Elise Pepple

Elise Pepple was executive director of Marfa Public Radio until April 2025. During her eight-plus years in that position, she used both old school and new school techniques to make the station a lifeline, a beacon for the stories of West Texas, and a space for experimentation. Her leadership embedded creative strategies at the station with an emphasis on storytelling, community engagement and innovation. She used the airwaves to honor the dead, celebrate love and dance together.  She launched the station's podcast studio and with colleagues won a National Edward R. Murrow Award for innovation for her podcast “Marfa for Beginners.” Pepple began her career in public radio in 2008 when she brought StoryCorps to Alaska. She went on to study radio at the Salt Institute for Documentary Study in Maine. Pepple produced a number of projects as an independent producer, including Portland Brick: a project building public memory.  In 2022, Pepple was elected to be a member director on the NPR Board of Directors. She believes that the power of media is not simply in providing news and information, but in lifting and connecting people.