Car Talk Regrets

The Story Ended Happily

John Dankosky's Blog about Tom Magliozzi (Why Everyone Who Loves Public Radio Should Thank Tom Magliozzi) reminds of the time I decided to take Car Talk off the air. We had a classical music audience. The phone calls about the show were hostile...vehement. Based on those calls and the urging of the station manager I pulled the plug. It was a big mistake. I learned a lesson about programming by phone call. The caller represents his or her interest...nothing more. Audience figures over the next six months convinced me I made a mistake. Our Saturday morning audience went to our public radio competitors. Fund raising took a big hit. Within a year Car Talk was back. The program was welcomed back in a big way with a huge audience and blockbuster fundraising as described by John in his blog posting. I've been told the audience for Car Talk continues to be strong.

Community of Listeners

Reinstating Car Talk was the the impetus for the gathering of the public radio community. That community is one of the key concepts of the Audience '98 research project.

                  A Sense of Community

If givers think of public radio as a community, then a fund drive is a barn raising, not the Home Shopping Network. On-air pitching is passing the hat, not selling Beanie Babies. Shirts and mugs – still the most popular premiums – are emblems of membership and pride in the community, not merchandise exchanged for cash.

"Sense of community" may add dimension to the seminal concept of personal importance, and thereby help public radio professionals to influence giving, focus fundraising messages, and schedule programming. 

Communication technologies let us choose our neighbors based on their sympathies rather than their proximities. Being connected to other people by psychological rather than geographical space isn't so alien anymore.

Audience loyalty and support grew by leaps and bounds after Car Talk found a permanent place on WNPR's schedule on Saturday Morning. It was as if we had crossed a threshold of Core Listening. A solid base of support resulted. Radio at Connecticut Public Broadcasting became self sustaining.

If that sense of community disappears...Public Radio will become a memory.

TOTN Departs - Changes at WNPR

WNPR announced several program changes today. Among those changes is a scaling back of one of WNPR's longstanding local programs.

Here's what was in the announcement:

Dear Mr. Grehn, As Talk of the Nation signs off the air today for the last time, I want to let you know about some schedule changes. Here & Now debuts on WNPR on July 1 at 2 p.m. (The program will air Mondays through Thursdays at 2 p.m.). Here & Now is a daily news magazine which aims to guide us through the streams of news and information. Learn more about hosts Robin Young and Jeremy Hobson below. Here & Now hosts A regular presence on WNPR for 33 years, the Peabody-award-winning Faith Middleton Show will air at 3 p.m., Monday through Thursday. The Food Schmooze remains in its regular spot on Wednesdays at 3 p.m. with a repeat on Saturdays at noon. Faith MiddletonCredit: Heather Colt Starting Friday, July 5, Science Friday will expand to include the entire 2 hours. Hosted by Ira Flatow, Science Friday focuses on science topics in the news and features discussions. It will air from 2– 4 p.m. Ira Flatow This is just the beginning; we have some significant service changes lined up that we hope will enrich WNPR for our listeners. Stay tuned for additional updates – including the launch of a completely overhauled news website. Thanks for listening and thank you even more for your support! Together, we'll make WNPR even better. WNPR will air half of Here & Now to make room for the Faith Middleton Show. The Faith Middleton show is making room for Science Friday. So is Here & Now, the replacement for Talk of the Nation.  Listening to radio is personal and habitual. In the past, changes to the Faith Middleton Show caused a lot of heat. It will be interesting to see how the changes are received. Changes to the website will be welcomed. In the interest of full disclosure, you should know that I was employed by Connecticut Public Broadcasting for 21 years.

Can Partnerships Save Joint Licensees?

There have been some financial collapses over the past two years among public broadcasting's joint licensees. 

WMFE-TV is being sold to a faith based broadcaster while hanging on to it's radio operations.

NJN collapsed completely. The state of New Jersey decided they could no longer underwrite the operation with tax dollars. Their assets are now under the control of New York and Philadelphia stations.

As of August San Mateo Community College District said it was offering KCSM-TV up for sale. KCSM radio will remain a part of the school district.

WKAR in East Lansing saw deficits grow dramatically. The result was cuts in staff and a growing involvement by Michigan State, the license holder. It was announced this week by State News.com that WKAR and Michigan State will be offering "students a chance to engage in public broadcasting operations, such as TV and radio production, along with opportunities in public relations, branding and sales."


WJCT in Jacksonville Florida is also running deficits. They announced this week they are exploring a partnership with the University of North Florida. "WJCT, UNF in talks about partnership."

 The Connecticut Public Broadcasting Network (CPTV/WNPR) announced a partnership with Hartford Public Schools. The press release says, "The total immersion” learning laboratory where seniors at the district’s Journalism & Media Academy will receive continuous hands-on training in all aspects of television production and other forms of broadcast communication under the guidance of CPBN professionals.  Construction on the project is expected to begin in 2012." There's a video that helps promote the project.


Will partnerships with educational institutions save public broadcasting? The partnerships certainly improves their chances. Collaborations and partnerships that strengthen community ties among non-profits and educational institutions increase the value and standing of these cultural institutions.