Spring Certainties.........
(These are Mark's views, not WAMU's, not AU's, not any other 'U's)
And the best reason for my seasonal optimism is the four months which have elapsed since the vet gave my dog four weeks to live, and Pundit is still dragging me to the Hearst Recreation Field each morning, despite his incurable cancer.
But the truth is I'm equally energized both by our recent membership campaign, where our amazing recession-hit listeners came through with much more than we'd bargained for, and by the latest Arbitron numbers for our flagship program, The Diane Rehm Show, which are beyond extraordinary.
Diane's national weekly audience grew by 28% over the past year to more than 2.2 million, the outstanding number from all the public radio program statistics.
Given the importance of this program in American life, none of this is a surprise to us at WAMU.
In the run-up to the most exciting and important US election, held amidst the most worrying and confusing economic crisis in years, Diane's ability to energize her guests to synthesize the issues, explain them in everyday terms, and suggest energizing solutions has been consistently brilliant. She has represented the concerns of the public to the moneyed and powerful throughout this time, and she has become required listening in an increasing number of cities, families, schools, and businesses.
On a more experimental note, and thanks largely to the people who support our work, including those who contribute to this unique site, I have been able to make some program changes also. Don't worry, I gained Pundit's approval first.
We debuted "The Takeaway", the allegedly hip alternative to Morning Edition on HD3. It hasn't found its voice just yet, but there are inspiring moments, chuckles, conversation-starters, and provocative reasons to tune in. Please give it a try and let me know what you think. So far, we've had a handful of BBC fans moaning about the demise of the 9 a.m. "Newshour".
So please, if you like the Takeaway, let us know.
If you don't, we'll hear from you anyhow.
Happy Spring from Pundit.
And the best reason for my seasonal optimism is the four months which have elapsed since the vet gave my dog four weeks to live, and Pundit is still dragging me to the Hearst Recreation Field each morning, despite his incurable cancer.
But the truth is I'm equally energized both by our recent membership campaign, where our amazing recession-hit listeners came through with much more than we'd bargained for, and by the latest Arbitron numbers for our flagship program, The Diane Rehm Show, which are beyond extraordinary.
Diane's national weekly audience grew by 28% over the past year to more than 2.2 million, the outstanding number from all the public radio program statistics.
Given the importance of this program in American life, none of this is a surprise to us at WAMU.
In the run-up to the most exciting and important US election, held amidst the most worrying and confusing economic crisis in years, Diane's ability to energize her guests to synthesize the issues, explain them in everyday terms, and suggest energizing solutions has been consistently brilliant. She has represented the concerns of the public to the moneyed and powerful throughout this time, and she has become required listening in an increasing number of cities, families, schools, and businesses.
On a more experimental note, and thanks largely to the people who support our work, including those who contribute to this unique site, I have been able to make some program changes also. Don't worry, I gained Pundit's approval first.
We debuted "The Takeaway", the allegedly hip alternative to Morning Edition on HD3. It hasn't found its voice just yet, but there are inspiring moments, chuckles, conversation-starters, and provocative reasons to tune in. Please give it a try and let me know what you think. So far, we've had a handful of BBC fans moaning about the demise of the 9 a.m. "Newshour".
So please, if you like the Takeaway, let us know.
If you don't, we'll hear from you anyhow.
Happy Spring from Pundit.
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Comment by John Antonelli on April 15, 2009 at 7:47pm - The Takeaway is fine As it Happens at 9 PM is outstanding
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