Vermont Business Magazine John Van Hoesen, the longtime news and content leader at Vermont Public Radio, widely known in the Vermont journalism world as JVH, has announced his retirement after 20 years at VPR.
Van Hoesen, the senior vice president and chief content officer at VPR, came to the station in 2001, when he was asked to develop a full-time professional news department. That first step led to the creation of local newscasts throughout the day, the weekday news magazine Vermont Edition, podcasts like Brave Little State and But Why, the creation of a digital-first news team, documentaries and special programs, and new local programs like “Safe & Sound.”
In a statement announcing his retirement, Van Hoesen said: “I was inspired from the very first day with the optimism and possibilities of public service in public radio. The power of the human voice to tell a whole story through words and emotion has always been at the heart of it.”
He said his retirement will begin in July just as VPR and Vermont PBS merge on July 1. VPR has not commented on Van Hoesen's departure.
Nicole Junas Ravlin, chair of the VPR and Vermont Public Company Board of Directors, told VBM:
"John came to the station in 2001, when he was asked to develop a professional news department, and he has played an important part in VPR’s growth during his 20 years here. He oversaw the creation of local newscasts throughout the day, the weekday news magazine Vermont Edition, podcasts like Brave Little State and But Why, a digital-first news team, documentaries, and special programs.
"During his career at VPR, John held the positions of news director, vice president of news, vice president of news and programming, and senior vice president and chief content officer. He served on the national committee that developed the Code of Public Integrity and was one of the founders of the New England News Collaborative.
"John has been important to VPR’s institutional memory, as his tenure spanned many historic events and turning points in Vermont, including 9-11 in 2001 and Tropical Storm Irene in 2011. We are grateful for his dedication and service."
At the beginning and over the years, Van Hoesen assembled a team highly regarded in Vermont and in the public radio community for their innovation, trustworthiness, and creativity.
During his career at VPR, Van Hoesen held the positions of news director, vice president of news, vice president of news and programming, and senior vice president and chief content officer. He served on the national committee that developed the Code of Public Integrity, which has been adopted by radio and television stations across the country.
He was one of the founders of the New England News Collaborative that brought together eight public radio stations in New England. He helped VPR expand the content for two separate statewide networks - news and classical music – starting in 2007.
Later, he oversaw the digitization of VPR’s extensive classical music library, and most recently he has been helping VPR and Vermont PBS establish its new mission and vision for the combined organization.
His tenure spanned many historic events and turning points in Vermont, the most dramatic being 9-11 in 2001 and Tropical Storm Irene in 2011. Other milestones include the presidential candidacies of Howard Dean and Bernie Sanders and documentaries about both candidates.
More than 100 awards from various public media organizations were conferred on VPR during this period. They include the recent “This Land” project with Vermont PBS, coverage of the rescue of Captain Phillips, Steve Zind’s “Iran Journal,” a documentary on the Civilian Conservation Corps, on the ground coverage of the Afghan war, the documentary on the final Vermont concert by Phish, an in-depth examination of climate change in Vermont, and the documentary “States of Marriage.”
Van Hoesen was inspired to enter a career in journalism when he was a reporter and copy editor at the UVM student newspaper, the Vermont Cynic. His first newspaper job was at the Springfield, Vt., Times-Reporter, and he then was a partner in starting a new weekly newspaper and commercial press in Windsor, Vt.
He served in many positions at the Rutland Herald – reporter, magazine editor, and managing editor and oversaw the newspaper’s 200th anniversary publication. It was during his time as managing editor that the newspaper wrote its Pulitzer Prize winning editorials on civil unions.
He credited the inspiration of former President and CEO Mark Vogelzang for having the vision to expand the news service and create two statewide networks, one for news and one for music.
“He saw the potential for VPR and I was honored to be a part of it,” Van Hoesen said.
He said he was fortunate to have worked with one of the best content teams in public radio, who always went the extra mile.
“Ultimately, it’s been my honor to be able to devote an entire career to public service in broadcast and print for the people of Vermont,” Van Hoesen said
Van Hoesen begins his retirement in July. As for the future, he said he had a number of writing and digital publication projects that he hoped to devote more time to in the coming months.
He lives with his husband in New Haven.