You ask: Is The Marc Steiner Show: 1993-2008 an obscure, award-winning indie film that is the toast of art students across the country? No, it isn't. Until last week The Marc Steiner Show was the signature Baltimore public radio talk show on WYPR from noon to 2:00 pm. That's when station president Tony Brandon pulled the plug on Steiner's show, citing a decline in listenership. Also it seems like Steiner was getting a little too big for the station, or as "Gerry in Pikesville," a regular call-in, told the Baltimore Sun, it was becoming more and more about the "cult of personality." Steiner has fired back that Brandon has long wanted him gone over personal beef.
If there a fight more vicious than two public radio heavyweights going toe-to-toe, I don't want to see it. Just look at the public outcry it has inspired:
Yes, the outrage is palpable. The funny thing about this picture from the Baltimore Sun is that the protesters are facing north, but Charles Street is a one-way street that also runs north! I want to yell: "Hey folks, you gotta turn around and face the cars! They can't read your signs in the rearview mirror!" But I guess when you're standing up for matters of grave public concern, the rulebook goes out the window.
As a sign of solidarity with the protesters, I thought about not downloading the Diane Rehm Show Friday News Round-Up on my iPod last week, but with the primaries at full throttle, I couldn't miss Diane's even-handed discussion.
Still my heart is with you, protesters: as soon as I get back to Baltimore, that WYPR magnet is coming off our refrigerator!
No comments:
Post a Comment