FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: July 7, 2026
MEDIA CONTACTS: Rachel Delaney, Baltimore Public Media rdelaney@bmorepublicmedia.org / 410-307-1673
Chelsea Boog, Delmarva Public Media cxboog@salisbury.edu / 410- 543-6226
Partnership launches with a shared Agriculture and Environmental Reporter position and creates new opportunities for collaboration, community engagement, and public service journalism.
BALTIMORE, Md., and SALISBURY, Md. — Baltimore Public Media and Delmarva Public Media today announced a strategic partnership to expand local journalism, deepen collaboration, and strengthen public media service throughout Maryland and the Delmarva Peninsula. The partnership creates a formal framework for the two organizations to share content, reporting, and resources while maintaining their distinct identities and local focus, ensuring communities across the region have access to more trusted journalism and diverse local perspectives.
"Public media has always been strongest when it works together. This partnership is how we turn that belief into action. By combining our strengths, we can provide the kind of coverage this region needs and build something that serves our audiences and the Chesapeake Bay region for years to come," said Craig Swagler, President and CEO of Baltimore Public Media.
As the first major initiative under the partnership, a shared Agriculture and Environmental Reporter position will focus on issues that connect communities across Maryland and the Delmarva Peninsula. The reporter will cover topics including agriculture, conservation, water quality, economic development, and the future of the Chesapeake Bay. Many of these issues shape daily life throughout the region and extend beyond the boundaries of any one community or coverage area.
"Communities across the Chesapeake Bay region are connected by the same waterways, the same industries, and many of the same challenges. This position gives us the ability to cover those connections with the depth and consistency they deserve," said Danyell Irby, Chief of Content at Baltimore Public Media.
The shared reporter position is the first step in a broader vision for the partnership. Both organizations are exploring ongoing newsroom collaboration, content sharing, audience engagement initiatives, event partnerships, and additional resource opportunities that will expand the reach and impact of public media across Maryland and Delmarva, building a stronger regional public media ecosystem for the communities they serve.
"This partnership is about more than shared resources — it's about shared purpose," said Judy Diaz, General Manager of Delmarva Public Media. "Together with Baltimore Public Media, we're building a stronger regional public media ecosystem that ensures our communities have access to more local content, ideas, and perspectives. Together, we can make public media across our region stronger than ever and ensure it remains a vital service for generations to come."
For both organizations, this partnership is a demonstration of what public media looks like when it leads with collaboration, and a commitment to ensuring communities across Maryland and Delmarva continue to have access to the journalism that serves them.
###
About Baltimore Public Media Baltimore Public Media is the nonprofit parent organization of WYPR, Baltimore's NPR news station, and WTMD, Baltimore's home for music discovery. Together, the stations serve audiences across Maryland through trusted journalism, music, storytelling, cultural programming, and community engagement. As a listener-supported organization, Baltimore Public Media is committed to informing, entertaining, and connecting communities throughout the region. For more information, visit www.baltimorepublicmedia.org.
About Delmarva Public Media Delmarva Public Media is a collaboration of public radio stations owned by Salisbury University (WSCL and WSDL) and the University of Maryland Eastern Shore (WESM). Our three stations feature the widest variety of public radio programming on the Delmarva Peninsula. For nearly 40 years, these stations have provided quality music, news, and programming to the residents and visitors of Maryland’s Eastern Shore, Coastal Delaware and the Eastern Shore of Virginia.