In a recent blog entry, managing editor Ken Tingley whined about the lack of content over the holiday weekend (as though this is different from the usual state of affairs in the paper). But then he expressed relief that there were some excellent wire reads available to us for the front page today.
In an older blog entry, Tingley pat himself on the back, bragging that One of the services you get with every newspaper is the news judgement [sic] of a professional editor.
One of the “excellent wire reads” as determined by the “news judgement of a professional editor” was a front page lead story about the Casey Anthony garbage, a ‘story’ that should be of no interest to anyone outside the local area of wherever it took place. Then again, this is the same “news judgement” that brought us other front page stories on a bridge in Scotland that dogs like to jump off and a house in Idaho infested by snakes.
If I want sensationalist tripe like this, I will just give my $1 directly to The New York Post. I suspect they do a better job at tabloid nonsense anyways.
I was also surprised that WAMC News wasted member donations by contriving a local 'story' out of this, since people tune in to public radio to avoid such tabloid garbage, but maybe I shouldn’t have been.
Showing posts with label WAMC. Show all posts
Showing posts with label WAMC. Show all posts
Thursday, July 07, 2011
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
WAMC: AWOL (guest essay)
by Mark Wilson
As the 2011 Legislative session in Albany was reaching its dramatic climax last Friday—with the tax cap/rent control/mandate relief bill, the same sex marriage legislation and the SUNY 2020 tuition indexing bill (among others) still hanging fire—listeners to WAMC and affiliated stations tuning in for the 9 AM Roundtable program were met with a surprise. Instead of an informative discussion of the unresolved issues before the New York State Senate, or an analysis of the political dynamics taking pace behind closed doors, the Roundtable staff—host Joe Donohue, producer Sarah LaDuke and WAMC President & CEO Dr. Alan Chartock—were broadcasting live from North Adams, Massachusetts at Mass MoCA, the site of the “Solid Sound” festival.
While Albany burned with speculation on the final day of government business for the term, WAMC “treated” its listeners to two hours of interviews with festival organizers, local officials, headliner acts, and a falconer friend of Dr. Chartock’s who informed listeners that nothing had really changed in his vocation for the past four thousand years. Not one word about the chaos that was coming to a head in their home state. Even the hourly newsbreak: BBC World News followed by four local/regional news reports (Rebuilding of a catholic school in Springfield, MA; 2 stories from Vermont; one from Connecticut) completely overlooked New York State news. They did manage to give the Albany weather, however.
While WAMC was on vacation, over at 1300 on the AM band, Fred Dicker was eating Dr. Chartock’s breakfast, interviewing E.J. McMahon of the Manhattan Institute. McMahon was describing last minute changes to the tax cap bill, particularly a bonding clause that substantially neutered the legislation’s impact.
WAMC has always had an affinity for the Berkshires. From Great Barrington to Tanglewood and the Edith Wharton estate in Lenox, to Williamstown and North Adams. Certainly no one could begrudge the hard-working journalists some time off during the summer. Still, it would be reassuring to those who follow New York State political news and government affairs closely to know that the WAMC news staff is committed to staying focused on their number one job until the lawmakers leave town.
As the 2011 Legislative session in Albany was reaching its dramatic climax last Friday—with the tax cap/rent control/mandate relief bill, the same sex marriage legislation and the SUNY 2020 tuition indexing bill (among others) still hanging fire—listeners to WAMC and affiliated stations tuning in for the 9 AM Roundtable program were met with a surprise. Instead of an informative discussion of the unresolved issues before the New York State Senate, or an analysis of the political dynamics taking pace behind closed doors, the Roundtable staff—host Joe Donohue, producer Sarah LaDuke and WAMC President & CEO Dr. Alan Chartock—were broadcasting live from North Adams, Massachusetts at Mass MoCA, the site of the “Solid Sound” festival.
While Albany burned with speculation on the final day of government business for the term, WAMC “treated” its listeners to two hours of interviews with festival organizers, local officials, headliner acts, and a falconer friend of Dr. Chartock’s who informed listeners that nothing had really changed in his vocation for the past four thousand years. Not one word about the chaos that was coming to a head in their home state. Even the hourly newsbreak: BBC World News followed by four local/regional news reports (Rebuilding of a catholic school in Springfield, MA; 2 stories from Vermont; one from Connecticut) completely overlooked New York State news. They did manage to give the Albany weather, however.
While WAMC was on vacation, over at 1300 on the AM band, Fred Dicker was eating Dr. Chartock’s breakfast, interviewing E.J. McMahon of the Manhattan Institute. McMahon was describing last minute changes to the tax cap bill, particularly a bonding clause that substantially neutered the legislation’s impact.
