CONNECTHelp build the KCRW Media Center — designed for YOU to CONNECT with public radio in Los Angeles.
In 2017 KCRW will open the brand new KCRW Media Center—designed in partnership with Santa Monica College as a public space for all Angelenos to connect with our music, news, and cultural programming.
Are any other organizations collaborating on this proposal?
Santa Monica College
Please describe your project proposal.
In 2017, KCRW will open the KCRW Media Center—a 35,000-square-foot multipurpose facility that will be a vibrant, publicly-accessible performance and community gathering space for Southern California. Already an influential source of news, music, and cultural discovery, we will expand our programming—on air, online and in person—to engage our devoted audiences here in Los Angeles and around the world.
Which of the CONNECT metrics will your proposal impact?
Social & emotional support
Cultural events
Public/open streets gatherings
Public transit riders
Total number of local social media friends and connections Angelenos have
In what areas of Los Angeles will you be directly working?
County of Los Angeles
Describe in greater detail how your proposal will make LA the best place to CONNECT?
In 2017 KCRW will move into the state-of-the-art KCRW Media Center, custom-designed to allow us to expand our music and cultural programming, enhance our journalism, and build community among our devoted audiences in Southern California and beyond.
KCRW is more than just a radio station. For over 30 years we have inspired curiosity within the hearts and minds of listeners through the creation of intelligent and thoughtful content. Each week KCRW takes audiences on a shared journey of discovery through more than 100 hours of original music, news, and cultural programming that enriches and informs millions of listeners. One of the most respected music outlets, KCRW is widely regarded as the best source for independent music and a home for music discovery.
KCRW is a thought-leading community center of Los Angeles. We bring thousands of people together by hosting and curating hundreds of events throughout Southern California each year. Our engagement of these audiences has made KCRW what is today—the future of public media.
The KCRW Media Center will be a Los Angeles landmark and a space to galvanize the public. We are working with our education partner Santa Monica College (the licensee of KCRW’s broadcast signals) to ensure that our new home meets production needs, reflects our history and unique programming, and provides unprecedented access to audiences. The KCRW Media Center is being built as part of an expansion to the College’s Center for Media and Design campus, located in Santa Monica’s Creative District near the LA Metro Expo Line stop at Bergamot Station.
A 1,400-square-foot performance studio and viewing gallery will enable hundreds of people to experience intimate live in-studio sessions and performances each week, and we will broadcast these performances to millions of listeners and viewers worldwide. KCRW will also have access to a 180-capacity auditorium and an outdoor courtyard and stage that can accommodate 1,500 people for live concerts, cultural events and public forums. With the ability to present live public programming in its own space, KCRW will deepen its relationship with members, engage new audiences, and serve as a cultural epicenter for Los Angeles.
Building the KCRW Media Center is only the beginning. KCRW will host free, public concerts, live talks, and cultural events in its new facility for all Angelenos to attend!
Please explain how you will define and measure success for your project.
As a public media service, we measure success in expanding our audience by tracking growth in listening loyalty and membership support. We evaluate the impact of our programs through qualitative and quantitative metrics that examine listenership/viewership data, community feedback, participation via digital platforms, and attendance at live events. We measure our success in advancing access to arts and culture through feedback from the artists, storytellers, and public and private cultural institutions with whom we partner. We measure our success in educating and engaging the public by measuring the impact of our original journalism and special reporting projects. We measure success in building and engaging communities through the attendance and feedback received at our original live event programming. These metrics inform KCRW’s leadership of the public response to our work and guide strategic decision-making and investment in new opportunities.
How can the LA2050 community and other stakeholders help your proposal succeed?
Money
Volunteers
Publicity/awareness
Infrastructure (building/space/vehicles etc.)
Community outreach
Network/relationship support
Quality improvement research