In 1981, she joined NPR as Director of Administrative and Planning Director in the network’s News Division, where she served for nine years. In this position, Wallace was engaged in program development, financial planning and partnerships with member stations. Under her leadership, the network launched Weekend Edition Saturday and Weekend Edition Sunday and participated in the acquisition of the interview program Fresh Air with Terry Gross, produced by WHYY in Philadelphia. She also would help persuade skeptical NPR execs to acquire and distribute a quirky and light-hearted program about car repair out of WBUR in Boston. Car Talk with Tom and Ray Magliozzi would eventually become NPR’s most listened-to program in the network after it was acquired in 1986.
Wallace joined KQED in 1990 as General Manager of KQED Public Radio. Three years before, KQED Public Radio had begun to transition from news and classical music to an all-news and information format. Under Wallace’s leadership, the station began building its news and public affairs broadcast service with more locally focused programming and acquired national programs.
By 1991, Wallace had expanded Forum to two hours, and moved it to 9am, following NPR’s Morning Edition. With host Michael Krasny joining the staff in 1993, the popular call-in program expanded its excellent, wide-ranging discussions of regional, national and international issues, as well as in-depth conversations with authors, celebrities and newsmakers. Over the years, Forum has become KQED’s most recognizable radio program among Bay Area audiences. In 1995, Wallace and the station’s editorial team launched The California Report, the only statewide daily news program focused on political and cultural issues, produced by highly respected journalists based in San Francisco and from all across California. Today the program reaches 45 stations in more than 80 communities across California and eastern Nevada with bureaus in San Francisco, San Jose, Sacramento, Fresno, and Los Angeles.
From 1998 to 2004, and from 2015 to 2018, Wallace has served three terms as a member of the NPR Board of Directors, and she was elected Vice Chair in her second and third terms. She currently is a member of the Board of Directors of the Station Resource Group, a national organization of leading public radio stations, focusing on station-based strategic issues. She also is a member of the Board of EdSource, an Oakland-based organization which serves California public education administrators, teachers and parents with timely reporting and other information about public education issues.
“All of us at NPR will miss Jo Anne,” says NPR President and CEO Jarl Mohn. “She built one of the most listened to and powerful member stations in America and has been one of our most influential Board of Directors. I always counted on Jo Anne to provide wise counsel and superb guidance, not just on programming but, on all matters of public radio! We look forward to her continued contribution to public radio.”
Wallace is a native of Tulsa, Oklahoma and is a graduate of Stanford University, where she earned a B.A. in English. For her contributions to broadcasting and journalism, Wallace has been recognized with an American Women in Radio and Television Award (Golden Gate Chapter), and the Public Radio News Directors' Leo C. Lee Award. After KQED, Wallace plans to consult with public radio stations and producers on audience building and content strategies.
About KQED
KQED serves the people of Northern California with a public-supported alternative to commercial media. An NPR and PBS affiliate based in San Francisco, KQED is home to one of the most listened-to public radio stations in the nation, one of the highest-rated public television services and an award-winning education program helping students and educators thrive in 21st-century classrooms. A trusted news source and leader and innovator in interactive technology, KQED takes people of all ages on journeys of exploration — exposing them to new people, places and ideas. www.kqed.org
