With the thoughtful discussion taking place under this thread that I originated, it seemed appropriate to let Listers know that yesterday the WETA Board approved the changeover of its FM radio station to a news/talk format, dropping virtually all classical and other music programs by the end of this month. The only major music programs to survive will be on Saturdays, including the Met Opera broadcasts and an evening folk/world music program. But the daily 15 hours or so of classical music that has been the norm on WETA FM will be deleted. The Board meeting was much more heavily attended than usual by the public, which included not only people concerned about classical music, but also others who wanted to address another recent public broadcasting controversy about a cartoon character who supposedly "endorses" a gay lifestyle (WETA has declined to broadcast the program, though it denies any pressure being brought to bear upon it by Bush Administration officials or right wing activists). Reportedly many of those who addressed the Board expressed their anger and dismay at these decisions. A program director from the National Symphony Orchestra presented a petition signed by hundreds of people protesting the planned move to drop classical music programs, with John Adams and James Galway among the reported signers. The station management was said to promise the eventual creation of more locally produced programming, including arts related ones, that would also try to serve a more diverse audience. Until then, they would be primarily broadcasting existing NPR and BBC programs. It was pointed out to the WETA Board that this move comes at an ironic time, when suburban Montgomery County Maryland just opened its new Strathmore Hall Music Center, where the Baltimore Symphony will be playing concerts in the DC area. The BSO supplements the National Symphony at the Kennedy Center, and other guest artists/ensembles who play at the George Mason University Center for the Arts in nearby Fairfax County Virginia. In addition, there are numerous chamber, choral and early music ensembles active in the DC area, including the Folger Consort, Hesperus, the Washington Bach Consort, and the Smithsonian ensembles, which have had their performances issued on CDs and in radio broadcasts. According to the Washington Post, the station said in 2004 its audience sank to its lowest point since 1991, being ranked 18th in the metropolitan area. But NSO oboe player William Wielgus argued that this decision should not be about numbers, but principle. "Rather than give up on music, he argued, the station should make the effort to preserve it and educate new listeners." If anyone wishes to read today's Washington Post story on the matter, it is available online (for registered readers): http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A15840-2005Feb10.html Bill H., who wonders if the deck wasn't already stacked beforehand....