Laura Knoy

Not retired

Laura Knoy: Her 25-year NHPR show, ‘The Exchange,’ she says, ‘was a big success, and it meant a lot to people.’ (Photo by Allegra Boverman)

A quarter of a century ago, Laura Knoy, a reporter at National Public Radio, left Washington, D.C., to return to her native New Hampshire and created “The Exchange,” a daily talk show on NH Public Radio that very soon became a fixture of morning radio in the Granite State. In April, after she decided to move on to other things, NHPR ended the program. We chatted on the porch outside her Concord home.

Q, When you started “The Exchange,” it seemed like a whim.

A. I was working in D.C., freelancing for NPR and other outlets. I called (then NHPR President) Mark Hanley and said, “Hey, what’s the media landscape in New Hampshire?” He said, “Come be a reporter at NHPR.” I said, “ I don’t need to be a local reporter again, but if I had my own show, that might be different.” Something inside me just made me say that. He said, “Well, let me get back to you on that.

Q. You started it up in a couple of weeks.

A. Two weeks. I started on Sept. 23rd and on Oct. 9th, we started the show. No one would do that now, but we didn’t know any better. Hey, it worked, didn’t it?

Q. Tell me about somebody who struck you as inspirational.

A. People in the substance abuse field who’ve just been relentless in sharing their stories. The bravery of these people just blows me away. And I’ve been impressed by the way the chambers of commerce have stepped up around the issues of housing, education and diversity. Sometimes it seems like the business leaders are the grownups in the room.

Q. You say now that you haven’t retired; you’re just not working at NHPR.

A. A lot of people have come up to me and said, “Congratulations on your retirement.” I say, “No, no, no, no, no. Not old enough. Not rich enough.” I need to find some other type of employment. It’s not a knock on NHPR. I love NHPR. The news business is really tough. In the last, say, six or eight years, it’s gotten even tougher — negativity, the divisiveness, the inability of people to (A) listen or (B) care how other people might think or feel. Violence, white supremacy. It’s just not a happy space. I just want to work in a field that’s a little more positive and uplifting.

Q. You stayed on through much of the pandemic even though you were thinking of leaving NHPR before then. Did you discuss with the station that you might be leaving?

A. No, because it was such a traumatic time. After the election and then after the attack on the Capitol, and just the continued rising discord, it wasn’t until about February or March that I said, “I can’t stand it anymore.”

Q. Did you have any inkling that they weren’t going to continue the show after you left?

A. I had no idea. The original plan was to continue the show.

Q. When did you find out then?

A. The CEO told me. I guess I found out a day or two before everybody else.

Q. What was your reaction?

A. Oh, I was disappointed. I’m not making the decisions, and I’m sure they’ll come up with something.

Q. Disappointed but not angry?

A. No, because it’s a hard business, and I’m not crunching the numbers.

Q, Do you agree with the decision?

A. No, but, again, I’m not signing the budgets and writing the checks, so it’s easy for me to say.

Q. You can say it.

A. How could I not be disappointed? I created this thing 25 years ago. It was a big success, and it meant a lot to people. I have a foot-high stack of mail from people. Just gorgeous letters from people just telling me how much this show meant to them.

Q. Let’s talk about your future.

You’re working on a book, a novel.

A. I finished a rough draft. Just before you came over this morning, I started going back to the earliest chapters, and it’s rough.

Q. How is it different than the journalistic writing?

A. First of all, you get to make stuff up [laughs] for fun. I’m writing historical fiction, so I’m writing it very much like a journalist. I’ve done two years of research. It’s based heavily, heavily, heavily on fact.

Q. Are you going to stay in New Hampshire?

A. Oh, my gosh yes, yes. I love it here so much.

Q. So you’re going back to freelancing, aren’t you?

A. Yes, in a sense. It’s very loose — if anyone has an interesting project out there that they would like me to do, I’m available. [laughs]