Chris Hastings

Chris Hastings is an American public media executive, Peabody Award–winning documentary producer, and educator. He is the president and chief executive officer of WXXI Public Media in Rochester, New York, a position he assumed in November 2024. Previously, he served for more than 12 years as executive producer and editor-in-chief of the WORLD Channel at GBH in Boston, where he co-created the Peabody- and duPont–Columbia–winning documentary series America ReFramed.

Hastings is the recipient of a Peabody Award, an Alfred I. duPont–Columbia University Award, a News & Documentary Emmy Award, an International Documentary Association Award, three regional Emmy Awards, and multiple Telly Awards.

Early life and education Hastings grew up in the Springfield Township area near Chester, Pennsylvania, outside Philadelphia, and is a 1992 graduate of Springfield High School.

He earned a Bachelor of Science in telecommunications from Kutztown University of Pennsylvania and a Master of Arts in film from American University in Washington, D.C.

Early in his tenure, he worked on the PBS children's series ZOOM and contributed to post-production on several GBH local public affairs programs, including Greater Boston, Basic Black, and La Plaza.

He later led the WGBH Lab, an incubator for emerging filmmakers and content creators, which earned three New England Emmy Awards for its Open Call program. an Alfred I. duPont–Columbia University Award for Class of '27 (2018), a News & Documentary Emmy Award for Outstanding Politics and Government Documentary for Armed with Faith (2019), and an International Documentary Association Award for Best TV Feature Documentary or Mini-Series for Fannie Lou Hamer's America: An America ReFramed Special (2022). In 2022, the series won 17 Telly Awards, including gold awards for Five Years North and Where The Pavement Ends.

In 2019, Hastings secured a three-year, $600,000 grant from the MacArthur Foundation and a $150,000 grant from the Wyncote Foundation to transition WORLD Channel from an acquirer to an early-stage co-producer of independent documentary films.

Hastings oversaw the channel's rebrand initiative and cultivated partnerships with national minority media organizations, including Black Public Media, the Center for Asian American Media, Pacific Islanders in Communications, Vision Maker Media, and the Independent Television Service. He is the third CEO in WXXI's history.

Upon joining WXXI, Hastings stated: "Joining WXXI and coming to Rochester is more than just a career move — it's a chance to be part of a community-focused organization that understands the transformative power of local media." Under his leadership, WXXI achieved record membership income of $5.3 million and added 1,600 new members. Key hires included Julio Saenz as WXXI's first chief content officer (August 2025), Mona Isler as chief of staff (July 2025), and Kevin Kalvitis as WXXI's first chief marketing officer (January 2026).

Federal funding crisis In May 2025, Hastings issued a public statement responding to a White House executive order seeking to eliminate federal funding for public broadcasting through the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB). In July 2025, the U.S. House approved a rescissions package cutting $1.1 billion in CPB funding over two years; WXXI stood to lose $1.9 million annually, approximately 15 percent of its operating budget. Hastings identified PBS Kids educational programming, classical music broadcast licensing, and the WXXI newsroom as the three most at-risk areas.

Awards and honors Peabody Award, for Deej (America ReFramed, 2017) 17 Telly Awards for America ReFramed (2022)

Community involvement Board member, Community Art Center (Cambridge, Massachusetts) Board chair, Justice For My Sister (Los Angeles)