SEMIPUBLIC NAMES JOURNALIST MARY CHILDS AND PUBLIC MEDIA LEADER ABBY GOLDSTEIN TO BOARD OF DIRECTORS

New directors bring newsroom and station expertise to the nonprofit tracking the health of public media

ASHEVILLE, N.C. — November 2, 2026 — Semipublic, the nonprofit building public trust in media through data, announced today that Mary Childs and Abby Goldstein have joined its Board of Directors. Childs is a best-selling author, financial journalist, and host of Mary in America. Goldstein has spent more than four decades in noncommercial radio management and programming and leads the Public Media Content Collective (PMCC). 

“Public media is making big decisions with too little reliable information,” said Sarah Caldwell, Chair of Semipublic’s Board of Directors. “Mary and Abby understand the system from two directions, the national newsroom and the local stations. They’ll help us get independent, timely data to the people who fund public media, run it, report on it and set policy for it. That’s accountability in service of a free press.”

Semipublic launched AdoptAStation.org in July 2025, two days after Congress voted to rescind public media’s federal funding. The site that turns Semipublic’s station-level research into a simple tool pointing donors toward the stations most at risk, arrived just when people were looking for ways to help. In its first year, it drew more than 100,000 visitors and directed hundreds of thousands of dollars to stations across the country.

“AdoptAStation kind of exploded into existence and connected supporters with stations in ways we never thought possible,” said Goldstein. “It’s exciting to see how data can help shape actionable solutions to the challenges that public media faces today. I’m honored to bring my knowledge and expertise to the Semipublic board.”

“I’m thrilled and honored to get to help Semipublic in buttressing public media,” said Childs. “When AdoptAStation first started, I remember feeling so grateful that it existed, that the information it provided enabled users to make the most impactful decisions possible. Semipublic’s work provides clarity amid chaos.”

Childs and Goldstein join Semipublic’s founding board members: Board Chair Sarah Caldwell, Foundation Relations Officer at the Southern Environmental Law Center; Isabel Lara, Director of Communications at the Monterey Bay Aquarium; and Munashe Magarira, senior attorney with the Southern Environmental Law Center. Semipublic’s founder, Alex Curley, serves as Executive Director.

Biographies

Mary Childs

Mary Childs is a journalist and the host of Mary in America, a new talk show. She is the author of the best-selling book The Bond King. She previously co-hosted NPR's Planet Money, and before that worked at Barron's, the Financial Times, and Bloomberg News. Before starting in journalism, she was a Watson Fellow, painting portraits around the world. She lives in Virginia with her partner, kids, and a very good dog.

Abby Goldstein

Abby Goldstein brings more than four decades of experience in noncommercial radio management and programming, across large and small markets and on the national stage. She began her career as a late-night jazz host at KVLU in Beaumont, Texas, where her mother ran the membership program. She then spent two decades in Dallas, working primarily at KERA with stints in event production and music promotion.

As Vice President for Programming at New Hampshire Public Radio, Goldstein spearheaded national distribution of NHPR's primary night coverage. As General Manager of WYEP in Pittsburgh, she led the station to unprecedented audience and revenue growth. She now serves as President and Executive Director of PMCC, the Public Media Content Collective, a national association that offers content and programming professionals workshops, training, national conferences, audience research, and peer support. A frequent conference speaker and moderator, she has served on many local and national boards. She lives in Pittsburgh with her husband and is an avid home baker.

About Semipublic

Semipublic is a nonprofit organization with the mission of building public trust in media through data. A central resource for donors, journalists, and public media fans, Semipublic tracks what is happening across the public media landscape and provides the information communities need to ensure public media survives — and thrives. Semipublic operates AdoptAStation.org, a Public Media Jobs Index, and a layoff tracker documenting personnel losses across the industry since July 2025. In its first year, AdoptAStation.org welcomed more than 100,000 visitors and directed hundreds of thousands of dollars to stations across the country. Learn more at semipublic.org.

Media contact: Isabel Lara, isabel@semipublic.org