It's been a long time coming, but Buffalo Toronto Public Media is officially becoming... Buffalo Toronto Public Media.
For our long-time supporters, we've been Buffalo Toronto Public Media for a few years now. Only this time, all of our brands will be under that BTPM umbrella. For example, WBFO is now BTPM NPR, and WNED Classical is now BTPM Classical.
Another big change? WE NOW HAVE ONE WEBSITE! I'm sorry for yelling. A lot of us are excited about that, and we hope that you are too and willing to grow into a new habit of going to one place for all of Buffalo Toronto Public Media.
I'm sure you're asking "why?"
Well, we've spent a lot of time talking to our members and audience in the years since we made the initial rebrand shift. The feedback told us that many of our fans can't always clear the BINGO card of our many stations (we have seven!). A WNED Classical listener may not be aware of WBFO The Bridge, much like a WBFO The Bridge listener may not know that being a member gets them access to WNED PBS on-demand viewing.
We had so many names and so many different ways of finding us that it looked like a conspiracy board! So, we decided to try to reduce any confusion and streamline. Here's what that looks like now:
- WNED PBS will be called BTPM PBS (which you may have noticed already if you watch that station).
- WNED Classical will be called BTPM Classical.
- WBFO will be called BTPM NPR.
- WBFO the Bridge will be called BTPM The Bridge.
- WNED PBS KIDS will be called BTPM PBS KIDS.
- WNED Create will be called BTPM Create.
- We will consolidate our websites into btpm.org, and combine our apps from five to two:
- BTPM Watch will house all of the great content from the WNED PBS app.
- BTPM Listen will provide all the content from WBFO, WNED Classical, and WBFO The Bridge.
Now, I know you're saying, "Wait, Toronto?" To that we say that our commitment to Southern Ontario is not new and not changing.
For more than 25 years, we have worked with Canadian producers and crews to create new local programs and have acquired existing programs that highlight Canadian stories. In 2020, we became Buffalo Toronto Public Media to reflect our deep, continued connection with Southern Ontario. More than half of our members are in Canada, and our content serves audiences on both sides of the border.
One last thing that I forgot to mention that will be new is this very thing you're reading. The BTPM Blog! I'll be one of your more regular voices here (my name is Dallas Taylor, nice to meet you. I should've started with that.) I'm excited to explore this community with you and share all of the riveting and inspiring stories you all have to offer. You can also subscribe to our new Substack channel where you'll get access to even more content as we continue to build this out.
It's spring, and we're just looking to refresh. We hope that you find these changes helpful in delivering the content and services that you love.
Thank you for reading, we'll talk soon!