Jim Connors (JC)

Broadcasting Leadership and ThinkBright:

A Lifelong Learning Network That Became One of North America’s Largest

When JC joined WNED Buffalo Toronto Public Media in the early 2000s, he stepped into one of the most respected public broadcasting environments in North America. WNED operated under a rare dual-license structure, serving PBS and NPR audiences across Western New York and deep into Southern Ontario. It was a place where engineering, programming, education, and mission-driven service converged every day.

JC began in the tape library, the hub of analog-era storage and signal flow. His reliability and eye for detail immediately stood out. Before long, two senior leaders recognized his potential. Vice President of Broadcasting Ron Santora and Program Manager Goldie Gardner brought him directly into their orbit. That decision shaped the rest of his broadcasting life.

Ron was widely known across PBS for his programming instincts, technical fluency, and cross-border partnerships. He blended editorial strategy with engineering logic in ways few programmers could. Goldie, meanwhile, was the station’s creative anchor. She understood pacing, audience flow, and how a station’s on-air identity came together from moment to moment. She became one of JC’s most trusted mentors. He worked as her direct report, and they formed a professional bond built on respect, shared standards, and a sharp focus on viewer experience.

This early mentorship prepared JC for his promotion to Program Coordinator, where he became a key part of WNED’s public outreach during the national FCC digital television transition. Millions of Americans were facing converter box requirements, HDTV adoption, and spectrum changes. JC helped guide viewers through one of the largest technological shifts in broadcasting history, explaining why free over-the-air reception still mattered and how the transition would affect daily viewing.

At the same time, behind the scenes, WNED was undertaking one of its largest technical upgrades. In August 2004, TV Technology reported that WNED had ordered a large-scale Sundance Digital Titan automation system as part of its digital upgrade. The Titan platform, installed across major public broadcasters, was designed to handle multi-channel operations with redundancy, automated recording, and master-control integration. According to the article, Vice President of Engineering and Technology Jonathan Herrington stated that Titan would “position [WNED] for future growth.” The upgrade included TitanSync redundancy and Intelli-Sat automation, enabling WNED to manage five on-air channels. JC worked alongside Herrington and the engineering team during this period, gaining firsthand experience with the technological backbone that allowed WNED to modernize and expand its service footprint. The article also affirmed WNED’s cross-border identity, describing it as a “border station serving the Buffalo area as well as Southern Ontario.”

This technical groundwork paved the way for the next chapter of JC’s career. When Goldie retired, JC advanced to Program Manager, taking on programming acquisition, scheduling, digital rights licensing, FCC compliance, long-term planning, and operational support across WNED’s dual-license PBS and NPR services. His role also required close coordination with master control, engineering, educational outreach, and community engagement teams on both sides of the U.S.–Canada border.

It was during these years that WNED leadership, including Ron Santora, Program Manager Goldie Gardner, Vice President for Education and Outreach Pam Johnson, and President and CEO Donald K. Boswell, built the foundation for ThinkBright Lifelong Learning. Johnson’s work in education, including her leadership on Reading Rainbow and Ready To Learn, is documented in the 2024 book Creating Reading Rainbow: The Untold Story of a Beloved Children’s Series and reflects the culture of innovation she brought to WNED.

Under this leadership, and through the operational work of JC and the engineering teams, ThinkBright Lifelong Learning was launched as a statewide educational network. It began as a local educational block and expanded into a twelve-hour daily broadcast service supported by a 2.5 million dollar grant from the John R. Oishei Foundation.

ThinkBright was carried across every major PBS station in New York State:
• WNED in Buffalo serving Western New York and Southern Ontario
• WXXI in Rochester
• WCNY in Syracuse
• WMHT in Albany serving Western Massachusetts and Southern Vermont
• WSKG in Binghamton serving Northern Pennsylvania
• Mountain Lake PBS in Plattsburgh serving Montreal and Southern Quebec
• WNET and WLIW serving New York City and Long Island

By 2008, internal carriage records estimated ThinkBright at twelve and a half million households and more than thirty million viewers, making it one of the largest educational broadcast footprints in North America outside of PBS itself.

JC played a central operational role in the statewide interconnect. He coordinated schedules among all participating stations, managed licensing and rights, worked with master control and engineering departments across multiple markets, and ensured regulatory and cultural consistency for U.S. and Canadian audiences. His work was hands-on, high stakes, and required an understanding of programming flow, technical capacity, and educational mission.

ThinkBright Lifelong Learning earned significant recognition, including:
• 2006 InfoTech WNY BETA Award for Educational Achievement
• P2 Award for Innovation in Public Service Media
• Additional honors for digital-transition leadership, educational access, and collaborative service

The service also carried award-winning content from external producers. Several publicly credited WNED and ThinkBright as valued educational partners, underscoring the service’s credibility and reach.

In 2008, JC also served as a judge for ACEFEST in New York City, listed as “Jim Connors – Broadcasting, ThinkBright TV Network.” This national recognition reflected his standing within the larger media and educational community.

Long before digital-first educational video became the norm, ThinkBright Lifelong Learning set a statewide standard for educational broadcasting, unified distribution, and cross-border public service. JC’s work alongside Ron Santora, Goldie Gardner, Pam Johnson, and Donald Boswell helped shape an era of innovation at WNED that reached millions of viewers across two countries.

Those years remain one of the most meaningful chapters of JC’s broadcast career, defined by mentorship, purpose, collaboration, and a shared belief in public media’s ability to educate and uplift entire communities.