E188: Public Media Partnerships: Baltimore Public Media and Delmarva Public Media

In this episode, Rebecca talks with Judy Diaz of Delmarva Public Media and Craig Swagler of Baltimore Public Media about the partnership their organizations announced this past July. Diaz and Swagler, who serve non-overlapping audiences across Maryland’s Eastern Shore and Baltimore, explain how the loss of federal funding (a 25% budget hit for Delmarva, 6% for Baltimore) pushed them toward collaboration rather than competition, and how they landed on environmental and agricultural reporting, from the impact of Haitian deportations on the Delmarva poultry industry to rising waters in Cambridge, Maryland, as their first shared beat. They also discuss how the two organizations plan to preserve their distinct local identities while sharing resources, student reporters, and eventually joint reporting on issues like transportation and the Chesapeake Bay, and what success will look like a year from now. The conversation closes with reflections on trust, transparency, and why public media’s mission-driven model may be uniquely suited to this kind of collaboration.