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WDUQ is for sale

How DID it ever get to the point where WDUQ is so different from WPTS and WRCT? Did it used to be student run and it was taken out of their hands because of the strength of the signal? Or has it always been what it is? Sorry if this has been covered or if there's a convenient link I'm missing.

I think the "monies that come with NPR" that BigA is referring to mean the donations that fans pay to the station that keeps NPR on the air. If NPR went to WYEP instead, the donations would go to WYEP as well.
 
DUQ was never student-run. It was run by faculty/administrators, but students had a more prominent on-air role than in the current incarnation. At least by the early 1970s, though, the station was firmly established as a community station, albeit one licensed to a university.

Seems to me that most of the on-air people at WRCT are neither students nor alums of CMU. PTS still seems to have a hard time finding students to cover airshifts. That's usually the reason that student stations evolve into community stations owned by institutions of higher learning.

QED-FM is not successful financially, at least from a listener-funding standpoint. QED's annual report testifies to that.

YEP generates surpluses, despite having a very modest cume and a minuscule AQH, in part because it spends next to nothing to acquire programming. Were it to pay NPR anything close to what DUQ does, they'd need to increase their budget by about 50%. A local news operation would be out of the question. YEP's listeners pay for a music service, though. What makes anyone think they want four hours of news (or even two) in morning drive and an equivalent complement in afternoon drive?

DUQ said several times on the air last year what a tough time it was having financially. If it finishes in the red, DU must bail it out. I guess that isn't in keeping with the educational mission of the university, particularly since several have noted that students are not, at least in significant numbers, learning their craft at DUQ (certainly not in any way they couldn't via an internship at a commercial outlet).

If this were all simply about NPR content and Catholic theology or disgruntled diocesan benefactors, DU could keep the station and change the programming. When Xavier sold its station in Cincinnati, I believe the sale price was $15 million. Methinks that might be the driving factor.
 
TheBigA said:
Money does not come with an NPR affiliation. In fact, it's the other way around. It COSTS money. Affiliates pay a fee to carry NPR shows.
Click to expand...

Some schools get donations because people like the 187-year-old football coach. Others get donations because people like NPR.

If you take away what those people like you stop getting their money.
 
I like football coaches who slap their players and do it with NPR playing in the locker room
 
MsMusicRadio said:
I like football coaches who slap their players and do it with NPR playing in the locker room
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Hmmm...maybe we should consult Bobby Knight about this.
 
I think Bobby Knight is still doing his PBS show " THIS OLD CHAIR". It's about redecorating indoor stadiums.
 
MsMusicRadio said:
I think Bobby Knight is still doing his PBS show " THIS OLD CHAIR". It's about redecorating indoor stadiums.
Click to expand...
I thought he and Dick Cheney were co-hosting a hunting show.
 
Duquesne considered keeping the station and changing the format, but they realized that more than 60% of the revenue flowing through the place came from "members like you". Those people and their money go away the second you drop the present programing. The University doesn't have the money to run a radio station (nor does the Diocese) so they've decided to sell. They couldn't find a format that would pay for itself instantly.

QED has been approached because they are in the business of running a public station already. They were being looked at as a management asset not a liquidity stream.

Keeping the NPR affiliation means keeping some sort of news department around. Those are not cheap, so doing this on the shoestring budget that runs YEP wont' cut it. Whoever buys this will need the help of the outside Foundations and charities that always support NPR stations.
 
My one prior experience with something like this was in Flint, Michigan during the early 90's.
The Flint Board of Education had a long-time FM presence, WFBE. It had a format similar to DUQ,
NPR plus specialty music format. Like all public school systems (and, well, Flint, Michigan!) they got hard-up for cash and sold the station. Fortunately for them, back in the 50's when they first launched it, the FCC granted them a waiver to operate on 95.1, because Channel 6 out of Lansing was wreaking havoc down at the low end of the FM dial. So when they put it on the market there were plenty of commercial buyers out there.....cha-ching!

Not sure how that plays out with a signal that is forever trapped in the noncommercial band.
Foks in Michigan tell me that the Univ. of Michigan is likely looking to dump it's PBS TV station,
Channel 28 in Flint, along perhaps with the Flint relay of their radio station. It would be an ideal
opportunity for some community organization who has always wanted access to the airwaves, but it's hard to see anyone raising the cash in the current environment.
 
Perhaps it is time for the Commission to change the rules and allow the stations in the reserved band to operate commercially. In the case of Duquesne U. The business students could develop and operate the sales department. And, since the cost of operating this station is less than most commercial stations, they should be able to generate enough revenue to cover their costs.

I know that this would cause havoc among those who think that everything should be free, but times change.
 
hypwr said:
Perhaps it is time for the Commission to change the rules and allow the stations in the reserved band to operate commercially.
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Based on the discussions that led to the latest LPFM rules, I really don't think that's likely. The FCC doesn't like what commercialization has done to radio. If you search Michael Copps recent tirade about commercial news coverage, he really prefers the non-commercial model.
 
i learned from people who see their data that qed-fm is quite successful in financial support from listeners, and overperforms national benchmarks as a classical station. just sayin. has nothing to do with duq biz.
 
Your QED sources speak with forked tongue. Check the Web site today and see how woefully the station underperformed in its fall membership drive. The goal was $344K in the first quarter of the QED fiscal year (10/1-12/31) and to date, the total is still barely more than $290K.

Listener support for the FM has been crummy at best for years. That's why they're always on the air begging, and giving away so much stuff in return for your pledge. The pledge drives just seem to keep getting longer, and the deals keep getting better, especially the longer the drive lasts. On the last day of the drive, they have been known to offer you $45-$50 worth of CDs in return for a $100 pledge.

Even in the aged market that Pittsburgh is, QED does not perform well when compared to the leading classical stations in the public radio system. Like the jazz stations, classical formats are dwindling nationally, but even in that smaller pool, QED does not compare favorably.

YEP generates pretty healthy surpluses. Yes, it has a smaller budget, but it has consistently added to its reserves; almost shamefully so for a non-profit.

Maybe UPMC could buy DUQ. That's a non-profit that's used to making lots of money.
 
apostate said:
YEP generates pretty healthy surpluses. Yes, it has a smaller budget, but it has consistently added to its reserves; almost shamefully so for a non-profit.
Click to expand...

Isn't WYEP almost an entirely volunteer staff?
 
No. YEP pays its 6a-7p jocks, management, sales, marketing, outreach and office staff, 13 full-timers in all. Some other things are grant supported. Only the night/overnight and weekend jocks are volunteers.
 
hm, that's funny. every year qed-fm meets annual membership goal. they cancelled their summer fundraiser because so many people gave without a pledge drive. pretty straighforward.
 
8mde8 said:
hm, that's funny. every year qed-fm meets annual membership goal. they cancelled their summer fundraiser because so many people gave without a pledge drive. pretty straighforward.
Click to expand...

hmmmm . . . very funny . . . and very forked tongue:

http://www.pbrtv.com/blog/entry_1032.php#comm

Pretty straightforward.

They've taken the dismal progress numbers off their web site, but if you tune into the current pledge drive, it doesn't sound like they're doing particularly well now, either.
 
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