Why I listen, but don't contribute....
NPR has been going through one of it's annual fund raising events, alternating between touting the high value of NPR programs to the listeners, and attempts at engendering guilt in people who listen but don't "invest" in supporting the station. I am one of those people who listen but don't "invest" in NPR. I feel no guilt, and unfortunately, would even support the elimination of NPR in it's current state. Here's my tale:
Although an occasional listener years ago to classical music on NPR station WNYC when I lived in NY, I only really began to listen to Public Radio in 1993 when I moved my family to Belgium. Being an English speaker in a French and Dutch language country, you eventually tire of translating (in my case) the French language news broadcasts, and hunger for news and discussion in English. We were lucky; the BBC and the Armed Forces Radio Network were both available, and AFRN carried programs from Public Radio International, which I equate to NPR. Listening to AFRN and the PRI shows that it carried, including Bill Moyers, I stumbled upon the Rush Limbaugh show and was very surprised; here was a guy saying many of the very same things about politics and American culture issues that mirrored many of my own thoughts. I enjoyed his broadcast, and listened to it occasionally.
When I left Europe and returned to the US in the summer of 1998, my wife and I moved to Florida, set up a wholesale distribution business, and I found myself driving 45 thousand miles a year to work with our customers - a lot of windshield and radio time. Being an information junkie, I soon found the local NPR station, WJCT, and also quickly learned that Rush Limbaugh, was not an NPR featured voice. It quickly became apparent that unlike the AFRN, NPR was a subtly partisan Democrat / Liberal broadcast channel.
So, I became a schizophrenic radio listener; NPR in the morning - initially Bob Edwards, later Steve Inskeep and Renee Montage on Morning Edition, followed by the Diane Rehm show, then switching to FOX and the Rush Limbaugh show in the afternoon. During the election of George Bush in 2000, the subtlety disappeared. The NPR hosts became overt in their political comments and positions; anti-Bush, anti-Pro-Life, anti-gun, anti-military, anti-school choice, pro-Gore, pro- Democrat, pro-Choice, pro-affirmative action, pro-illegal immigration, pro-higher taxes, pro-bigger government, and eventually evangelizing Global Warming and the view that CO2's is a pollutant and causal element of it.
My current home town, Jacksonville, Florida, hosts a significant military population: Naval Air Station Jacksonville, Mayport Naval Station, Blount Island Marine Terminal, and nearby in Georgia, Kings Bay Submarine Base. Despite that, I have never heard one story about the heroics of the troops; a positive view of any aspect of their actions on Iraq, its people, the region; or our effective efforts against radical Islam and al Qaeda. During the war in Iraq, the only stories aired about the military were about the hardships of being in the military, the number of troops who were killed, horrifically wounded, or their suffering families. It appeared to be a concerted effort to negatively impact enlistments while encouraging opposition to the war. Once the surge was apparently turning the tide to victory,
all stories about the troops ended.
I've listened to "Weekend Edition" on Saturday morning virtually every weekend for the last ten years, and every Saturday, Daniel Schoor, a justly esteemed, but extremely Liberal, political journalist opines on the major political issue of the week. During this entire time, I have never heard him say one positive comment about President Bush, Republicans, or Conservatives. His only comments on those subjects were, and still are, negative. Not surprisingly, he has only voiced highly positive opinions about President Obama and the current Democrat Congress.
My wife asked me, "Why do you listen to NPR? All you ever do is yell at the radio." Her question caused me to stop and think about how to answer her reasonable question. After thinking about it, I realized that the real attraction is the discussion format and style of the NPR talk shows, as well as the time allocated to discuss substantive issues. Unfortunately, what significantly subtracts from those positive attributes, is that the programs are so steeply skewed towards the left politically that even when they have Conservative guests, they are usually outnumbered on the panel with the deck stacked against them, even down to the call-in listeners who are selected to present questions.
The two NPR journalists that Fox News employs to present the Liberal view on issues, Juan Williams and Mara Liason, have recently been
under fire by NPR listeners for being too extreme politically......to the
Right! In the past, NPR's sister organization PBS, provided it's "member" list to the Democrat Party. Since most NPR stations are co-joined with its local PBS station, it's probably reasonable to assume that NPR member lists have been provided as well.
Even the entertainment shows such as "Fresh Air", "Wait, Wait, Don't Tell me", and "Prairie Home Companion", skew left. In fact, the only personalities that haven't evidenced any political views are Ray and Tom Magliozzi, the irripressable hosts of "Car Talk", and Marian McPartland, the amazingly ageless and outstanding jazz pianist host of "Piano Jazz". Even Ira Flatow on "Science Friday" actively supports the concept of Anthropogenic (human caused) Global Warming and the need for government funded embryonic stem cell research.
So, why don't I contribute (I refuse to use the euphemism of the Left -" invest") to NPR? Because doing so would be the same as if I were contributing to organizations that are in direct opposition to my personal beliefs and political views. It would be as if I was contributing directly to the Democrat National Party and their constituency: Planned Parenthood, UAW, NEA, NOW, and ACORN.
As a recipient of government funding, NPR should be neutral and balanced in its presentation of issues. If NPR were to maintain its format and style, yet provide actual balance in presenting political and social values in its news and commentary, I would be its loudest advocate and would gladly contribute to, and support its operation. In its' current mode of operation, providing a megaphone for the DNC's positions, unfortunately I can only support NPR's demise.
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