Former KPBS news director Terence Shepherd is suing his former employer following his departure from the public broadcasting outlet earlier this year. KPBS, with studios at San Diego State University, is San Diego’s affiliate for Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) and National Public Radio (NPR).
In a lawsuit filed in San Diego Superior Court, Shepherd said he was terminated after reporting to his bosses about how Alexander Nguyen, a KPBS reporter, had “apparently staged a protest scene about which KPBS was reporting.” The news story, aired on KPBS on Sept. 17, 2025, included the appearance of a derogatory word that was part of Nguyen allegedly staging the protest scene.
The lawsuit, dated May 18, said, “One of the protestors that the reporter (Alexander Nguyen) staged behind the live shot was a placard that prominently displayed `FUCK ICE.’ Because such conduct, and display of the word FUCK on KPBS air, could involve a serious Federal Communications Commission (FCC) violation, the next day Shepherd reported his incident to Kim Swan, the senior producer of the program at issue, Gina Diamante, the reporter’s supervisor, and Nancy Worlie, the chief content officer.
“Shepherd investigated the matter, including speaking with the reporter twice, and recommended that the reporter be terminated. In discussions with Ms. Worlie, Shepherd made clear the seriousness of this violation of FCC regulations. Ms Worlie vehemently disagreed with Shepherd and made clear to him that she thought Shepherd was grossly overreacting. Shepherd also stated that he wanted to audit the reporter’s past work, and Ms. Worlie refused to do so. As a result of Shepherd’s complaints regarding FCC violations, Shepherd was terminated.”
On Feb. 11, 2026, an internal memo signed by Travis Tamasese, KPBS chief of staff, stated that Shepherd was no longer with the station. No specifics were included in the memo, according to news media reports. Vinnee Tong, the station’s managing editor, was named in the memo as serving as interim news director.
Heather Milne, a spokesperson for KPBS, told Times of San Diego that Tong is still serving as interim news director and recruitment is ongoing for a new news director. “We have not yet opened the news director recruitment yet but it is coming soon,” Milne wrote in an email to Times of San Diego.
The FCC has a longstanding enforcement policy, called the “News Distortion Policy,” that applies when a broadcaster deliberately falsifies a news report. Staging a protest scene, including coaching people to chant, arranging fake crowds, directing spontaneous action for the camera and presenting it as real, could be considered as classic examples of fabricating news event.
Also, broadcasters are prohibited from airing obscene, indecent or profane content on over-the-air radio and television. Violations can trigger warnings, fines or other enforcement actions by the FCC.
Shepherd is suing under Labor Code section 1102.5, which “provides whistleblower protections to employees who disclose wrongdoing to authorities,” the lawsuit said.
According to the lawsuit “Labor Code section 1102.5 says, “Any employer, or any person acting on behalf of the employer, shall not retaliate against an employee for having exercised their rights.”
Defendants in the lawsuit include San Diego State University Research Foundation (SDSURF), San Diego State University Foundation and KPBS.
In response to Shepherd’s lawsuit, a response filed June 26 with the San Diego Superior Court said, “SDSURF denies each and every material allegation of the complaint, and each cause of the action thereof, and further denies the plaintiff has been damaged in any manner or amount, or at all, as a result of any act or omission by SDSURF.”
Shepherd and Nguyen declined requests for interviews for this article.
In a statement to Times of San Diego, Shepherd said, “I am not providing interviews. Good luck, Terence.”
Nguyen wrote in an email, “Because this is pending litigation, I cannot comment on the matter.”
Emails requesting comment sent to Michael Conger, Shepherd’s attorney, and Sandra McDonough, KPBS’ attorney, were not answered.
A court hearing on the case is reportedly scheduled for Oct. 23.
Shepherd joined KPBS on Monday, Aug. 8, 2022. He came from WLRN News in Florida, the public radio news outlet serving Broward, Miami-Dade, Palm Beach and Monroe counties. He spent 10 years at WLRN, including eight years as news director.
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San Diego Tourism Marketing District allocates $44.5M to attract visitors
The San Diego Tourism Marketing District (SDTMD), a nonprofit corporation funded by an assessment on room nights from city hotels, has announced $44.5 million in grants for destination marketing programs in fiscal year 2027, which began July 1.
SDTMD said the $44.5 million is expected to generate 4,650,222 room nights at hotels in San Diego.
A SDTMD statement said the investment will support San Diego’s continued competitiveness as a premier travel designation at a time when destinations in California, the U.S. and internationally are competing aggressively for visitor spending and overnight stays.
The tourism district said the funded programs are projected to generate nearly $971.5 million in hotel room revenue and about $110 million in hotel tax revenue that help fund city services, including public safety, parks, libraries and infrastructure.
