- Signatures: 119
- Goal: 10,000
- Deadline: 3-25-2008
See Full Petition
Email this Petition
We urge WFCR to create a Community Advisory Board, as required by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting for many public radio stations, and to hold quarterly meetings at which the public could meet with the WFCR staff about programming issues. Please read the full petition, below.
| Number | Date | Name | City | Comment: |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 119 | 2:18 am PST, Jan 30 | Anonymous | Kavala | |
| 118 | 8:36 pm PST, Dec 28 | Rae-Ann Hansell | Luzerne | |
| 117 | 8:02 pm PDT, Jun 13 | TAYLOR WEIDNER | Denver | |
| 116 | 12:40 pm PDT, May 17 | Gretchen Saathoff | Amherst | WFCR has become disinterested in the public. The underwriters' announcements are taking over, and if someone requests an announcement w/o a large payment, that request is ignored. The announcers talk so much between programming selections (providing information that is far from fascinating or new), I turn off the radio. With no other exposure, one could easily believe that Renee Fleming is the only soprano in the world, and Yo-Yo Ma the only cellist, past or present. In addition, the subscription music programs ("expanded programming?) are boring. I can no longer contribute to this station. |
| 115 | 6:16 pm PDT, May 13 | Anonymous | amherst | |
| 114 | 6:48 am PDT, May 8 | Domingo DeJesus Hernandez | Northampton | In 2007, it's difficult to understand why WFCR is reducing rather than promoting diversity. |
| 113 | 12:31 pm PDT, May 6 | Carol Gray | Amherst | I have supported public radio all my life, but have not renewed my membership to public radio this year. I am disappointed by the programming cuts which happened with little to no public input and with the fact that WFCR does not have a Community Advisory Board to allow a vehicle for public input about programming. I am hoping I will again be able to support WFCR in the future if they can move toward a more grassroots, community focused approach, starting with setting up a Community Advisory Board. |
| 112 | 4:48 pm PDT, May 2 | Judith Pierce | Pelham | I listen primarily for the classical music and opera. I also listen to All Things Considered, but find the amount of news programming exceeds my capacity, especially when it is repetitive. As a follower of Prairie Home Companion I sometimes listened in on Valley Folk and I miss it. I especially miss early morning music on Sundays. |
| 111 | 5:12 pm PDT, Apr 29 | Jacques Graton | Pelham | Power to the people. |
| 110 | 9:26 pm PDT, Apr 28 | Victor E. Guevara | Amherst | |
| 109 | 7:33 pm PDT, Apr 28 | Herbert Gerjuoy | W. Hartford | My wife and I have long been regular listeners to Susan Forbes Hansen's "Valley Folk." When, without advance warning, the program was removed from WFCR's broadcast lineup, we were dismayed. Since then, we have listened less and less often to WFCR, finding programs more appealing to us on other stations in our area. |
| 108 | 1:59 pm PDT, Apr 28 | cyd reiman | pelham | I used to listen to Valley Folk every weekend on my way to work at night and to Turtulia on Sun. Also, being in a Celtic band I appreciated Thistle and Shamrock. To me just having classical & jazz is way too limiting and to me-boring!! I'm not happy... |
| 107 | 6:58 am PDT, Apr 28 | David Mosher | Shutesbury | The Thistle , Valley Folk & Afropop ---I miss them a lot |
| 106 | 2:32 pm PDT, Apr 26 | Anonymous | Pelham | Public radio needs public input. |
| 105 | 2:31 pm PDT, Apr 26 | Reba-Jean Shaw-Pichette | deerfield | Our family depends on NPR as a voice of reason and a note of hope. Others may have 'driveway moments' (as we do too, I admit) we have 'family time' moments on Saturday morns. You know that perhaps your kids get too much PBS and NPR when they set their toys up and have 'pretend-play' WAIT, WAIT, DON'T TELL ME ! |
| 104 | 8:47 am PDT, Apr 26 | Robie Hubley | Amherst | I have observed a long history of WFCR's unresponsiveness to public concerns. The history is long, detailed, and tedious, but it is aptly summed up by saying, "put the 'public' back into public radio" at WFCR! |
| 103 | 6:31 am PDT, Apr 26 | Gale Hubley | pelham | |
| 102 | 6:14 am PDT, Apr 26 | Gábor Lukács | Amherst | Just yesterday a volunteer from WFCR called me for donations. His first question was about what I think of the programming. I take this as a good development, but to just see if it leads to somewhere or it is only a PR cover, I donated only half my regular amount. I would like a larger variety of programming and I don't mind if that reduces the overwhelming amount of Jazz and classical music we currently are fed. |
