Walter: Well played sir!  as we used to say when cricket was still a
gentleman's sport.  I hope there are lots of letters similar to yours.
These kinds of unilateral decisions are made without warning in the teeth
of intense and to me personally odious fund-raising.  Will 15 minutes of
hard sell per hour make me more likely to contribute to a station I already
listen and contribute to - or will it force me to listen elsewhere? For
all of local NPR stations' vaunted democracy, they never seem to keep the
listeners and supporters in the loop, with the possibility to advise or
pledge support BEFORE a decision is made.

Classical music seems to have become the MEDP (most easily deleted
programming) on NPR and I doubt that this will change in the coming years.

I'll be surprised if you get a reply other than a form letter, but keep us
posted if you do.  Prompt and vocal response in the face of stupidity and
arbitrariness is no vice.

And what do list members say about the BRAVO channel on cable going
commercial? This performaing arts and independent movie channel has now
become unviewable.  Don't these folks understand any basics about audience
response?

I guess we must continue to flog dead horses and hope that the stench will
finally penetrate the closed orifices of the programming geniuses at these
networks.

Eric Kisch
(sic transit glorious classical music monday)