WQED-FM Executive Director To Leave July 1st

[Joseph_Gallant]

According to this story from the Pittsburgh Business Journal, WQED-89.3 "executive director" (likely their term for general or station manager) Michelle Pagano-Heck will leave the station as of July 1st.

It's not secret that WQED-FM has recently struggled in it's fundraising as an all-classical format.

It's also no secret that many noncommercial classical-music stations in recent years have dumped the format to go 24/7 NPR news and information, with at least some who have done it (like Washington's WETA-FM) admitting they did it to attract more pledge $$$ from listeners.

Although Pittsburgh has WDUQ-FM, which airs some NPR news and information programming, their website's program schedule page indicates that they also air jazz for part of midday, evenings, and overnights. There are several NPR news and information programs not being broadcast in Pittsburgh at the moment.

Could whoever replaces Pagano-Heck decide to flip WQED to 24/7 NPR news/information to increase listening, and more importantly, to atract more listener donations???

 

[Radio_Realist]

> Could whoever replaces Pagano-Heck decide to flip WQED to
> 24/7 NPR news/information to increase listening, and more
> importantly, to atract more listener donations???

Maybe. On the other hand, maybe they might just take a page from commercial radio's book and start programming a better selection of classical music.

Classical music isn't all that much different from Classic Rock. There are classic rock songs that are popular, and there are other songs from the same era that aren't. The few times I've sampled WQED-FM, they're playing obscure classical stuff, not classical music "hits" like Beethoven's 5th, the 1812 Overture, etc. I've heard more than a few Pittsburgh Symphony fans express the same sentiments about WQED-FM.

Maybe they should try playing more classical music "hits" and fewer classical music "deep cuts".

 

[MadAirchecker]

They alienated some of their listeners when they fired two on-air personalities and replaced them with voice tracking a while back. A lot of people felt like they were donating to keep those specific shows on the air and were upset when the people -- who were heavily involved in the fundraising -- were shown the door.

Plus, the whole QED empire has inspired a lot of cynicism for their handling of the WQEX thing and the overall perception that too much money goes to executive salaries and perks and a lot of unnecessary things.

Not so sure that NPR is the kind of thing that would have a lot of appeal to the "old money" types who would be likely to send money to the FM.






> According to this story from the Pittsburgh Business
> Journal, WQED-89.3 "executive director" (likely their term
> for general or station manager) Michelle Pagano-Heck will
> leave the station as of July 1st.
>
> It's not secret that WQED-FM has recently struggled in it's
> fundraising as an all-classical format.
>
> It's also no secret that many noncommercial classical-music
> stations in recent years have dumped the format to go 24/7
> NPR news and information, with at least some who have done
> it (like Washington's WETA-FM) admitting they did it to
> attract more pledge $$$ from listeners.
>
> Although Pittsburgh has WDUQ-FM, which airs some NPR news
> and information programming, their website's program
> schedule page indicates that they also air jazz for part of
> midday, evenings, and overnights. There are several NPR news
> and information programs not being broadcast in Pittsburgh
> at the moment.
>
> Could whoever replaces Pagano-Heck decide to flip WQED to
> 24/7 NPR news/information to increase listening, and more
> importantly, to atract more listener donations???
>

 

[Lex]

Your compulsion to pontificate upon subjects you obviously know nothing about is amazing in that it knows no bounds. Now you know how to program PBS radio! Is there nothing beyond your infinite capabilities, oh wise one? Surely, the answer to all of WQED's problems, including its bleeding staff, a pissed off audience, mismanagement, and a general lack of funds, lies wholly in playing more classical music, and make them some damn hits too!

Oh, THANK YOU, Sagacity!

