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“It was great,” WSHU's General Manager George Lombardi told Daily Voice in an interview from the studio Thursday. He also had the opportunity to visit Newman's office over the years.
Since Newman's death, things have changed. But his foundation's support has remained steadfast for WSHU, the National Public Radio station for Fairfield County based at the Fairfield campus of Sacred Heart University.
A challenge grant of $75,000 from the foundation recently inspired 755 WSHU listeners to donate $77,449 in a single day of on-air fundraising, according to the station.
In total, the station raised $234,449, making the day the most successful single day of on-air fundraising in WSHU history, the station said.
Lombardi lauded Newman, the Academy Award-winning actor and philanthropist who called Westport home for decades, and his foundation for their support over the years.
“Paul was a big supporter of us and other public broadcasters,” Lombardi said. WSHU has had a long relationship with the foundation and is grateful for its support, he said.
“Paul Newman believed that the independent voice was critical in making our world a better place,” Robert Forrester, president of the foundation, said in a press release. “We are proud to continue his support of WSHU, a public broadcasting station that consistently provides relevant, quality programming to our local community.”
Lombardi said the grant money would fund local news initiatives.
“We have been working four, five years trying to expand local news,” he said. “We’ve seen great results.”
WSHU employs one news director, five full-time reporters, a producer and three hosts as well as some part-time professionals, according to Lombardi.
Lombardi said he hopes to expand digital fundraising initiatives to reduce interruptions in programming. The station loses about 15 minutes each hour to pitches during its fundraising drives.
These interruptions, Lombardi said, reduce WSHU’s advantage over commercial broadcasters, which interrupt their content with commercials.
WSHU broadcasts news, classic music and cultural programming in Fairfield County, New Haven County and New London County in Connecticut and Suffolk County in New York state.
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