Jazz radio – endangered species/The Independent Ear

contents

jazz

Current WPFW management posture has been to give nice lip service about seeking fundraising alternatives, while the reality includes increased pledge drives as the bandaid towards station financial solvency. (It should be noted here that one of the fundamental precepts of Pacifica Radio is that its stations do not accept underwriting support from any corporations or businesses whatsoever. This is a precept designed to protect Pacifica stations from undue corporate or business influence and meddling. However its my contention that precept has become outmoded, particularly when one considers the fact that there are numerous progressive, socially-responsible entities in the community that would step up to the plate with underwriting support; witness the underwriting support that is the lifeblood of WWOZ in New Orleans and is all local business driven; Exxon, Shell, William & Morris, Haliburton, etc. need not apply.)

Now comes the wisdom lurking in the shadows that the jazz and creative music listening audience simply does not support the station in significant enough numbers to sustain WPFW (which currently touts itself as "Your station for Jazz & Justice"; and for its 30th anniversary gala honored Sonny Rollins and Amy Goodman, pillars of Jazz & Justice). The hungry wolves of more news/talk & information are baying at the door of WPFW and it is suspected that the programming changes hinted in a recent, veiled, typically passive-aggressive email to station programmers from GM John Hughes (with words to the effect that he's going to bring in new, syndicated programming that will raise greater revenue for the station) will include a significant loss of jazz and creative music programming hours. As we say in radio… stay tuned. And if it is your pleasure to take the preemptive step of lodging a protest on the coming programming changes (September is the due date for these programming shifts) you can do so in several ways: communicate with station management via the website www.wpfw.org; by snail mail at WPFW, 2390 Champlain Street NW, Washington, DC 20009; by fax to 202/588-0561; by calling station GM John Hughes at 202/588-0999 and press 0 for the operator; or by calling in to his weekly General Manager's Mailbag show on Friday mornings 9-9:30am at 202/588-0893.

Which brings me to another salient point: as jazz radio listener-supporters we are so often late to the party. Dr. Billy Taylor used to decry what a lax lot we are, how we are always too late to protest draconian changes and elimination of jazz formats. We moan & cry loud and long AFTER the axe has fallen – witness the anger and collective teeth gnashing of the Boston area jazz community AFTER WGBH emasculated its jazz programming hours. By then the genie is way out of the bottle and it is far too late; those programming changes have been set in stone. If you hear or see the warning signals on the horizon at your local jazz and creative music outlet, take preemptive protest strikes THEN, before those egregious changes have been instituted.

write your comments about the article :: © 2013 Jazz News :: home page