Bobby Carter to Deliver Institute on Media Ethics Keynote The host and producer of NPR’s Tiny Desk concerts will discuss how he maintains and grows one of the biggest online hits in NPR’s history.
Bobby Carter, host and series producer of NPR’s Tiny Desk Concerts, will deliver a lecture titled “Tiny Desk, Big Challenges” as part of Washington and Lee University’s 81st Institute on Media Ethics at 5:45 p.m. on March 12 in Northen Auditorium in Leyburn Library.
The lecture is free and open to the public and is sponsored by W&L’s Knight Program in Media Ethics and the Department of Journalism and Mass Communications.
Carter will be in conversation with Eric Deggans, W&L’s Knight Chair of Journalism and Media Ethics, about the ethics of maintaining one of NPR’s most vibrant brands. They will discuss Carter’s favorite concerts, how he came to assume control of the Tiny Desk franchise after the retirement of founder Bob Boilen and how he maintains and grows one of the biggest online hits in NPR’s history.
Carter is a globally respected DJ, writer and public speaker. Since he produced his first Tiny Desk concert in 2014, his work has been at the intersection of music, technology and engagement. Notably, Carter turned a modest Tiny Desk celebration of Black History Month in 2021 into a cross-cultural event combining music, film, photojournalism and commentary. Using this experience as a template, he pulled new teams together to create multi-dimensional, multi-continent and multi-platform celebrations of Black Music Month, LatinX Heritage Month, Asian American/Pacific Islander Month and Indigenous Peoples Month.
Carter joined NPR in 1999 as a DJ for member station WJSU in Jackson, Mississippi. After graduating from Jackson State University in the summer of 2000, he moved to Washington, D.C., to begin his tenure as the first intern for the yet-to-be-released web music program, “All Songs Considered.” He was later hired by NPR’s new media department where he helped lead and build the digital infrastructure for daily operations of NPR.org, driving live and on-demand programming for countless historical events. He joined NPR Music when it launched in 2007, leading live remotes from various clubs, awards ceremonies and festivals across the country.
During his time at NPR, Carter has helped expand NPR Music’s reach, earning multiple Webby Awards, an Anthem Award and a BET Hip Hop Award nomination. His vision has helped forge partnerships with, among others, HBO, ComplexCon and Amazon. Tiny Desk Concerts average 40 million views per month on YouTube, with the brand expanded into Korea and Japan.
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