| 101 | 4:58 am PDT, Apr 26 | Lance Hodes | Pelham | I've been a member of WFCR since the mid 80's. In the past five years I've found myself listening to other public broadcasting stations because WFCR's programing was so limited in scope. The recent lose of programs that spoke to the diversity of the stations listening audience is movement in the wrong direction. |
| 100 | 4:12 am PDT, Apr 26 | Stanley Swiercz | Pelham | I personally prefer the news and information programming on the AM sister station (currently 640 AM) and the news programming that WFCR broadcasts as well as programming like Prairie Home Companion and This American Life. I don't listen to the classical or jazz programming as a matter of course. |
| 99 | 3:53 am PDT, Apr 26 | Barbara Burkart | Amherst | |
| 98 | 6:10 pm PDT, Apr 22 | Amy Zuckerman | Amherst | As an ardent WFCR fan and donor I am hoping that WFCR does more to involve listeners in crucial programming decisions. We are the ones who support the station, afterall. |
| 97 | 10:10 am PDT, Apr 18 | Alberto Castro | Florence | |
| 96 | 4:46 pm PDT, Apr 17 | Claire Huttlinger | Northampton | |
| 95 | 2:13 pm PDT, Apr 16 | karina hurtado-ocampo | south hadley | |
| 94 | 12:34 pm PDT, Apr 16 | Gary O'Connor | Southampton | |
| 93 | 5:57 am PDT, Apr 16 | George Bonilla | San Juan | |
| 92 | 4:49 am PDT, Apr 16 | Livia Velez | Amherst | |
| 91 | 6:53 pm PDT, Apr 15 | Laura Victoria Barrera | Hartford | Tertulia, Afropop World Wide, Valley Folk and Thistle & Shamrock are all locally produced programs that reflect the listener's taste, reflect different comunities needs and are region grown. This is why we need them. As a Latina I feel even stronger about Tertulia since it is the best radio programing of New England. WFCR already cut the programing in half this goes against the community trend and demographics. This is the wrong decision. Please re-establish programs that have local flavor instead of homogeneous programing that says one size fits all. |
| 90 | 1:35 pm PDT, Apr 14 | Anonymous | West Springfield | I began listening to WFCR at its inception. In those days, good music was available morning, afternoon, and evening, while still giving time to news. Those were the good days of public radio! Not so now, when what we get is a lot of conjecture and programming that is intended for only a few. |
| 89 | 8:52 am PDT, Apr 14 | Lee Townsend | West Hartford | I stopped supporting CT's WNPR financially when WNPR dumped traditional music. Be assured WFCR will no longer receive a pledge from me for the same reason. I will support both again when traditional music broadcasting is part of their programming. Public radio should represent the public, not a select few. It is the last vestige of diversity in programming. Traditional music is an integral part of our society and should never lose its place on public radio. Traditional music is an aural tradition so must be kept alive using the broadcast media. |
| 88 | 6:04 pm PDT, Apr 13 | Sarah McKee | Amherst | One of the unexpected delights of moving to the Valley seven years ago was the variety of programming on WFCR. Thistle & Shamrock introduced me to more aspects of Celtic music than I'd had any idea existed. Though listening seldom to Tertulia and Afro-Pop Worldwide, I was very glad that WFCR ran them. Valley Folk performed a real community service in publicizing the extraordinary wealth of live folk music found here. That listeners supported these programs, plus the opera, superb jazz, and classical music, made living here a rich aural experience. So WFCR's unilateral command decision to lop Thistle, Tertulia, Afro-Pop, and Valley Folk came as a shock. How could a station that depends on listeners' financial support make such a fundamental change in its programming philosophy without consulting, or even notifying, its listeners/contributors? This I still fail to understand. WFCR is either a public radio station, or it is not. I'd much prefer that it be truly public, and that it care about its listeners' preferences on programming as well as about their money. |
| 87 | 2:10 pm PDT, Apr 5 | Phyllis Berman | Sunderland | Why is WFCR afraid to pole its listening audience (or at least its supporting members) as to music preferences? They should be able to prove that PUBLIC preferences match the WFCR programming agendas...right? WFCR thinks it can drop popular programs and then just tell listeners where to find similar programming on other stations. That does NOT fulfill their obligation to listensers and supporters, nor does it make good business sense either. Why should listeners support WFCR instead of supporting other stations that carry the music they like? Please REALLY put the "PUBLIC" into WFCR Public Radio, and give us good reasons to support the station. |