>
> Maybe. On the other hand, maybe they might just take a page
> from commercial radio's book and start programming a better
> selection of classical music.
>
> Classical music isn't all that much different from Classic
> Rock. There are classic rock songs that are popular, and
> there are other songs from the same era that aren't. The few
> times I've sampled WQED-FM, they're playing obscure
> classical stuff, not classical music "hits" like Beethoven's
> 5th, the 1812 Overture, etc. I've heard more than a few
> Pittsburgh Symphony fans express the same sentiments about
> WQED-FM.
>
> Maybe they should try playing more classical music "hits"
> and fewer classical music "deep cuts".
>

 

[Radio_Realist]

My "pontificating" is as a listener and former contributor to WQED. I do not claim to have all the answers to everything, but it doesn't take a rocket scientist or the possession of a PhD in Radio Broadcasting science to make the dirt simple observation that if WQED wants more listeners to make financial contributions to the station, they might try taking a simple first step towards solving their problems.

I do not doubt that WQED has a plethora of problems as you have enumerated. However, since I am not the all-knowing answer man who can address every issue that the station faces, I choose to only address the one simple problem that anyone who has ever listened to the station should see as obvious.

If you were as wise as your self-selected nickname, you would see that all I have "pontificated" on was the basic fundamental principle that anyone who knows how to use a radio's on-off button should realize, which is that it all STARTS with putting things on the air that people want to hear.

The problems you mention almost all boil down to a lack of funds. And the first step to solving that problem is getting more contributors. Those who contribute are usually those who listen, so if they get more listeners, chances are they will get more contributors. Tell me, oh wise and ancient Greek Philosopher. Is that premise incorrect? Would getting more listeners NOT help WQED-FM?

Am I wrong in my assertion that WQED-FM would benefit from more listeners contributing more money?

And am I wrong in my assertion that WQE#D-FM would get more classical music listeners if they played more of the classical works that listeners liked hearing?

It's real easy to condemn me for saying things you don't like reading, but for all your blather about me not having credentials that you resepct, you don't seem to disagree with what I've said.

BTW, I worked for WQED-TV for three years.

> Your compulsion to pontificate upon subjects you obviously
> know nothing about is amazing in that it knows no bounds.
> Now you know how to program PBS radio! Is there nothing
> beyond your infinite capabilities, oh wise one? Surely, the
> answer to all of WQED's problems, including its bleeding
> staff, a pissed off audience, mismanagement, and a general
> lack of funds, lies wholly in playing more classical music,
> and make them some damn hits too!
>
> Oh, THANK YOU, Sagacity!
>
> >
> > Maybe. On the other hand, maybe they might just take a
> page
> > from commercial radio's book and start programming a
> better
> > selection of classical music.
> >
> > Classical music isn't all that much different from Classic
>
> > Rock. There are classic rock songs that are popular, and
> > there are other songs from the same era that aren't. The
> few
> > times I've sampled WQED-FM, they're playing obscure
> > classical stuff, not classical music "hits" like
> Beethoven's
> > 5th, the 1812 Overture, etc. I've heard more than a few
> > Pittsburgh Symphony fans express the same sentiments about
>
> > WQED-FM.
> >
> > Maybe they should try playing more classical music "hits"
> > and fewer classical music "deep cuts".
> >
>

 

[tpt]

As I discovered here last year, one of the pressures on the CPB funded stations is to have ratings high enough to justify their funding.

Hence the push to dump classical music, and add the more heavily promoted NPR programs such as ATC, and Car Talk which will garner those ratings.

Ratings? Noncommercial stations? (yes, they are and can be rated, normally you don't seem them listed)

Yep. As one will note from reading the papers, the Federal funding of empires at NPR/PBS stations is coming to an end, and the highly paid (or overpaid, take your choice) management types are scrambling to preserve their jobs.

 

[fybush]

> Your compulsion to pontificate upon subjects you obviously
> know nothing about is amazing in that it knows no bounds.
> Now you know how to program PBS radio!

And speaking of "subjects you obviously know nothing about"...

"PBS radio"?

PBS does television, which is the medium that has the screen. Radio's the medium with the better pictures. (And no, "NPR" is not "PBS radio" - for one thing, NPR produces its own programming, which PBS does not. For another, NPR is just one of several program producer/distributors for public radio.)

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