As broken by Tristan Louisthe Mac Observer (corrected by Doc), NPR is not renewing their contract with Audible.

This is a good thing. Podcasting and public radio are peas and carrots. They belong together. By not renewing the Audible contract, NPR removed the easiest obstacle preventing them from offering more podcasts.

After some conversations with a handful of people in public radio, the biggest challenge is their underlying organization and business structure. As Doc Searls states:

“NPR essentially wholesales programming to local stations, which retail them to listeners.”

Prior to the ease of podcasting, I listened to WNYC‘s On the Media, via KNOW. Today, I receive each week’s program automatically every Friday night – direct from WNYC.

As I mentioned in ‘Podcasting Rewards Good Conversation‘, the biggest win for public radio stations could be in the smaller markets – Wisconsin Public Radio for example. They’d no longer have to purchase programming at prices they’d rather not pay and can reach past their broadcast antenna for members passionate about their homegrown programs.