Ruth Seymour

Ruth Seymour (née Epstein; February 17, 1935 – December 22, 2023) was an American broadcasting executive known for her innovative work with public radio. She has been described as a pioneer in public radio and "a commanding presence in the public radio arena". Her parents were both Polish Jewish immigrants; to learn Yiddish literature and language as a supplement to her public schooling. she studied Yiddish and Hebrew with Jewish linguist Max Weinreich. She had moved to the city with her husband in 1961. Seymour broadcast the raid live, as it occurred. She retired from there in February 2010 During her tenure, the station grew from being based in a playground at a middle school and having an old transmitter to covering much of southern California with its broadcasts. It also developed streaming services and podcasts.

In 1979, two factors combined to enhance Seymour's efforts toward advancing KCRW's status. Soon after the station began using a new transmitter, National Public Radio launched Morning Edition. While the area's then-most-significant public radio station ran the two-hour program before 6 a.m., Seymour decided to run it three times each morning from 3 a.m. to 9 a.m. on KCRW. "That way nobody was going to have [the programs] when I didn't have them," she said. She also was active in the effort to simplify podcasting of radio stations' programs. Without blanket licensing agreements, such as those that apply to over-the-air broadcasts and streaming of programs, a separate contract with each record label used in the podcast was required.

In 2008, Seymour successfully lobbied for a municipal bond issue that would allow KCRW to build its own building. with Seymour hosting until 2007. They had two children.

In 1993, she changed her surname to Seymour to honor her paternal grandfather, who had been a rabbi.