The Big Picture
WHYY's mission has always been to make knowledge available to all people. Our program schedule reflects a world of scientific discoveries, literature, art, drama and news analysis. Our new digital future will only increase this valuable service. High definition television - with its stunning picture and cd-quality sound -- will change the way you enjoy Nova and Nature. Multiple streams of programming will expand your viewing choices. Interactive television, video on demand, and online computer services will enable WHYY to provide a more extensive, and personalized, group of services. Digital Audio Broadcasting will provide 91FM listeners with a wider range of services and a clearer signal. Through these new capabilities WHYY will be an even more valuable community resource, a more effective public broadcaster, a more important part of your life.
Imagine the future. Imagine a new WHYY.
More than Lights and Wires in a Box
Forty years ago, the admired CBS newsman Edward R. Murrow said the new medium of television had the potential to educate, illuminate and inspire. But, Murrow said, it can do so only to the extent that humans are determined to use it to those ends. Otherwise, it is merely ìlights and wires in a box.
Now, the digital transformation is recreating the medium anew with high definition television and multiple program streams. But, as in Murrow's time, the ultimate value lies not in the technology, but in our own human creativity . . . in whether we use this extraordinary new technology to improve the quality of our lives and our community. In the coming 500-channel universe, only public broadcasting stations such as WHYY are committed to using the expanded digital spectrum not to sell products or generate profits, but to bring out the best that Americans aspire to be.
Can You Hear It? 91FM's Digital Future
Public Radio has become one of the nation's most admired and listened to sources of news, information and entertainment. 91FM continues to lead the way with national broadcasts such as our own Fresh Air and NPR's Morning Edition and an insightful array of local programs such as Radio Times, Voices In The Family and A Chef's Table. As with digital television, the transition to Digital Audio Broadcasting will offer new services to public radio listeners across the Delaware Valley. It has the capacity to provide to listeners additional information, such as radiotext transmission for the visually impaired, much as television closed captioning assists the hearing impaired. In a radio spectrum increasingly dominated by the same few commercially driven formats, an investment in digital audio ensures that 91FM will be an even greater resource for the Delaware Valley.
The Campaign for Independence
The Campaign for Independence is a bold new initiative that will allow WHYY to seize this remarkable digital future, retool its broadcast center, and enrich the content of TV12 and 91FM programs. Organized by volunteers, staff members and community leaders, this $15 million fundraising effort will blend the best of new technology with the fine tradition of public broadcasting. In the process, WHYY will bring together our cultural, educational and corporate communities in a way that enhances the life of every citizen of the Delaware Valley.
Multiple Program Streams
The story of WHYY's digital future is best told through its new schedule. Future program strands will encourage civic involvement, provide instruction to students of all ages, educate our labor force and showcase the creativity of the Delaware Valley. The stunning clarity of high definition television will dramatically enhance the sensory experience of TV12. You'll find the promise of our future and the best of our past on these multiple channels. Exciting new video-on-demand and interactive website technology will increase your enjoyment of TV12 programs, and new audio and information transmission services will integrate today's television, computer and communications systems.
A New Technology Center
The most tangible objective of the Campaign for Independence is the construction of a new Technology Center at WHYY's current Independence Mall location. Designed with the future of telecommunications in mind, it is flexible and efficient. Through the integration of studio and community spaces we will encourage effective partnerships, with the close coordination of TV12 and 91FM operations we will create a new kind of broadcast synergy, and with the adoption of emerging technology we will become a leaner, more productive enterprise. The Campaign for Independence will devote $5 million toward the construction of this new facility.
A Lasting Program Endowment
The soul of WHYY is the variety and quality of the television and radio programs its provided for more than four decades. Together, we've traveled to tropical rain forests, explored the world's great works of literature and experienced the miracle of life. With additional channels comes the opportunity to bring you even more remarkable television and radio experiences. Through the Campaign for Independence, WHYY will ensure the quality of its expanded program options by creating a $5 million endowment that will help fund the acquisition and production of new and existing programs creating new classics and securing a place for old favorites. This fund will grow over time as new donors add their support to the endowment.
Ways to Give
Your gift to the Campaign for Independence may be inspired by your personal experience with WHYY. You may give because you believe in building community or from the pure desire to help others. Your reasons for giving will be many, and there are many ways you can give.
- Cash
- Securities. Consider giving investments in stocks and bonds. Appreciated securities offer significant tax advantages.
- Real estate. Gifts of houses, farms and land may generate sizable tax deductions.
- Life insurance. You may designate WHYY as the sole beneficiary of an existing policy, assign ownership of the policy to WHYY or buy a policy with WHYY as owner and beneficiary.
- Deferred gifts. There are several kinds of Charitable Trusts which enable you to make a significant gift to the Campaign for Independence without losing income.
Although tax considerations are seldom the motive for philanthropy, they can determine how you want to make your gift and how large it might be. Please consult your personal tax or financial advisor for more information.
