John T. Potthast, the senior executive responsible for overseeing all original productions at Maryland Public Television, is leaving to accept a similar position at WETA, a Washington-area public broadcasting station.
Potthast, who lives in Washington, said yesterday that the move was fueled by the desire to work closer to home after commuting to Owings Mills for three decades. He starts the job at WETA, based in Arlington, Va., in February, when he becomes eligible for a significant retirement package from MPT.
"It was based on what is the best thing for me, at this stage, for my personal and professional life," said Potthast. "It would have been foolish for me to not take advantage of this opportunity."
The winner of several national Emmy awards, Potthast helped to create scores of shows that focused on children's education, cooking, economics, ballet, classical history, music, nature and politics. The list of series and onetime shows that bear his imprint very much mirrors the evolution of the state broadcasting agency itself.
Potthast, 53, began working at the state broadcasting agency in the mid-1970s as a researcher for an educational television project. At the time, he was paid by local and state education departments. By 1978, he joined MPT as a writer and soon became a producer, then executive producer and ultimately vice president for content enterprises. Over the years, he developed or oversaw many national and local shows, such as Healthweek, Mollie Katzen's Cooking Show, Direct Connection, Outdoors Maryland, Wolf Trap Presents the Kirov: Swan Lake and Kratts' Creatures.
Most recently, Potthast led MPT's effort to redesign its hallmark show, Wall Street Week, in a new partnership with Fortune magazine. He said his decision to leave was not influenced by recent financial troubles at MPT, stemming largely from the departure of Louis Rukeyser from the markets-oriented program.
"We are very sorry to lose him," said Larry D. Unger, the state system's executive vice president and chief financial officer.
At WETA, Potthast will be production executive and report directly to Dalton Delan, the executive vice president and chief programming officer. The Washington broadcaster - home to Ken Burns' documentaries, the NewsHour with Jim Lehrer and Washington Week in Review, among others - produces the third-most programming for the PBS system of any station in the nation. MPT is typically among the top half-dozen producers for PBS.