Minnesota Public Radio – by Angie Andresen
ST. PAUL, Minn. – Minnesota Public Radio (MPR) is terminating its contracts with Garrison Keillor and his private media companies after recently learning of allegations of his inappropriate behavior with an individual who worked with him.
Last month, MPR was notified of the allegations which relate to Mr. Keillor’s conduct while he was responsible for the production of A Prairie Home Companion (APHC). MPR President Jon McTaggart immediately informed the MPR Board Chair, and a special Board committee was appointed to provide oversight and ongoing counsel. In addition, MPR retained an outside law firm to conduct an independent investigation of the allegations. Based on what we currently know, there are no similar allegations involving other staff. The attorney leading the independent investigation has been conducting interviews and reviewing documents, and the investigation is still ongoing. We encourage anyone with additional information to call our confidential hotline 1-877-767-7781.
MPR takes these allegations seriously and we are committed to maintaining a safe, respectful and supportive work environment for all employees and everyone associated with MPR. We want a workplace where anyone who experiences unwanted behavior feels comfortable in reporting concerns to MPR. Discrimination, harassment, retaliation or other inappropriate behaviors will not be tolerated.
MPR will end its business relationships with Mr. Keillor’s media companies effective immediately. By terminating the contracts, MPR and American Public Media (APM) will:
* end distribution and broadcast of The Writer’s Almanac and rebroadcasts of The Best of A Prairie Home Companion hosted by Garrison Keillor;
* change the name of APM’s weekly music and variety program hosted by Chris Thile; and,
* separate from the Pretty Good Goods online catalog and the PrairieHome.org website.
MPR and APM will work closely with public radio stations to help make the programming transitions as seamless as possible. “Garrison Keillor has been an important part of the growth and success of MPR, and all of us in the MPR community are saddened by these circumstances,” said Jon McTaggart, President of MPR. “While we appreciate the contributions Garrison has made to MPR and to all of public radio, we believe this decision is the right thing to do and is necessary to continue to earn the trust of our audiences, employees and supporters of our public service.” “Over the last several weeks, the special Board Committee has worked closely with MPR President Jon McTaggart and legal counsel to review the facts as we know them and carefully consider the implications of the various options,” said David Murphy, Chair of the MPR Board of Trustees. “The Board Committee concluded that terminating the Keillor relationships was the appropriate decision and the Board and Jon are aligned in this action. Fortunately, MPR is one of the strongest public broadcasting organizations in the country. We are confident MPR will continue to innovate with programming and content that ensures MPR will remain one of the most valued sources of news, information and entertainment for decades to come.”
Angie Andresen
Director, Communications and Member & Audience Services
American Public Media | Minnesota Public Radio
480 Cedar Street, Saint Paul, MN 55101
651-290-1373 (o)
612-483-8064 (m)
Published 2017-11-29
OMG! Just like that, a person’s life is daunted and diminished, all contributions likely erased. So sad, and so far this is only “allegations.” What happened to “Innocent Until Proven Guilty?!!!” I weep. And the timing – I see a bigger agenda of disempowering men, or I should say ATTEMPTING to disempower. I don’t know what Garrison did or did not do, but I think all these accusations should actually strengthen the resolve to not be taken over by radical feminism/snowflake communism.
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Right Galen. I don’t know the details either. How fast they throw one under the bus nowadays. It’s probably a confirmation bias on my part, but this Garrison incident is very unexpected and a bit hard to believe.
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Things have gotten so out of control… It’s like we’ve reverted back to the Salem witch hunts…I can’t wrap my brain around it. One accusation and a person’s life is over. There is no innocent until proven guilty. Even little things that were once considered innocent play are now offensive and held as a crime. It makes no sense.
Many things happening now are so WRONG and this is one of them.
I too weep.
😥 😡
Galen is on-point again. A mere rumor can destroy everything Garrison has done for many decades. I’m reminded of stories about people (usually men) who lose everything and become un-hire-able due to some teen girl claiming rape or whatever…only to recant their story 2 years later. Meanwhile, the guy’s life is forever ruined even after his exoneration. Galen’s almost right about the snowflake/feminist syndrome: it has ALREADY taken over. I see it at my work.
Thanks Bob and Bud. It’s a mess, ain’t it. Here’s a response from Keillor:
http://www.startribune.com/garrison-keillor-reportedly-fired-for-improper-behavior/460802703/#1
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Indeed, it is a mess.
And this:
“The firing comes shortly after Keillor, an avowed Democrat, wrote a syndicated column ridiculing the idea that Minnesota Sen. Al Franken should resign over allegations of sexual harassment.”
Full article here:
https://fellowshipoftheminds.com/2017/11/29/draining-of-the-liberal-media-swamp-matt-lauer-garrison-keillor-and-time-magazine/
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Just another reason to despise NPR. Honestly it is the ONLY radio station out in my neck of the woods (okay, except for some lame country music outfit that is just regurgitated on some local FM station because, after all, everyone in far west Texas loves country music, right? Folks, I will not support any music genre that threw the Dixie Chicks, the only music stars I even met and they weren’t even stars then–one of them bought our honey at a Fort Davis festival in the mid-90s), under a bus because they refused to support the illegal and immoral War in Iraq!), and their news propaganda is, well…
Commies throwing other commies under the bus perhaps, but at least they are under the bus.
If I was one of these guys being called out and they were false, I’d be taking some folks down and out.