A Go-To Resource For What’s Happening in Southern California, Press Play and It’s On
SANTA MONICA (January 27, 2014) — Los Angeles’ newest live daily show, Press Play with award-winning host Madeleine Brand, will debut today at 12 Noon on KCRW. Mixing Madeleine’s distinct perspective and thought-provoking guests, Press Play will examine stories that truly matter to Southern California — a cultural hub for many of the nation’s most creative industries and cutting-edge ideas.
Among the primary goals of the show is to explore Los Angeles as a major player in the spheres of politics, entertainment, arts and culture, technology, and science — both nationally and internationally. This means looking at the world through the lens of Los Angeles, and turning to guests uniquely tapped into the region’s culture. Press Play will also take advantage of such KCRW talent as Frances Anderton, Kim Masters, Matt Miller and Anne Litt, as well as those who cover food, literature, politics, art, and entertainment.
Press Play will live side-by-side flagship programs Morning Becomes Eclectic, hosted by music director Jason Bentley and airing from 9:00am to 12:00pm, and nationally syndicated news program To the Point with Warren Olney, airing from 1:00 to 2:00pm. The World, which was previously at 12:00pm, will now air at 3:00pm, and All Things Considered will consequently start at 4:00pm, instead of 3:00pm. All other programming will remain the same.
“It is our great pleasure to announce Press Play and welcome Madeleine Brand to the station,” said Jennifer Ferro, KCRW’s president and general manager. “Madeleine is like that good friend you always wish to have — intelligent without being intimidating, versed in a wide-variety of subjects from world news to pop culture, a good sense of humor, and always knows what is going on. At KCRW we’re about connecting Los Angeles to the world and the world to Los Angeles. Press Play is our latest conduit to achieving that goal.”
“I’ve been a listener and member of KCRW ever since I returned to Los Angeles ten years ago to host NPR’s Day to Day,” said Madeleine Brand. “I want Press Play to continue KCRW’s role as a cultural destination for Los Angeles. You can listen live at noon or download it later, so whenever you want, you can press play to listen to our unique blend of news and culture.”
“KCRW is the place for originals and Madeleine Brand is a natural fit, with a new show that spans the latest in ideas, issues, and culture. Following Morning Becomes Eclectic and preceding To the Point, Madeleine takes her place alongside the incomparable Jason Bentley and the legendary Warren Olney — all homegrown shows with hosts of international acclaim,” said Gary Scott, KCRW’s programming director. “KCRW has never had more original programming than it does now.”
Audience engagement will be built into Press Play’s DNA, with daily segments drawing on listener interactions from the blog (blogs.kcrw.com/pressplay), Twitter (@KCRWPressPlay) and Facebook (/KCRWPressPlay). KCRW also uses the Public Insight Network to crowd-source topics and sources.
Madeleine joined the station in September 2013 to help develop the show, having previously hosted The Madeleine Brand Show on Southern California public radio station KPCC, which won a 2012 Golden Mike award for best news and public affairs program from the Radio & Television News Association of Southern California. Prior to that, Madeleine co-hosted NPR news magazine Day to Day and was a correspondent for NPR-flagship Morning Edition.
KCRW’s programming director is Gary Scott, and Press Play’s executive producer is Andrew Walsh. The producers are Matt Holzman, Christian Bordal, Jolie Myers and Anna Scott.
Support for Press Play comes from the Kayne Foundation, Ric & Suzanne Kayne and Jenni, Maggie and Saree Kayne. Additional support comes from the John Randolph Haynes and Dora Haynes Foundation.
About KCRW
KCRW, a community service of Santa Monica College, is one of the nation’s leading National Public Radio (NPR) affiliates, also featuring an eclectic mix of originally-produced and nationally-distributed news, music, talk and arts programming. The terrestrial signal serves Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside and Ventura counties, as well as parts of San Diego, San Bernardino, Kern, and Santa Barbara counties and the greater Palm Springs area. KCRW’s programming is available worldwide, both live and on-demand, at KCRW.com, and through its smartphone apps (iPhone, Android, and Blackberry).
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