WAMC has always had an affinity for the Berkshires. From Great Barrington to Tanglewood and the Edith Wharton estate in Lenox, to Williamstown and North Adams. Certainly no one could begrudge the hard-working journalists some time off during the summer. Still, it would be reassuring to those who follow New York State political news and government affairs closely to know that the WAMC news staff is committed to staying focused on their number one job until the lawmakers leave town.
Friday, December 21, 2007
WAMC capitulates on assault against NCPR
I blogged earlier (both here and here) on a dispute between two public radio stations in the Adirondacks.
Dr. Alan Chartock and his WAMC has withdrawn its threat to takeover North Country Public Radio's 91.7 FM frequency in Lake Placid, this according to the business blog of the Albany Times-Union.
NCPR will give its translator license to WAMC to broadcast on a different frequency in the hopes that the Canton-station will get a full-power license on the same frequency, rather than a religious station in distant Rensselaer County.
I'm not exactly sure what happened here. Perhaps it was a case of a bully, Alan Chartock, being shocked anyone would stand up to him. Perhaps, he and WAMC realized that they didn't have a leg to stand on and that the FCC wouldn't take a frequency away from a local broadcaster to one who didn't even cover that region. Or perhaps this was just an attempt to blackmail a license out of NCPR. Who knows.
But the preservation of local radio was hailed by Adirondack Almanack and Adirondack Musing blogs. The Adirondack Daily Enterprise will presumably be happy about it as well.
Dr. Alan Chartock and his WAMC has withdrawn its threat to takeover North Country Public Radio's 91.7 FM frequency in Lake Placid, this according to the business blog of the Albany Times-Union.
NCPR will give its translator license to WAMC to broadcast on a different frequency in the hopes that the Canton-station will get a full-power license on the same frequency, rather than a religious station in distant Rensselaer County.
I'm not exactly sure what happened here. Perhaps it was a case of a bully, Alan Chartock, being shocked anyone would stand up to him. Perhaps, he and WAMC realized that they didn't have a leg to stand on and that the FCC wouldn't take a frequency away from a local broadcaster to one who didn't even cover that region. Or perhaps this was just an attempt to blackmail a license out of NCPR. Who knows.
But the preservation of local radio was hailed by Adirondack Almanack and Adirondack Musing blogs. The Adirondack Daily Enterprise will presumably be happy about it as well.
Monday, December 17, 2007
More on WAMC's war against North Country Public Radio
A followup to my earlier essay on the WAMC-North Country Public Radio conflict.
NCPR has page on the dispute. I could not find a similar page on WAMC's site offering its point of view.
NCPR points out that it's not against healthy competition. Some of its coverage area overlaps with that of both WAMC and Vermont Public Radio.
North Country Public Radio broadcasts in many places where other public radio stations are heard, such as Plattsburgh and Glens Falls. We have no problem with this friendly competition; we believe it is good for communities to have public radio choices. However, WAMC's application threatens our ability to continue our service in a core community of the Adirondacks. We did not complain when WAMC signed on in Plattsburgh years after our transmitter was on the air in that community. And, we would NEVER apply for a frequency already occupied by another public radio station-it goes totally against the mission and spirit of public media.
And added that it actually offered a cooperation with WAMC, that the Albany station flat out rejected.
We attempted to negotiate with WAMC to resolve this to both stations' advantage. In return for withdrawing their application, we offered WAMC our translator facility, moved to a different frequency. This would allow WAMC to get on the air in Lake Placid quickly and with minimal expense to the station's listeners. WAMC has unequivocally rejected this offer. WAMC had no reciprocal offer for NCPR.
NCPR has page on the dispute. I could not find a similar page on WAMC's site offering its point of view.
NCPR points out that it's not against healthy competition. Some of its coverage area overlaps with that of both WAMC and Vermont Public Radio.
North Country Public Radio broadcasts in many places where other public radio stations are heard, such as Plattsburgh and Glens Falls. We have no problem with this friendly competition; we believe it is good for communities to have public radio choices. However, WAMC's application threatens our ability to continue our service in a core community of the Adirondacks. We did not complain when WAMC signed on in Plattsburgh years after our transmitter was on the air in that community. And, we would NEVER apply for a frequency already occupied by another public radio station-it goes totally against the mission and spirit of public media.
And added that it actually offered a cooperation with WAMC, that the Albany station flat out rejected.
We attempted to negotiate with WAMC to resolve this to both stations' advantage. In return for withdrawing their application, we offered WAMC our translator facility, moved to a different frequency. This would allow WAMC to get on the air in Lake Placid quickly and with minimal expense to the station's listeners. WAMC has unequivocally rejected this offer. WAMC had no reciprocal offer for NCPR.
