical time. A time when a new generation of Chicagoans are grappling with the challenge of making a better city for all of us.

"For me, having been given the unforgettable privilege of working with this brilliant staff and supportive board, marshaling the next wave of public service journalism is more than a choice; it is a calling.

"Although realizing the next innovation project must come for me now by leading another institution, I have eternal thanks and deep admiration for those many wonderful trustees and staff who have passionately supported our stunning successes.”

Chicago Public Radio Chief Operating Officer Alison Scholly will serve as interim CEO while a nationwide search begins for Malatia’s replacement.