| 86 | 12:31 pm PDT, Apr 4 | Jennifer Werner | Bristol | |
| 85 | 2:20 pm PDT, Apr 2 | Joseph Klawiter | Falls Church | |
| 84 | 9:47 am PDT, Apr 2 | Anonymous | Canandaigua | |
| 83 | 9:06 pm PDT, Apr 1 | Ay Ling Han | Florence | WFCR is the one radio station I listen to for high caliber news, analysis, and entertainment. I value its combined national NPR and local programing structure. |
| 82 | 1:44 pm PDT, Apr 1 | Rebecca Lay | Montague | |
| 81 | 12:32 pm PDT, Apr 1 | Joanna Morse | Pelham | |
| 80 | 7:55 am PDT, Apr 1 | Larry Owens | Amherst | |
| 79 | 4:57 am PDT, Apr 1 | Kathryn Hamilton | Medford | |
| 78 | 7:42 pm PDT, Mar 31 | Rebecca Leopold | Florence | |
| 77 | 5:10 pm PDT, Mar 31 | Susan Walker | Downey | |
| 76 | 7:36 am PDT, Mar 31 | Norman D. Stevens | Storrs | |
| 75 | 3:11 am PDT, Mar 31 | Victoria Thomas | Jackson | |
| 74 | 1:59 pm PDT, Mar 30 | Mustang Beam | Moiese | |
| 73 | 5:17 am PDT, Mar 30 | Gary Powsner | Northampton | WFCR's actions are a real disservice to the local community. That they did this unilaterally, suddenly and without even letting supporters know and giving us a chance maybe to throw in extra support for these specific programs would appear to underscore that. |
| 72 | 5:01 am PDT, Mar 30 | Guuillermo Cuellar | Sunderland | In January of this year, the Western New England NPR station, WFCR, announced sweeping changes in its program schedule. These changes, included the elimination of many programs affecting the minority communities of Latinos, folk American music and African diaspora music. The Latino program of TERTULIA is a locally produced, 4-hour, Sunday evening Spanish bi-lingual program. On January 12th, a group of concerned members of the Latino community, under the name Amigos de Tertulia, met on campus with University of Massachusetts administrator, Ms. Sharon Fross, with WFCR General Manager, Martin Miller and with Helen Barrington, the new Program Director at WFCR. Amigos de Tertulia communicated their strong disapproval of the actions taken by the station. Following this meeting, WFCR unilaterally chose to restore two hours of TERTULIA‚s air time, followed by Epicentro Político, one hour of Spanish-language news programming produced in Washington, DC. WFCR claims that the reduction in TERTULIA‚s airtime is a result of financial constraints. TERTULIA is a unique forum and source of entertainment for Spanish-speaking communities in the Connecticut River Valley. In addition to the diverse and vibrant musical selection, TERTULIA keeps the Latino communities in Western New England informed about local news, events and issues of local importance. The existence of TERTULIA makes freedom of expression a reality for a segment of the population all too often silenced and misrepresented by the mainstream media. THEREFORE: I believe WFCR should listen to its listeners, and that doing so will strengthen the station. We believe WFCR should reflect the diverse cultures and interests of its listening community. We call upon WFCR to strengthen its relationship with the community by establishing the equivalent of the Community Advisory Board required by the CPB for many public broadcasting stations**, and by scheduling quarterly open meetings at which WFCR staff could interact with the listening public on audience concerns and suggestions. Guillermo Cuellar a memebr of Amigos de Tertulia and WFCR Democratic Task Force |
| 71 | 8:13 pm PDT, Mar 29 | Ben Westbrock | Florence | |
| 70 | 7:14 pm PDT, Mar 29 | Alice Kay King | Hampden | |
| 69 | 7:04 pm PDT, Mar 29 | Ryan Voiland | Granby | please return folk music to WFCR!! |
| 68 | 4:27 pm PDT, Mar 29 | Martha Spiegelman | Amherst | So where's the public in public radio? |
| 67 | 3:49 pm PDT, Mar 29 | Rita Jaros | Shelburne Falls | |
| 66 | 3:20 pm PDT, Mar 29 | Eleanor Manire-Gatti | Amherst | Many people in this Valley have enjoyed Afro-pop, Tertuliz, Valley Folk and I want them back. |
| 65 | 11:22 am PDT, Mar 29 | GeorgeR Worthington | Conowingo | |
| 64 | 7:32 am PDT, Mar 29 | Matthew Herschler | Northampton | In an age when the voice of the people is less and less represented in the public media it behooves you, as a publicly funded radio station to seek to truly represent the interests of you constituency. Please see the importance of a citizens advisory committee to democratizing you station as a step forward that you can take quite gladly. |
| 63 | 7:28 am PDT, Mar 29 | Terry Kitchen | Roslindale | |
| 62 | 6:39 am PDT, Mar 29 | Marie MacDonald | Athol | I'm very disappointed with the recent decisions to eliminate such wonderful and varied programs. And shame on WFCR for dumping locally produced programming. Put local back into our station. |