WAMC declares war on fellow public radio station
Adirondack Almanack has a good essay on the burgeoning war between this area's two main National Public Radio affiliates: WAMC (based in Albany, NY) and North Country Public Radio (based in Canton, NY).
WAMC wants to take over the 91.7 frequency in Lake Placid, which has been run by NCPR for 20 years. I've been a member of both stations at various times but this is a terrible decision by WAMC.
WAMC's news coverage is decent but cursory. It's a mile wide and an inch deep. This isn't surprising because WAMC's gargantuan coverage area means it must provide local news for people in central and southern Vermont, the Berkshires (western Massachussetts), northern Connecticut, the Hudson Valley (southeastern NY), the Mohawk Valley (Central NY) and New York's Capital District.. WAMC also reports on state politics for those four states.
By contrasy, NCPR is focused almost exclusively on the region in and around the Adirondacks. The station often runs stories that are 5-9 minutes in length and thus offer significantly more depth than WAMC's typically brief pieces.
WAMC almost never reports on issues in Glens Falls or the Adirondacks, simply because there's not enough time. NCPR had extensive coverage of the 2001 Finch Pruyn strike in Glens Falls, even though the station's main headquarters is three times more distant than WAMC's.
WAMC's news department must attempt to be everything to everyone. NCPR's can focus on the Adirondacks. WAMC's president-for-life Alan Chartock piously claims that he's only doing this to offer choice to people in Lake Placid. This is the same Chartock who regularly bemoans increasingly consolidation in the commercial media.
Personally, I fail to see how people in Lake Placid are greatly served by knowing more about local politics in Litchfield County, CT or Massachussetts' state affairs but nothing additional about their own region.
As Almanack pointed out:
WAMC is obviously attempting to take the economic resources from our region to their offices in Albany without returning services to our community. In fact, they will be reducing local news coverage in Lake Placid. They've already done this in Plattsburgh and Ticonderoga. Search for Ticonderoga on the WAMC website - in all of 2007 they've reported just twice about Ticonderoga -both stories about International Paper. Take a look at their events calendar - not a single event in either Plattsburgh or Ticonderoga, or anywhere in the Adirondacks for that matter. Now take a look at NCPR's events calendar.
But Almanack's essay raises an aspect that I hadn't considered but makes complete sense.
WAMC has a much more upscale audience than NCPR. Because of its huge and well-off listening area, WAMC rakes in at least $700,000 during their quarterly pledge drives; I believe their last one brought in over $800,000. NCPR's typical pledge drive take is a much more modest $200,000.
WAMC News focuses primarily on the relatively prosperous Hudson Valley and on the well-off communities in the Berkshires, like Chartock's home of Great Barrington. Lake Placid is the second home for many rich folks in other parts of the state. Is it a coincidence that the only Adirondacks' frequency targeted by WAMC weren't the the ones in modest communities like Blue Mountain Lake or North Creek, but the one in the most monied town inside the Blue Line?
When you listen to NCPR, you know you are listening to a station about the Adirondacks, for Adirondackers. WAMC has become this giant broadcast empire that caters primarily to a few small parts while only paying lip service to the rest. It is based in Albany, but if it were based in Kingston, NY or Springfield, MA or Rutland, VT, you couldn't tell the difference.
I used to be a member of WAMC but am not anymore. I simply found that WAMC just didn't cover news stories that were relevant to my community or nearby ones. When NCPR added transmitters in Glens Falls and Lake George, I found a station that did. I now send money to Canton.
And frankly I'm glad I'm not a member of WAMC anymore. I wouldn't want my membership monies to making the media less local and more homogeneous.
WAMC wants to take over the 91.7 frequency in Lake Placid, which has been run by NCPR for 20 years. I've been a member of both stations at various times but this is a terrible decision by WAMC.
WAMC's news coverage is decent but cursory. It's a mile wide and an inch deep. This isn't surprising because WAMC's gargantuan coverage area means it must provide local news for people in central and southern Vermont, the Berkshires (western Massachussetts), northern Connecticut, the Hudson Valley (southeastern NY), the Mohawk Valley (Central NY) and New York's Capital District.. WAMC also reports on state politics for those four states.
By contrasy, NCPR is focused almost exclusively on the region in and around the Adirondacks. The station often runs stories that are 5-9 minutes in length and thus offer significantly more depth than WAMC's typically brief pieces.
WAMC almost never reports on issues in Glens Falls or the Adirondacks, simply because there's not enough time. NCPR had extensive coverage of the 2001 Finch Pruyn strike in Glens Falls, even though the station's main headquarters is three times more distant than WAMC's.
WAMC's news department must attempt to be everything to everyone. NCPR's can focus on the Adirondacks. WAMC's president-for-life Alan Chartock piously claims that he's only doing this to offer choice to people in Lake Placid. This is the same Chartock who regularly bemoans increasingly consolidation in the commercial media.
