They have collaborated for the past seven years. Soon, they will be one entity, as GBH and New England Public Media (NEPM) began the month of May by revealing plans to merge operations.
The merger is expected to be complete in summer 2026. However, the distinct GBH and NEPM brands will remain in place. So will each entity’s headquarter locations, and signature programs.
As GBH sees it, the merger creates back-office operational efficiencies “such as a statewide sponsorship program; growing content collaborations; and allowing for even greater investments in staff and programs.”
In a statement, GBH said the strategic move “is designed to strengthen access to trusted news, information, and quality entertainment — especially locally — at a time when such resources are needed more than ever in the wake of the federal defunding of public media.”
The merger unites GBH, NEPM, and Cape and Islands radio station WCAI-FM — licensed to Woods Hole and broadcasting from Martha’s Vineyard. “This combined effort dramatically expands coverage, elevates diverse voices, and maintains a hyper-local focus from the Berkshires to Oak Bluffs,” GBH says.
“We are finding new and forward-thinking ways to make a difference in the communities we serve,” said Susan Goldberg, President and CEO of GBH. “By scaling our journalism while maintaining our focus on local coverage, we become a more sustainable business operation even in the face of federal defunding, ensuring that every resident of the Commonwealth has access to fact-based reporting and stories that matter.”
NEPM President Matt Abramovitz retains his role, one he has had since 2022. He commented, “We are at a turning point in public media and this merger offers a tremendous opportunity. By joining forces with GBH, we can remain the hometown station for western Mass. while building a statewide partnership that protects and amplifies the work we do in the 413. We can now focus more energy and resources where they belong: on the journalism, music, events, and storytelling that connects our region and our state.”
Abramovitz will also now hold the role of Vice President of Audience Strategy and Operations at GBH, working closely with editorial and music teams as well as external partners to elevate engagement on-air, online, and at events.
Dan Lothian, Editor-in-Chief of GBH News since 2024, will expand his role to include TV, radio and digital reporting across the Commonwealth at GBH, NEPM, and CAI. He also is the Editor-in-Chief of The World, a national radio program produced at GBH.
Operational integrations began in 2019, when NEPM was formed to establish an affiliation among GBH-owned television station WGBY; New England Public Radio, operating WFCR in Springfield for the University of Massachusetts; and UMass.
“There are no immediate plans for staff reductions as a result of the merger and GBH and NEPM plan to invest in new roles,” says GBH.
