NPR is good at some things
Bookworm on Aug 21 2011 at 4:23 pm | Filed under: Uncategorized
I hate folding laundry. I don’t know why. It’s not particularly difficult. It’s a clean task. It brings order from chaos. I ought to like it. But I don’t. Still, it needs to be done, and one of the things I do to make it palatable is to listen to Terry Gross interview people about the American Popular Songbook. Right now, I’m listening to a Frank Loesser retrospective. Should the laundry outlast Loesser, I’ll hunt around for retrospectives about Harry Warren, Richard Rogers, Irving Berlin, etc. It’s very pleasant to fold towels with Frank Loesser and one of his wives crooning “Baby, It’s Cold Outside.”
Given the choice, I would defund NPR’s political reporting, because I think it consistently takes money from 100% of the taxpayers to present a political world view that only half of those taxpayers support. However, I wonder if there is a reason to continue some small funding to NPR to keep alive its fascination with America’s past popular culture. Without NPR, programming like this would, I think, vanish.
What do you think?
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8 Responses to “NPR is good at some things”
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The first thing is, NPR and PBS could very well do programming that suits the other half of the population. They could, but they don’t. If they were short of funding after the government shook them off the Federal teat, they could, again, try to broaden their appeal. They won’t. They’ll still be a tax-deductible “charity.” They’ll stumble on, exactly as before, only trying even harder to get back on that government teat.
The second thing is, we could, and very probably shall, create something similar on the internet. It could well be started by a lawyer in Marin County California. It could be sparked by a lawyer and family therapist in Newton Massachusetts. It could be done by the two of you together, and you would certainly not be alone.
Now, before the two of you jump all over me about how you couldn’t possibly, don’t have the time, resources, etc, keep in mind that I said you could. I did not say when, or how, or how many other people you’d enlist in the effort ahead of time. All that I have really said is that I can not think of anyone more capable.
If people value it, it won’t disappear. NPR is kind of like an earmark: everybody gets to pay for the amusement of the few, which is why earmarks are in fact unconstitutional. (Congress only has constitutional authorization to tax for the benefit of all. Taking money from taxpayers everywhere for Barbara Boxer’s pet project in Vaccaville doesn’t qualify – as you don’t need to be a constitutional lawyer to figure out, despite that no one in either house of the congress seems able.)
But if a market segment finds a sufficiency of value in some NPR programming, they’ll pay for it.
NPR, by the way, I can tell you from the viewpoint of someone in the tube industry, is purely a shuck. NPR has more money than any of the three traditional networks – maybe more than any two them combined. There isn’t a reason in the world for them to ask you for one damn nickel. They run none of the programming risks everybody else does, always play with the house’s money, and garner unheard-of benefits – plus they get taxpayer dollars, and whatever they can BS people into giving them in exchange for a $1.49 tote bag during the never-ending ‘pledge’ weeks that stretch into months on end.
Defunded is about the least of what ought to happen to these crooks.
Hear, hear, JJ. Very eloquently put!
My perspective is somewhat different. A local public radio station had a slew of DJs and radio programs that featured the rich variety of American music. Ex: one time I called up a DJ playing opera diva Eileen Farrell singing Gershwin et al. I told the DJ that she was doing a pretty good job of it, in contrast to fellow opera singer Kiri Te Kanawa, who bombed doing American Standards- no rhythm. The DJ could talk on that subject- very knowledgeable.
Over the years that radio station has reduced the number of local shows in favor of NPR canned music shows. That is one reason I no longer give them money. I used to listen to that station a lot. Because I now have a lot of CDs purchased very cheaply, I no longer listen to the radio at home. When I am driving, I no longer listen to that radio station. Its music has become much more standardized, much closer to an FM rock station. (Such stations still exist?)
In honor of Kirie Te Kanawa’s not having rhythm, here is Billy Holiday singing “He Ain’t Got Rhythm.”
Liberal government con jobs from top to bottom. And Ken Burns is the master con. Ever wonder why the episodes are 22 minutes long? Because they are later sold commercially for big bucks to use on commercial channels where they will fit right in allowing for commercials. I wonder if all the money then goes to PBS or the originators cash in also after being financed by the public.
They could go listener-supported such as Pacifica radio is (was?). If the content is great, support should follow.
And then I wouldn’t have to complain to my long suffering sometimes NPR listener wife about it being Radio Pravda.
[...] Dirty Laundry [...]
I like folding laundry. I don’t like the smarmy programming of NPR. A little bit of “nice” is not worth the ton of dreck.