Gov. Kay Ivey dismisses five members of Alabama Public Television governing board

Gov. Kay Ivey dismissed five of the Alabama Educational Television Commission’s seven members Friday evening.

Commissioners Pete Conroy, Ferris Stephens, Les Barnett, Bebe Williams and William Green were removed from the AETC. Commissioners Tijuanna Adetunji and Logan Glass remain on the board.

A message seeking comment was left with Ivey’s office Friday night.

The story was first reported by Al.com. The move to dismiss the members came days after a survey conducted by the board showed support for Alabama Public Television continuing its relationship with the Public Broadcasting Service. 

Last October, Stephens and Barnett, two conservative members of the board, brought the idea of disaffiliating from PBS. Barnett accused PBS of being “anathema” to President Donald Trump, and said they had “made themselves the enemy of what I stand with, and so I do not like them, and I don’t follow the philosophy of feeding the beast.”

The moves prompted public backlash from donors. The following month, the board voted to maintain PBS programming.

Conroy, who served on the board since 2018, said in an interview Friday night he received a letter announcing his dismissal earlier in the day. The new board was the “ultimate goal” for the station, and Conroy said he’s “looking forward to serving APT in whatever way I can.”

A message seeking comment was left with Green Friday night.

APT Executive Director Wayne Reid said in a text message Friday night the station would have a full statement on the removals Monday and “Alabama Public Television looks forward to welcoming the new commissioners and working together with the Commission to build on APT’s longstanding service to the state.”

The dismissed commissioners also served on the Alabama Educational Television Foundation Authority. Reid said the new commissioners will replace the ones on the foundation board as well.

Under HB 220, sponsored by Rep. Chris Pringle, R-Mobile, Ivey has the authority to remove members of boards she has appointing authority over. Ivey signed the bill into law in April. It went into effect Oct. 1.

The governor last November urged the governing board of APT to pause before voting for disaffiliation and suggested surveying public attitudes before taking that step.

New appointments have been made available on the APT website and include:

• Wallace Gilberry for the 1st Congressional District, replacing Les Barnett
• Ric Smith for the 3rd Congressional District, replacing Pete Conroy
• Neil Lamb for the 5th Congressional District, replacing Bebe Williams
• Sally Smith for the 6th Congressional District, replacing Ferris Stephens
• Samory Pruitt for the 7th Congressional District, replacing William Green

Conroy said he was optimistic for the future of APT’s governing board.

“There’s a really good new appointee up from the Huntsville area, and he’s a scientist, and he’s well respected, so I’m optimistic about at least one of these appointees,” Conroy said.

In April, the AETC voted to survey Alabamians on their attitude towards APT’s programming. The survey was originally to be conducted by McLaughlin & Associates, a national survey company that has worked with several Republican candidates, including former Attorney General Jeff Sessions and U.S. Rep. Robert Aderholt, R-Haleyville.

The contract with McLaughlin fell through in late August and in a specially called September meeting for the AETFA, members voted to conduct the survey with Cygna, a polling firm that mainly works with Republican candidates, including U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville’s gubernatorial campaign.

Conroy condemned the actions taken by the board in the interview.

“I think we always need to listen to the people,” Conroy said. “And ultimately, it was the weird survey that ended up pointing us in the right direction. But when you listen to people, they’ll remind you what path you need to stay on.”