Singing for their supper

Commercial local media outlets are increasingly forced by the economy and the disruptive impact of the internet on reading, viewing, and listening habits to cut staff, but San Diego State’s taxpayer-backed KPBS public broadcasting operation continues to hire. Latest availability: science and technology reporter, to be paid between $19.51 and $24.04 an hour. “Reporting on the science and technology beat will involve taking complex concepts and rendering them into accessible and compelling stories,” according to the job notice. “These stories will be carefully grounded in fact, but still be playful or moving as the subject matter requires.” But with state-taxpayer and private-contributor cash growing ever scarcer for the operation — overseen by promotion-oriented SDSU president Elliot Hirshman — journalism isn’t the only activity in which the new hire will partake. Says the advertisement: “The Science & Technology Reporter is expected to participate in station on-air fundraising activities, and make appearances for KPBS community-building events and other public relations activities.”