Last time I gave, they made me feel like a shitheel for wanting the “cobalt blue mug”. I wanted it because my dad has always been a big NPR listener and supporter, and I recall him always drinking his coffee from HIS mug as I got ready for school in the mornings. When I called they were like “Well, do you REALLY want the mug, or would you rather if 100% of your donation went toward programming?” I was like, “Um…I really kinda want the mug.”
I fulfilled my donation obligation and got…wait for it…NO MUG.
Rat bastards. But I’d donate again- Public Radio rocks my socks.
Volunteers: can’t work with 'em, can’t fire 'em. Although, come to think of it, I have fired two volunteers during my tenure. How humiliating THAT must be.
Yup. I’ll admit to feeling twinges of guilt as I listened to Matt Groenig on Fresh Air today, but your attitude has removed all remnants of that. I shall now free-load gleefully. Thanks!
Interrobang, I did indeed write my comments on the return card they provided. I even worded it nicely. Never heard back from them on it, though they did remember to send me a renewal package.
Just as an aside on this discussion, I pick up three separate public radio networks, one out of the University of Northern Iowa (the station I have regularly supported for 30 years now), Wisconsin Public Radio (both sides of the house, music and news), Minnesota Public Radio and the AM station out of Iowa State at Ames (which I sporadically support). Every once in a while all four are doing fund rasing at the same time–there is no escape from the begging, whining and the lathering on of guilt and the predictions of the imminent end to Western Civilization when there is a concurrence of fund rasing. It is worth noting, however, that the UNI station is just tickled pink that it raised $130,000 in pledges in a ten-day orgie of wheedling and begging, while Wisconsin radio was sounding a little bit peeved that it had only just passed the half million mark with three or four days to go.
Either way, it’s a hell of a lot of cobalt blue coffee mugs.
I really like the AM station here in Ames. I do a lot of travelling around, but I much prefer our station here (though Wisconsin’s isn’t bad).
A question: what do they do if you call with less than the minimum pledge level? I’ve considered donating, but I’d be more comfortable donating around $20 instead of the “basic” $35.
I know it’s been said before, but I have to scream it again–the Corporation for Public Broadcasting produces TV Shows and other media, and public radio is only part of what they do. The CPB budget is not the public radio budget. I mean, that is the source of public radio’s federal funds, but they by no means get all of it.
Living in a college town, our station knows it has a lot of listeners who don’t have the cash to contribute. They are pretty cool about it.
WABE-FM in Atlanta just finished their drive as well, and they got something like 750 thousand bucks in pledges. I couldn’t contribute at the “dollar a day” level, so I just sent them a check.
I have a question for lissener: How many times does your station send a “reminder” letter to someone who pledged, but then doesn’t honor it? Seems like the postage would be prohibitive?
fluiddruid: That’s why I sent them a check and was done with it. Reminds me of the time a little Brownie Scout was selling candybars outside one of the supermarkets I go to: I explained that I didn’t eat chocolate, but that I would give her a dollar and she could keep the candybar to sell to someone else.
As I walked away, I heard her complain, “But they’re a dollar and a half!”
They say “thank you very much” and take it. They just don’t send you their news letter and they don’t “give” you a coffee cup–although they might let you have a bumper sticker.
Well, I’ve donated to my public radio station here and I’ve got their coffee mug, which is a very high quality big heavy bistro-style mug. I got it because I wanted to advertise the fact that I listen to NRP to my heathen friends and coworkers, plus it makes me feel more like a “member” of the station.
When I donated, they mailed back a card to me. I had to check in a box on the card with which gift I wanted and mail it back to get my mug - it took a couple of months altogether as I remember. But if you didn’t mail back the card, all your gift went to the station. You can definitely donate and decline to get any of the thank you gifts.
The radio station never sent me any early reminders, but the TV station did about two months after I joined. I just assumed it was something they sent out to their entire membership or whatnot and threw it away. The TV station has always seemed somewhat more desperate… I hardly watch it though, so I don’t give them as much (when I can give at all.)
An article on Joan Kroc’s donation said “A private company that counts more than 750 independent radio stations as members, NPR receives between 1 percent and 2 percent of its $100 million annual budget as grants from federally funded organizations.”
In other words, the government does not provide substantial support to NPR.
You’re missing the point. In other words, the government does not provide any support to (insert other national media here).
Also, see my above post and link. If anyone has any explanation of the relationship between CPB and NPR or the lack thereof, I would like to know what it is. A poster above claimed that they are not the same thing but my quoted article from NPR.org does not make a distinction. My WAG is that CPB is NPR + Seseme Street + all those other crap shows we used to have to watch in elementary school. If the gov’t picks up 1% of the tab for all that then their total budget for 2005 is $39,000,000,000.
The NPR site doesn’t make an explicit distinction between CPB and lime Jello, either, Bruce; so explain your logic again?
People have pointed out very clearly that they are not the same thing, but since you can find a webpage that does not specifically say they are different, that proves everybody else wrong?
The NPR site doesn’t make an explicit distinction between CPB and lime Jello, either, Bruce; so explain your logic again?
People have pointed out very clearly that they are not the same thing, but since you can find a webpage that does not specifically say they are different, that proves everybody else wrong?
Look, I really don’t have a hard on about this. I enjoy much of my local NPR radio stations programing, WNCW. It’s the editorializing that irks me. But I’m also not too lazy to turn the channel.
That makes Europeans turn their heads sideways like cute little dogs. When I see the big corporate commercials, I do the same thing. Whatever works.
By the way, pound-for-pound, PBS journalism is the best. They are doing excellent stories from Iraq and Afghanistan. First rate. Primary historical document quality journalism.
The Nat Geo Explorer story on special forces – from before the dark days of Vietnam and El Salvador to Afghanistan — ist vunderbar.