| 61 | 4:45 am PDT, Mar 29 | d shorter | northampton | |
| 60 | 4:37 am PDT, Mar 29 | Randy Kehler | Colrain | |
| 59 | 7:26 pm PDT, Mar 28 | ROBERT STREBECK | Euless | |
| 58 | 7:07 pm PDT, Mar 28 | David Dunkleberger | Doylestown | |
| 57 | 5:04 pm PDT, Mar 28 | Carol Gabranski | Haydenville (Williamsburg) | The petition expresses our concerns accurately, and we are hopeful that amends will be made in your programming and in your working relationship with the listening/contributing public. |
| 56 | 12:20 pm PDT, Mar 28 | Carl Doerner | Conway | |
| 55 | 10:58 am PDT, Mar 28 | Ms Zentura | Casper | |
| 54 | 9:47 am PDT, Mar 28 | Nina Weyl | Amherst | I also am finding that WFCR is not reporting the work of the anti-war movement and it's not broadcasting "Democracy Now" |
| 53 | 8:04 am PDT, Mar 28 | Sherrill Hogen | Conway | I want the "Public" back in Public Radio. WFCR is too often in line with the mainstream, while the programs it deleted dared to be different. |
| 52 | 6:06 am PDT, Mar 28 | Thomas Pirovano | Bern | I would democratic. |
| 51 | 5:53 am PDT, Mar 28 | Francesca Passiglia | Conway | I miss the old programming....it made WFCR one of a kind. |
Strengthen the Relation between WFCR and its Listeners
WE KNOW THAT: WFCR 88.5 FM is a "public" radio station, receiving funds from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB), the University of Massachusetts, and its listening audience. It states its mission as "... to provide the area with diverse news, information, music and cultural programs...[and] programming that entertains, educates and informs in a lively, provocative, varied and sensitive way..." However, without any audience consultation WFCR recently cancelled several popular multicultural programs*, thereby reducing its diversity of musical genres, its cultural representation, and its local content. WFCR has no on-air listener interaction, no venue for local artistic talent, and very little local news or interviews, contrary to the original spirit of public radio and of the CPB, which favors material which is "educational, innovative, locally relevant, and reflective of … cultural diversity." And WFCR does not provide any systematic means by which its listeners can interact with the staff with concerns or suggestions.
THEREFORE: We believe WFCR should listen to its listeners, and that doing so will strengthen the station. We believe WFCR should reflect the diverse cultures and interests of its listening community. We call upon WFCR to strengthen its relationship with the community by establishing the equivalent of the Community Advisory Board required by the CPB for many public broadcasting stations**, and by scheduling quarterly open meetings at which WFCR staff could interact with the listening public on audience concerns and suggestions.
*Valley Folk, Afropop Worldwide, Thistle and Shamrock, and [half of] Tertulia were eliminated.
** though not for university-owned stations
Much more information on this issue is available at http://justiceandpeace.net/WFCRdemocracy/
where you can subscribe to an email list to be kept informed of this campaign.
THEREFORE: We believe WFCR should listen to its listeners, and that doing so will strengthen the station. We believe WFCR should reflect the diverse cultures and interests of its listening community. We call upon WFCR to strengthen its relationship with the community by establishing the equivalent of the Community Advisory Board required by the CPB for many public broadcasting stations**, and by scheduling quarterly open meetings at which WFCR staff could interact with the listening public on audience concerns and suggestions.
*Valley Folk, Afropop Worldwide, Thistle and Shamrock, and [half of] Tertulia were eliminated.
** though not for university-owned stations
Much more information on this issue is available at http://justiceandpeace.net/WFCRdemocracy/
where you can subscribe to an email list to be kept informed of this campaign.
Note: This Strengthen the Relation between WFCR and its Listeners petition was submitted by Roger Conant. ThePetitionSite.com is a free service provided to help concerned citizens rally support for issues they believe in. The opinions expressed by this petition do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of ThePetitionSite.com or Care2.com. There is no express or implied endorsement of this petition nor any newsletter offers (except those from Care2.com) by Care2.com, Inc, ThePetitionSite.com, or our sponsors. If you believe this system is being abused, please contact customer support.
Questions about this petition? Contact the petition sponsor: Roger Conant.
Questions about thePetitionSite.com? Visit our FAQ Page.