Public radio and TV executive director and CFO fired from Indiana University

Indiana University Radio and Television Services’ (RTVS) executive director and chief financial officer were fired Wednesday, according to a report from WFIU.

Indiana University provost Rahul Shrivastav first told RTVS staff members via email that executive director Brad Kimmel and CFO Christina Lirot were no longer in their positions on Wednesday afternoon. According to WFIU, Shrivastav told leadership that RTVS “was not going in the right direction” following an outside assessment from a consultant who reported that there were “morale issues” among RTVS staff.

Lirot was reportedly escorted out of the RTVS building by a staff member, according to WFIU.

Brad Kimmel
Brad Kimmel

IU spokesperson Mark Bode said IU does not comment on “personnel matters.”

“RTVS’s vital community and university service missions remain a priority for IU, and we aim to ensure even more success and impact from RTVS moving forward,” Bode said in a statement.

Jay Kincaid, current director of facilities and technology at IU’s Media School, was appointed RTVS’ interim director. Rhonda Inman, principal accountant for IU’s Office of the Vice Provost for Finance & Administration will lead RTVS finance and administration on an interim basis, according to WFIU.

WFIU and WTIU maintain editorial independence from IU.

Kincaid confirmed Kimmel and Lirot no longer work at Indiana University Friday, adding “there’s really nothing else to say that hasn’t already been said.”

RTVS, located on Seventh Street on the IU Bloomington campus, houses WFIU Public Radio and WTIU Public Television, as well as an audio, video, and event support production unit that provides services to clients including IU Athletics, the IU Health Bloomington Hospital, and national news broadcasters like NBC, CNN and Al-Jazeera.

Before coming to IU in late 2020, Kimmel served as the CEO of WNIN Public Media in Evansville. According to his LinkedIn page, Kimmel founded his own broadcast media company, Bradley David Productions, in 1994, which produced programming for national TV networks.

According to a now-deleted page on IU’s website, Lirot joined IU in 1999 and is an IU alumnus.

Reach Brian Rosenzweig at brian@heraldt.com. Follow him on Twitter/X at @brianwritesnews.

This article originally appeared on The Herald-Times: Indiana University fires WFIU, WTIU executive director and CFO