Knell oversees the fiscal, operational, and journalistic integrity of NPR and leads the building of the organization and its philanthropic base to support and leverage the strengths of NPR and its extensive network of stations. As a strong advocate of innovation, he is a key driver in leveraging new technologies to advance NPR's core mission and grow audience for all of public media.
With a career in public media spanning nearly three decades, Knell served as CEO of Sesame Workshop for 12 years before joining NPR in 2011. During his tenure at Sesame, which he joined in 1989 and assumed the role of COO in 1998 before moving into the CEO role in 2000, the organization expanded its revenue base, audience and global recognition. Knell was instrumental in focusing the organization on Sesame Street's worldwide mission, including the creation of groundbreaking co-productions in South Africa, India, Northern Ireland and Egypt.
Prior to joining Sesame Workshop, Knell was managing director of Manager Media International, a print and multimedia publishing company based in Bangkok, Hong Kong, and Singapore. He has also served as senior vice president and general counsel at WNET/Channel 13 in New York, was counsel to the U.S. Senate Judiciary and Governmental Affairs Committees in Washington, D.C. and worked in the California State Legislature and Governor's Office.
Knell is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations. He serves on the boards of Heidrick and Struggles, an executive search firm; AARP Services, Inc; National Geographic Education Foundation; and the Jacob Burns Film Center. Knell is an advisor to the Annenberg School of Communications at USC and Common Sense Media.
A Gordon Grand Fellow at Yale University, Knell was a guest lecturer at Harvard University, Duke University, and Carnegie Mellon University. He served as the commencement speaker at Johns Hopkins University, UCLA, and the University of Texas at Austin.
Knell received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science and Journalism from the University of California at Los Angeles and a JD from Loyola University School of Law.