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The Eastern Shore region of Delaware, Maryland and Virginia is known as Delmarva. The local public radio network features 2 stations. WSCL 89.5FM programs Classical Music, award-winning local news, and NPR. WSDL 90.7FM focuses on NPR talk radio. Together they are known as Delmarva Public Radio (DPR).
DPR is facing a real problem right now. Drastic changes are being seriously considered. Tuesday night was the only public forum on its future.
WSCL 89.5FM began in 1987. Since its inception, it has been a partnership with Salisbury University (SU). Both DPR and SU had different names back then, but SU has housed the local public radio's operation from the beginning. Through the Salisbury University Fund (SUF), it has also had the oversight in securing not only that partnership, but the financial stability and future of the stations.
DPR was always told its home at SU was secure. But now there is a kink in that lifeline. DPR has been housed in Caruthers Hall from day one. Caruthers Hall is scheduled for demolition this Spring. The kick in the pants? This demolition is not news. It has been part of the plan for SU's growth for a decade now. DPR has been told all along not to worry. Even though any plans for DPR's new location have yet to be offered, their home at SU is safe.
Then comes Mother Nature and an economic recession.
DPR's tower was hit by lightning last year. With a cost of over $100,000 to replace that, and budgets tightening from listeners and state coffers alike, DPR is now running in the red. The SUF did not have assets secured to cover such emergency costs.
DPR is not allowed to raise such funds outside of normal pledge drives, so not only did the SUF fail to be prepared for such an emergency as lightning, DPR had no means to secure such vital "rainy day" (or "lightning day") emergency funds.
Now, with no prior warning of any problems, SUF publicly released in September a report they contracted from the consultant group Public Radio Capital (PRC). This report was ordered to offer opinions and options on the sustainability and future of Delmarva Public Radio (DPR).
PRC's report offers four options. First is the status quo option which it concludes is not sustainable and forecasts will only increase deficits every year.
Option two is the "repeater" option where WSDL would drop the NPR talk programs and simply broadcast the same signal as WSCL. This they say would not produce the required financial savings.
The third option is the "PSOA Scenario". Under this proposal, current DPR staff would be let go and another broadcaster would contract to take over running the stations at reduced staff. Additionally, WSDL would be converted to "AAA" format. Translation - end the NPR talk radio and replace it with modern rock music.
From their own report, PRC states:
"As the operator takes over broadcasting on WSDL-FM, DPR will reduce expenses through elimination of news program acquisition, cuts in local programming, and reductions in various other expenses."
Despite painting this as the best scenario, PRC also says that this "…will result in loss of revenue in the first few years…"
The last option they present is one of license transfer to a new non-profit. They claim to have "discovered no local evidence that this scenario is either desirable or feasible", concluding in bold type that "Given the low probability of success, PRC cannot recommend the License Transfer Scenario."
In short, what PRC is proposing is a PSOA with 2 key elements:
1) WSDL changes format to adult rock and reduces personnel to a skeleton staff.
2) WSCL drastically scales back on NPR, local news, and in-house Classical programming.
However, given that DPR is often awarded for its local content, it will remain, but in a reduced capacity. Again from the PRC report:
"Finally, a PSOA does not come at the expense of local programming. While there may be less, what will remain or be created will fit best practices for public radio."
Best practices rarely means best services. It almost invariably means cheapest method.
Consider the state of for profit radio stations today. No in depth news. That costs too much. Even headline news cuts profit. Many have automated music systems with a low paid babysitter. Most stations don't even go that far, opting instead to have one announcer pre-record intros and outros, program them into the computer, then leave the system to broadcast 24/7 while only paying a single announcer for a few hours of recording and programming. Best practices. Skeleton staff. Profit first. Quality last.
Best practices in the realm of public radio may mean the same thing but with slightly better quality. Target vs. Wal-Mart maybe, but regardless of how "best practices" are sold as an abstract solution, it is a virtual guarantee of quality decline. Further consider how for profit radio stations competing in "best practices" are bought and sold faster than banks. Start to forego quality in public radio programming, even in desperate financial squeezes, and It is a foreseeable slippery slope to the loss of a national asset that is even more vital in today's over-saturation of sensationalism masquerading as journalism.
The reality though is that DPR is in this bind now. Lightning strike on the broadcast tower, fast approaching demo date for Caruthers Hall, and an economy improving too slowly to quickly resolve this dilemma. While it appears they dropped the ball in letting a situation advance to such a dire point without addressing it long ago, the board of the SUF is now faced with hard choices.
