Image:PRI_logo.gif
'''Public Radio International''', or '''PRI''', is a Not-for-profit_corporation based in the United_States founded in 1983 to develop non-commercial audio programming for Public_radio and other audio venues. It is the United States' largest distributor of non-commercial Radio programming. PRI produces or co-produces some of the programs it distributes, but most of them are produced by other entities.
According to PRI's website, "The mission of Public Radio International is to engage listeners with distinctive radio programs that provide information, insights, and cultural experiences essential to understanding a diverse, interdependent world."
PRI distributes over 400 hours of programming each week. Topics include News, classical music, and contemporary Culture. Approximately 740 radio stations and other audio venues broadcast PRI programs or stream them online. According to 2002 Arbitron ratings, 15.2 million listeners hear PRI programming each week. Although many National_Public_Radio (NPR) stations broadcast shows distributed by PRI, NPR and PRI are distinct, competing radio producers and distributors. Many listeners associate popular shows such as ''This_American_Life'' with NPR, but these shows and many more are actually distributed by PRI.
When it was founded, PRI was known as the '''American Public Radio Network'''. The corporation changed its name to Public Radio International in 1994 to reflect its growing interest and involvement in international audio publishing, and many collaborations with the BBC.
PRI programming receives funding from station fees, corporate underwriting, and individual and corporate grants. Less than 2% of PRI's Operating_budget comes from the U.S. federal government.
==Public radio, PRI, and NPR==
'''Public radio''' is a generic term for radio stations or programming that is not funded by advertising — specifically commercials. It is the opposite of ''commercial radio'', the funding setup for most radio stations in the United States. PRI and NPR are the two largest producers and distributors of public radio programming in the United States, and they compete with each other for slots on public radio stations and the attention of listeners. Any given public radio station may be an NPR member and an affiliate of PRI simultaneously. Nationwide, about 25% of the typical public radio station's programming is produced by NPR. PRI produces about 20%, and the remaining 55% is produced by the local radio station itself.
PRI is a younger organization than NPR, which was founded 13 years earlier in 1970. Many PRI shows draw a younger overall audience than shows produced by NPR. Some listeners and critics believe that PRI programs feature a wider range of voices than NPR programs. Many programs that were formerly distributed by PRI, such as ''A_Prairie_Home_Companion'' and ''Marketplace'', are now distributed by American_Public_Media.
==Radio programs distributed by PRI==
*''Afropop_Worldwide''
**Host: Georges Collinet
**Produced by Sean Barlow for World_Music_Productions
*''American_Routes''
**Host: Nick Spitzer
**Produced by MBK_Productions
*''Ask_Dr._Science''
**Host: Dan Coffey
**Produced by Duck’s_Breath_Mystery_Theater
*''BBC_World_Service''
**Produced by the British_Broadcasting_Corporation
*''Brain_Brew''
**Hosts: Doug Hall and David Wecker
**Produced by Mark Perzel and WGUC/Cincinnati
*''Capitol_Hill_Bureau_from_PRI''
**Host: Melinda Wittstock
**Produced by PRI
*''Conversations_from_the_World_Cafe''
**Host: David Dye
**Produced by WXPN/Philadelphia
*''Echoes''
**Host: John Diliberto
**Produced by John Diliberto and Kimberly Haas
*''From_the_Top''
**Host: Christopher O'Riley
**Produced by Tom Voegeli for Concert_Productions,_Inc., in association with WGBH/Boston and New_England_Conservatory_of_Music
*''Jazz_After_Hours''
**Host: Jim Wilke
**Produced by Jim Wilke
*''Michael_Feldman’s_Whad’Ya_Know?''
**Host: Michael_Feldman
**Produced by Wisconsin_Public_Radio
*''Mountain_Stage''
**Host: Larry Groce
**Produced by West_Virginia_Public_Radio
*''Music_from_Chautauqua''
**Host: Ed Simone
**Produced by WNED-FM/Buffalo
*''National_Native_News''
**Host: Bernadette Chato
**Produced by Koahnic_Broadcast_Corporation
*''The_Next_Big_Thing''
**Host: Dean Olsher
**Produced by WNYC, New_York_Public_Radio
*''Pittsburgh_Symphony_Orchestra''
**Host: Jim Cunningham
**Produced by WQED-FM/Pittsburgh
*''The_Record_Shelf''
**Host: Jim Svejda
**Produced by USC Radio
*''Riverwalk,_Live_From_The_Landing''
**Hosts: David Holt and Jim Cullum
**Produced by Pacific_Vista_Productions and Jim Cullum for Texas_Public_Radio
*''Schickele_Mix''
**Host: Peter_Schickele
**Produced by Tom Voegeli Productions
*''Sound_&_Spirit''
**Host: Ellen Kushner
**Produced by WGBH Radio Boston and PRI
*''Sounds_Eclectic''
**Host: Nic_Harcourt
**Produced by KCRW/Santa Monica
*''Spoleto_Chamber_Music_Series''
**Host: Charles Wadsworth
**Produced by the South Carolina Educational Radio Network
*''Studio_360''
**Host: Kurt_Andersen
**Produced by PRI and WNYC, New_York_Public_Radio
*''This_American_Life''
**Host: Ira_Glass
**Produced by Chicago_Public_Radio and Ira Glass
*''To_the_Best_of_Our_Knowledge''
**Host: Jim Fleming
**Produced by Wisconsin_Public_Radio
*''To_the_Point''
**Host: Warren Olney
**Produced by KCRW/Santa Monica and PRI
*''The World''
**Host: Lisa Mullins
**Co-produced by the BBC World Service, PRI, and WGBH Radio Boston
*''World_Cafe''
**Host: David Dye
**Produced by WXPN/Philadelphia
*''Zorba_Paster_On_Your_Health''
**Hosted by Zorba_Paster, M.D., and Tom Clark
**Produced by Wisconsin Public Radio
== See also ==
* List_of_United_States_radio_networks
* National_Public_Radio
==External links==
* Public Radio International
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