Minnesota Group to Beef Up L.A. Public Radio Station.

The land of Jesse Ventura and Garrison Keillor has taken over an L.A. public radio station.

On Jan. 1, KPCC-FM 89.3, housed on the Pasadena City College campus, turned over its operations to Minnesota Public Radio, a powerhouse of public radio programming that originated the show "Prairie Home Companion" and operates 30 radio stations in that state.

This is the first time MPR has ventured outside Minnesota to run a radio station, and while its final plans won't be revealed until July, the group plans to provide more in-depth news coverage ala National Public Radio.

It also is planning to pump millions more into the station's annual budget, add a host of new staff members and turn it into a fund-raising powerhouse.

"First and foremost, we have our listening and studying hats on," said Minnesota Public Radio spokesman Tony Bol. "We know this is not taking what works in Minnesota and playing it in California. We are looking at traffic patterns and listening patterns. What we do know is that you guys are in your cars a lot longer than we are in Minnesota."

MPR isn't just moving into the L.A. market because of its warm winters. The reality is, it's easier to create a hub of national radio programming from Los Angeles than Minnesota.

Although KPCC's news will be focused on Southern California, the end goal is to generate programming that can be syndicated nationwide. That means more revenues for MPR, and the potential to create a new cash-cow series along the lines of "Prairie Home Companion."

"We feel from a news perspective that the Los Angeles area is underrepresented as a national location," Bol said. "(NPR) news comes out of Washington, D.C. We think there is a lot of potential to bring news from Southern California that is of national interest."

MPR executives also hope to have access to more creative resources in Los Angeles, which might be able to create more entertainment-oriented programs or talk shows for syndication. such as Keillor's down-home variety show or the popular "Car Talk."

Even with the influx of new programming, station officials say KPCC will keep its local talk shows, such as Larry Mantle's "AirTalk" on weekday afternoons and "Talk of the City" on weekday mornings.

In December, the Pasadena Community College board of trustees voted to lease the station to Minnesota Public Radio's new local subsidiary for 15 years. MPR agreed to kick in $3 million a year for the first five years, nearly tripling the station's annual budget. The college keeps KPCC' s radio license.

A new 13-member board will be formed this month for the new governing organization, to be called Southern California Public Radio, a subsidiary of MPR's parent, Minnesota Communications Group. MPR President Bill Kling is the interim chair. At least 75 percent of the board members will be from Southern California, with some from Minnesota.

The station will be moving off campus to a site near its current location. MPR will continue to pay the lease for the current studio site, which will be used by Pasadena City College for a digital broadcast training academy.

"It is going to be a cultural shock," said Cindy Young, recently named the station's general manager after working as its interim general manager since August 1998. "Right now we're doing a lot of structural stuff like moving people from the college payroll to the Southern California Public Radio payroll."

By this summer, MPR hopes to add 10 reporters and editors to the station's six-person news staff - giving it a larger news staff than any other local public radio station. It also will beef up the fund-raising and marketing departments with 15 more people.

"One of the things we want to do is provide some good public radio coverage of the Los Angeles area. I realize that that is a big thing to say out loud because it is such a big area. But we want to build over time a fairly substantial news department in Los Angeles," said Craig Curtis, vice president of programming at Minnesota Public Radio. "Right now, we just want to get out there and get busy."

For Pasadena City College, MPR's promised influx of money and staff to KPCC is like winning the lottery after buying tickets for decades. The station operates on a $1.1 million annual budget. This year it finally retired its $180,577 debt from fiscal 1998.

Not long ago, the station was known mainly for shows that included music programs with hosts speaking Polish or German.

Some wonder whether MPR can be a success in a market where there are four other public radio stations, including KCRW-FM 89.9 in Santa Monica (which has a $5.5 million annual budget and a loyal following), and No. 1-ranked KUSC-FM 91.5, which specializes in classical music and has 450,000 listeners.

"It's an aggressive move by MPR, and this is a tough market," said Mary Beth Garber, president of the Southern California Broadcasters Association. "It all depends on how the Minnesota people package it."

                        L.A. Public Radio Stations
Station        Listeners Annual budget
KUSC-FM (91.5)  450,000   $3.8 million
KCRW-FM (89.9)  400,000   $5.5 million
KLON-FM (88.1)  350,000   $3.5 million
KPCC-FM (89.3)  270,000   $1.1 million
KPFK-FM (90.7)  180,000           N.A.
Source: Local public radio stations