The SUF board purchased the report from PRC. In September, they made the report public. On Tuesday Oct. 16, they held a public forum on the matter where PRC made its presentation, and the public was invited to comment. Well over 200 people attended. Dennis Hamilton delivered the PRC presentation.
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| The crowd gathers for the public hearing on the future of Delmarva Public Radio |
Speaking of the status quo option, Hamilton stated that no matter who wins the coming election, "the Corporation for Public Broadcasting is going to be cut. Period."
Federal funding for public broadcasting doesn't go direct to NPR or Big Bird, but instead to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB). CPB then helps fund public broadcasting in areas that are in most need. On average, every federal dollar invested this way into public broadcasting is matched sixfold with listener and sponsor donations. In more rural areas, the CPB funding plays a heavier role. Frankly, though federal funding for public broadcasting is small, it does make the very real difference in many rural areas wether or not they have access to Big Bird and NPR.
However, federal funding is a related but separate issue here. There have been Conservative efforts to end such federal funding of public broadcasting for as long as there has been federal funding for public broadcasting. In the end those efforts to eliminate such taxpayer support have been stopped every time due to the public outcry of support over the value they bring to every community.
Still, Hamilton uses an expectation of withdrawal of federal contributions to public broadcasting as a bullet point in predicting an increasing financial unsustainability of Delmarva Public Radio. Hamilton later clarified that his statement on CPB being cut no matter election outcomes was just his opinion.
When offering a market analysis of public radio on Delmarva, Hamilton's presentation focused on the increased number of public radio channels in the region.
On the other side of the Chesapeake Bay from Delmarva is the Washington, DC/Baltimore area. In recent years, public radio stations from that market have added repeater stations in Delmarva. These channels do not focus on Delmarva. They do however broadcast traffic conditions in DC and Baltimore. While hearing such updates may be a nice little reminder of why many have decided to live in the more peaceful Delmarva area rather than the hustle and bustle of Baltimore/DC, such information does nothing to serve the Delmarva public radio listenership.
Still, they are competition for public radio listeners on Delmarva. Hamilton presented a graphic of overlapping circles showing the reach of all the public radio frequencies in the region. There is overlap, and Hamilton saw no value in that. He asked if this is what was intended in the creation of public broadcasting by having "…these valuable channels duplicating one another…". Then he asked how we could "…rationalize and better use these channels here."
Hamilton was pointing to the overlap of public broadcasters in the area as an example of market saturation and rationale for DPR to drastically alter its broadcasts in response. I later thanked him for this presentation when I had my chance to speak. His chart of broadcast area circles may have been justification to him for PRC's proposals, but they also served to visualize a point I went there to make.
The largest circle with the widest reach in the area is WSCL. Classical programming by day, award-winning local segments, and vital NPR standards like Morning Edition and All Things Considered. Via WSCL 89.5FM, this core of Delmarva Public Radio still reaches more of the region than any public broadcasting frequencies added since 1987. A change in programming on WSCL would be far more than just one less frequency with which to receive NPR on Delmarva. It would mean large areas of Delmarva would lose their ONLY frequency with which they can receive NPR.
Many in the Delmarva area regularly commute to and from the metropolitan areas of DC and Baltimore. This requires travel along Route 50 over the Chesapeake Bay Bridge. As it stands now, the broadcast reach of public broadcasters in that metropolitan area extends only a short distance beyond the Bay Bridge before the signal degrades. That outer reach is roughly the same area where WSCL's signal begins to be solid. It is a simple task to hear All Things Considered in its entirety by switching from a western shore station to WSCL or vice versa. Eliminate NPR duplication on WSCL, and you simply lose access to NPR content for a good portion of that drive.
The travelers this affects is not something to be taken lightly. Not only are the metropolitan areas west of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge business and work places of many who live on the Delmarva Eastern Shore, the Delmarva area is an oft-visited getaway for thousands of Washington, DC and Baltimore area residents.
The support for DPR extends beyond just the Delmarva Eastern Shore it directly services. Contrary to rumors that State officials seek to cut DPR, its value is recognized by many. Following Dennis Hamilton's PRC presentation Tuesday night, Mike Pretl gave a presentation on behalf of Friends of Delmarva Public Radio. He said:
"We have spoken to a number of State officials -- in the General Assembly, the Higher Education Commission, and Governor O'Malley's office -- about whether pressure was being asserted on the University to divest itself of DPR or other community assets or projects. We were told reliably, that to the contrary, such a measure regarding our public radio station would be regarded as short-sighted by State officials, who believe that our scattered universities should play a productive role in the communities they were created to serve."
