Radio repair

Never mind that months of unrelenting protest by listeners gave Maine Public Radio little choice but to undo some of the programming changes that started the ruckus. MPR executives and trustees deserve some credit for eventually recognizing unrelenting protest when they finally see it, and being a bit slow on the uptake is better than being totally oblivious.

Of immediate importance to listeners is that MPR listened and restored some balance to a schedule that in December tipped far too much toward talk and away from music. The restoration of the Saturday matinee Metropolitan Opera broadcasts, a cultural treasure and a staple of public radio since its inception, is the most high-profile revision. The return of music to weekday afternoons, an hour of varied types each day, provides a welcome break from a schedule that went too chat-heavy. MPR defended the initial changes by pointing to industry studies and national trends. Through their thousands of irate calls and letters, Maine people made it clear that they expect a more personal touch.

A more subtle message, though no less important, is that Maine people expect quality programs and, whenever possible, local programs. The problem with many of the December additions was not that they were talk instead of music, but that they weren’t particularly intelligent or interesting talk. The outpouring of support for such local gems as “Down Memory Lane” is a clear sign that MPR listeners know quality when they hear it and prefer local product whenever possible. The return of weekday afternoon music with local hosts and the addition of Opera League of Maine performances Monday nights suggest that MPR management now is aware of that preference.

It is unfortunate, of course, that it took such an unprecedented production of hard feelings, including cancelled memberships, to get to this enlightened state. MPR’s two points of connection with the public – its board of trustees and the community advisory board – were not involved in planning the initial changes and were not brought into the process until the uproar was well under way and corrective action desperately needed.

The series of public meetings held in February allowed the public to vent its ire; had they been held in September, they could have allowed to public to provide input. The snub of that part of Maine not able to get Met broadcasts on the commercial station available elsewhere was, it is hoped, unintentional, but it was a public-relations blunder that would have been avoided had MPR listened first and acted later.

Which leaves MPR with a challenge: To ensure that such a misreading of its audience, both contributing members and taxpayers, never happens again. The key is the 25-member Community Advisory Board, the CAB; the question is how MPR will use it.

When Congress created public broadcasting in 1967, it stipulated that TV and radio stations tapping public funds had to have a CAB. Not be involved in day-to-day operations, but to help steer the overall course, to be involved in planning and to be management’s eyes and ears.

In this case, MPR’s CAB was none of those. It was not informed of the changes beforehand, it was not provided with complete and unfiltered listener comments during the disruption, and, although its spring meeting was moved up to earlier this month, it was not consulted about the corrections. The CAB’s involvement in MPR guidance during this unfortunate and entirely unnecessary episode of the last several months evolved from nonexistent to superficial. The next step is actual and meaningful.