“Everything we do starts with attracting overnight visitors to San Diego,” said Richard Bartell, SDTMD board chair. “Even as travel patterns continue to evolve, SDTMD’s investments help ensure San Diego remains competitive in attracting visitors year-round. By supporting strategic destination marketing and high-performing events, we’re helping sustain the visitor economy that benefits communities throughout our city.”
SDTMD is self-funded through a 2% assessment paid by visitors staying at lodging businesses with 70 rooms or more within the city of San Diego. The proceeds are dedicated exclusively to tourism marketing programs designed to increase overnight hotel demand.
Tourism remains a cornerstone of San Diego’s economy. According to the San Diego Tourism Authority (SDTA), visitors spent $14.4 billion in San Diego County during fiscal year 2025, supporting more than 200,000 jobs and making tourism the region’s second-largest industry.
In recent years, between 75-to-80% of visitor spending has occurred outside the lodging sector, benefiting restaurants, attractions, retailers, transportation providers and other local businesses, SDTMD said.
As overnight visitation grows, visitors also generate transient occupancy tax (TOT) revenue that supports essential city services, including public safety, parks, libraries and infrastructure improvements.
The largest share of the $44.5 million funding — approximately $41.6 million — was awarded to SDTA for destination marketing campaigns targeting leisure, convention and international travelers throughout the year. Annually, SDTA is SDTMD’s primary funding recipient.
Sports San Diego will receive about $2.135 million to attract sporting events and tournaments that bring overnight visitors to the city.
Another $745,000 will support established and emerging tourism-generating events designed to produce measurable hotel stays and economic impact.
Among the events supported by SDTMD (event dates and dollar amounts appear in parenthesis):
- Billie Jean King Girls’ National Championships (Aug. 8-16, 2026, $70,000);
- San Diego Bayfair, Thunderboats Unlimited (Oct. 16-18, 2026, $150,000);
- San Diego Bayfest (Oct. 17-19, 2026, $74,500);
- Old Town Chamber of Commerce, San Diego Día de los Muertos (October-November 2026, $50,000);
- San Diego Food and Wine Festival (Nov. 6-8, 2026, $74,500);
- Youth Tennis San Diego, San Diego Open (January 2027, $40,000);
- San Diego Crew Classic (March 18–21, 2027, $142,000);
- Gator by the Bay (May 6-9, 2027, $70,000);
- California Police Athletic Federation, United States Police and Fire Championships (June 2027, $74,000).
Event organizers interested in applying for future SDTMD funding opportunities are encouraged to visit www.sdtmd.org/applications for information regarding upcoming application cycles.
The total figure for tourism marketing funding, typically announced annually in July, has fluctuated over the years.
This year’s $44.5 million total is below last year’s $50.47 million announced in July 2025. In 2024, the figure was $50.9 million. In 2023, a record $52.5 million was announced. At the time, it was the largest allocation in the organization’s 15-year history.
In 2022, the $38 million figure was $10 million higher than 2021, but $10 million short of the previous record of $48 million allocated for fiscal year 2020.
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PRSA accepting entries for 2026 Bernays Awards
The Public Relations Society of America’s (PRSA) San Diego-Imperial Counties chapter is accepting entries for its 2026 Edward L. Bernays Mark of Excellence Awards program.
Awards will recognize excellence in public relations programs and tactics incorporating research, planning, creativity, technical excellence, research and evaluation. Categories include community relations, integrated communications, issues management, public affairs and media relations.
Entries can be submitted between July 6 and Sept. 4 at 5 p.m. Fees vary depending on categories and submission date. Early deadline is Friday, July 24, regular deadline is Friday, Aug. 21, late deadline is Friday, Sept. 4. More information is available at www.prsasdic.org.
Silver and Bronze awards will be presented at an in-person awards ceremony in October. The Silver award recognizes complete public relations programs incorporating research, planning, implementation and evaluation. The Bronze award recognizes public relations tactics consisting of individual items or components of campaigns.
In addition to Bronze and Silver awards for public relations campaigns, special awards will be presented. The special awards include Deborah Baker PR Pro of the Year, Eva Irving Community Service Award, New PR Pro of the Year and PR Team of the Year.
This year’s Bernays Awards co-chairs are Jeanna Vazquez and Jess B. Brown.
The awards are named after Edward L. Bernays, who is credited with launching the field of public relations in the 1920s. Often called the “father of public relations,” Bernays’ history-making campaigns explain why people eat bacon with eggs, women smoke cigarettes and bank managers join civic groups. He died in 1995 at age 103.
Rick Griffin is a San Diego-based public relations and marketing consultant. His MarketInk column appears weekly in Times of San Diego.