Personally, I fail to see how people in Lake Placid are greatly served by knowing more about local politics in Litchfield County, CT or Massachussetts' state affairs but nothing additional about their own region.
As Almanack pointed out:
WAMC is obviously attempting to take the economic resources from our region to their offices in Albany without returning services to our community. In fact, they will be reducing local news coverage in Lake Placid. They've already done this in Plattsburgh and Ticonderoga. Search for Ticonderoga on the WAMC website - in all of 2007 they've reported just twice about Ticonderoga -both stories about International Paper. Take a look at their events calendar - not a single event in either Plattsburgh or Ticonderoga, or anywhere in the Adirondacks for that matter. Now take a look at NCPR's events calendar.
But Almanack's essay raises an aspect that I hadn't considered but makes complete sense.
WAMC has a much more upscale audience than NCPR. Because of its huge and well-off listening area, WAMC rakes in at least $700,000 during their quarterly pledge drives; I believe their last one brought in over $800,000. NCPR's typical pledge drive take is a much more modest $200,000.
WAMC News focuses primarily on the relatively prosperous Hudson Valley and on the well-off communities in the Berkshires, like Chartock's home of Great Barrington. Lake Placid is the second home for many rich folks in other parts of the state. Is it a coincidence that the only Adirondacks' frequency targeted by WAMC weren't the the ones in modest communities like Blue Mountain Lake or North Creek, but the one in the most monied town inside the Blue Line?
When you listen to NCPR, you know you are listening to a station about the Adirondacks, for Adirondackers. WAMC has become this giant broadcast empire that caters primarily to a few small parts while only paying lip service to the rest. It is based in Albany, but if it were based in Kingston, NY or Springfield, MA or Rutland, VT, you couldn't tell the difference.
I used to be a member of WAMC but am not anymore. I simply found that WAMC just didn't cover news stories that were relevant to my community or nearby ones. When NCPR added transmitters in Glens Falls and Lake George, I found a station that did. I now send money to Canton.
And frankly I'm glad I'm not a member of WAMC anymore. I wouldn't want my membership monies to making the media less local and more homogeneous.
Tuesday, August 28, 2007
Did I miss something?
So I was listening to WAMC Northeast Public Radio and the anchor announced, "Today at 1:00 on Alternative Radio: former vice-president Al Gore."
Maybe I wasn't paying attention but when exactly did Al Gore, that beacon of the corporate Democrat establishment, become an 'alternative' voice?
Maybe I wasn't paying attention but when exactly did Al Gore, that beacon of the corporate Democrat establishment, become an 'alternative' voice?
Sunday, July 01, 2007
Indy booksellers mad at NPR
Publishers Weekly had an interesting report on how some booksellers are upset at an unexpected target: National Public Radio.
When the NPR website highlights certain books, the 'Buy this book' link directs users to Amazon.com. Presumably, tbe network gets a commission if a user buys something on Amazon via the link on NPR's website. A non-profit on which I am on the board of directors has a similar agreement with Amazon.
However, independent book sellers naturally aren't thrilled about this.
Collectively, independent booksellers support NPR to the tune of hundreds of thousands of dollars annually. On top of that, a number of booksellers provide book selections to their local affiliates and occasionally nationally on NPR.
The main NPR affiliate in this area, WAMC Northeast Public Radio, isn't much different.
WAMC regularly provides an on-air forum to independent booksellers. And they do have links to the many independent bookstores that underwrite their programming. But links to books featured on their The Book Show program also take users to Amazon.
They do so while encouraging users to 'Support WAMC with your Amazon.com purchase,' though if I were a bookstore underwriter, I might wonder why I'm supporting WAMC with my dollars.
When the NPR website highlights certain books, the 'Buy this book' link directs users to Amazon.com. Presumably, tbe network gets a commission if a user buys something on Amazon via the link on NPR's website. A non-profit on which I am on the board of directors has a similar agreement with Amazon.
However, independent book sellers naturally aren't thrilled about this.
Collectively, independent booksellers support NPR to the tune of hundreds of thousands of dollars annually. On top of that, a number of booksellers provide book selections to their local affiliates and occasionally nationally on NPR.
The main NPR affiliate in this area, WAMC Northeast Public Radio, isn't much different.
WAMC regularly provides an on-air forum to independent booksellers. And they do have links to the many independent bookstores that underwrite their programming. But links to books featured on their The Book Show program also take users to Amazon.
They do so while encouraging users to 'Support WAMC with your Amazon.com purchase,' though if I were a bookstore underwriter, I might wonder why I'm supporting WAMC with my dollars.
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