Nearly two years ago, "The Weekly Standard" magazine ran a substantial
article discussing why so many Public Radio station, rspecially those
on the FM band, were truncating or even eliminating classical music on
their frequencies.  Partly it was because the listeners to classical
music were not the kind of audience members who best fit the mold of NPR
(or PRI) fans.  And they contributed less.  Or classical music interrupted
the "flow" of programming on these outlets.  Or the very people who
managed these stations and networks were of an age where "art" music had
no place.  Well, it appears that these moves may not have had the desired
effect.  There's an organization called the Radio Research Consortium
that studies public broadcasting and reports on it from time to time.
Their latest report just out chronicles a DECLINE in ratings and
time-spent-listening over the past year.  Locally, WGBH-FM Boston cut
back quite noticeably on its classical music fare, and I understand
Washington, DC's WETA-FM did so also.  Both in markets with positively
dreadful commercial classical FM's.  For those of you with a few free
minutes to peruse this short report, it's at the Radio Research Consortium's
website:

   http://www.rrconline.org/news/news_item.php?ID=3D47

Laurence Glavin
Methuen, MA