The board of SUF has decisions to make. They got their recommendations from PRC, and not one of them was good. The drastic proposals all centered around financial shortcuts over long-term quality. The SUF board also had the public hearing, and from that they saw the strength of support DPR has from every corner where its signal can be heard.
Following any of PRC's proposals will not be easy. Any decisions they make regarding the future of DPR must now be carefully weighed against not only the economic, but also the long-term benefit of all the positive branding and goodwill DPR brings to Salisbury University. For 25 years, DPR's partnership with SU has synergistically benefitted both the region and the University alike. To follow the recommendations of PRC would put that all at risk.
Before deciding, I would suggest looking closer at the history of what PRC has actually done with the capital of other public radio they have been dealt with. The integrity of public radio they claim to protect through their involvement is contradicted in more than one instance. They have even been called the Bain Capital of public radio. This linked article offers a multitude of detailed examples:
Suffice it to say that getting involved with Public Radio Capital(PRC) beyond simply purchasing a report of their opinions is not likely to offer a path of long-term sustainability and integrity. Nor is such a compact likely to result in anything but a profit for PRC, regardless of how DPR fares in those dealings.
Note in the linked article that PRC has a history of being the PSOA and even lowball purchasing public radio stations for themselves.
Then consider these two phrases from PRC's report to DPR:
"A PSOA gives the owner the flexibility of selling the station at the conclusion of the PSOA term, or extending the term of the PSOA."
"By executing an option agreement, which can be attached to a PSOA, the operator could acquire the station at a predetermined price."
PRC may list any potential PSOA as "to be determined" in their reports, but they are at the ready to become that PSOA if they can profit.
Is that where this is heading for Delmarva Public Radio? I certainly can't say for sure. But I can't allow that to happen without me having at least asked these pertinent questions.
In the Delmarva Region, it is true that there is overlap in signal delivery. I can tell you from experience that in some areas of the region, I can pick up All Things Considered on 4 or 5 stations. I also can tell you that signal strength and stability for any given station depends on where you are in the region part of the region. In almost all areas, WSCL is the strongest and clearest signal. As described, in many, especially as you head toward the Chesapeake Bay, WSCL is the ONLY signal.
Hamilton offered concern over "…these valuable channels duplicating one another…", but I offer concern in dismantling that duplication. There are two aspects of duplication. Complete duplication where not only content, but time aired is consistent from one channel to the next. I rely on this when traveling so that I may have unbroken access to All Things Considered. Secondly, there is content duplication aired at differing times. I rely on this as well, especially on weekends so I have far greater chance of catching my favorite NPR weekend programs at the moment I must travel.
This may seem to some like I just feel entitled to an expensive convenience that I do not have to pay for. Frankly, given the great worth that comes from our public broadcasting, it can be difficult at times to not individually feel over-rewarded by public broadcasting when only looking at public radio financing and what any one listener actually pays for that service. That reward however is never limited to the convenience of individual listeners. Every listener gains individually from public broadcasting. That is multiplied thousands of times over to an audience that may be tuning in one radio at a time, but is still far larger than an audience of one. Society itself benefits.
Though the tangibles of these benefits may be hard to quantify, they are indeed great. The costs of their loss must be seriously considered before allowing economic concerns to dictate even the smallest degree of compromise on the integrity of these broadcasts. Once compromises on quality begin in the name of economics, the compromises will never stop. The excellence that is Delmarva Public Radio will cease to exist even in reduced form.
SU always has, and continues to offer tremendous value to the whole region. Arts programs, debate hosting, educational outreach all are open to not just the students of SU, but to the community at large. The enrichment not just to Salisbury, MD, but to the region at large is an invaluable core of SU. DPR has been an ingrained part of that outreach for 25 years. I thank the board for having this public hearing and not just jumping on PRC's report. I for one hope that the board of the SUF finds a way continue the partnership between SU and DPR that the whole region benefits from.
Note that this public forum on the future of Delmarva Public Radio was on the same night as the second Presidential debate. Lousy scheduling, sure. However, on the drive home, I was able to listen to the debate in progress. The channel that carried the debate? WSDL 90.7FM. The same channel being proposed by PRC to either be sold or change formats to rock music. Ironic.
To read the report from Public Radio Capital (PRC) on Delmarva Public Radio:
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