NPR hypocrisy: Why I am not donating to NPR or or my local affiliate

[whitroth]

This is a copy of an email I just sent to NPR and its local affiliate.

Can you say "utter hypocrisy" by NPR? There, boyos and grllls, I *knew* you could.

--- Forwarded message ---

"Dear" NPR,

Let me explain, clearly, another reason why I used to donate to the pledge drives where I have lived, and have no intention of doing so these days: I am a 55 yr old degreed computer professional, who has been unemployed almost the entire Bush Depression, living on money from the sale of my house.

Most NPR affiliates get over half their budgets from pledges from individuals, not corporations, and we are the ones loosing our jobs by offshoring.

I am NOT AMUSED to hear that Morning Edition and All Things Considered are supported by Keane, an "expert in offshoring and nearshoring, we get IT done." I'm done. Keane won't hire me, instead they, personally, are shipping jobs that I might apply for to India and eastern Europe.

Perhaps if NPR, or its local affiliate here in central Florida, WFMT, or maybe even someone from Keane called me up and offered me a job, I'd change my mind. Barring that highly improbable occurrence, you can forget any pledges from me.

Note that I'm also sending copies of this email to several very well-known, high-traffic Websites, and intend to post a copy to Democratic Underground and Democrats.com. I suspect that there's a whole lot of people who may not have paid attention to this ad - and it *is* an advertisement, whatever semantic games you want to play - and will not be amused, either.

mark roth

[RandomKoolzip]

1. NPR went over to the dark side a long time ago....

I'll never donate, but I will listen.

[RobertSeattle]

2. Interesting observation

Not sure if it was local or national, but my local NPR station KUOW had a Walmart blurb recently!

Send you complaint to CNN's Lou Dobbs - he'll run it if he hasn't already.

But I'm not sure how far they should go in regards to "censoring" NPRs donors.

[montanacowboy]

3. I stopped donating

also - am sick and tired of hearing "analyst" Cokie Roberts every Monday morning - their truly biased and one sided cheerleading for the administration -

this morning I almost lost my breakfast during a Juan Williams interview of Colin "the liar" Bowel.

[mopinko]

4. making the perfect the enemy of the good

a chronic problem here on the left. i get what you are saying, but i don't see how npr can function if they only take money from people who are pure. if they were hiring them, or otherwise GIVING them money, i would have more sympathy for your point of view. put npr on the continuum of news sources in the real world. and then send them a check, and blow them a kiss.

[cprise]

16. How about just taking money from people who are /people/

Eh?

NPR doesn't have to be Leftist, just connected to reality. Public broadcasting is supposed to lean toward populism by definition. If all they do is carry water for corporate interests and flavor it with a bit of cultural novelty to make pigs feel like they're open-minded and "liberal"... then how good is that?

I donate to Pacifica instead.
http://www.pacifica.org/

[BearFlagDemocrat]

5. Well

Maybe the reason why they are forced to take money from private corporations is because they don't get enough through pledge drives.

I'm sorry to hear about your unemployment though.

[veganwitch]

6. NPR also gets lots of money from ADM

arthur daniels midlan (i believe) and it a big biotech, gen-mod, factory farming mogul company. my dad thinks they are a horrible company and hes on the other side of the field from me.

[displacedtexan]

11. Archer Daniels Midland

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEviiiiiiiiiiillllllllllllllllllll company.

[veganwitch]

14. thank you for the clarification

i noticed them while looking up some monsanto/gen-mod stuff and then heard a commercial for them on NPR. i was very distrubed.

[dpbrown]

7. I gave my whole 'public radio' contribution to KFAI this year

"Community Radio" and the only station carrying "Democracy Now!" in this area.

Check them out and listen on the Internet:

http://www.kfai.org

Dan Brown
Saint Paul, Minnesota

[mhr]

8. I Hear You Whitroth - Unemployed 45 Months In Texas - NPR Here Is The Same

eom

[10376173]

9. Competition for NPR

With the coming of Air America to NY, Boston,SF, LA, Chgo and it's
Franken, Garafolo, Rhodes line up I think NPR is going to start losing listeners.

Get ready to start dialing people.

[DemNoir]

10. Same for me

The Iraq war coverage was the last straw for me. Their cheer-leading and drooling over weapons systems was every bit as bad as cable news.

I have not even considered donating since then.

[chiburb]

12. WFMT is a Chicago station...

Is that a typo?

[utopian]

13. It seems like every political analyist I ever hear

On NPR is some winger, even if the issue is a democratic one, like the recent primaries. I too am tired of it. What happened to the public radio I knew and loved. It used to be my only reliabe source of news, and now it's just another purveyor of the big lie.

[gulfcoastliberal]

15. Pensacola, FL Checking In

Here in Wingerville, WUWF public radio has also been airing that horrid Keene ad as well. No more doantions for them! And I agree, what is up with their political coverage. Just the other week I heard a segment where they revisited Juan Williams' interview with *'s campaign person who said he volunteered to go to Vietnam. Hello? Juan is so fucking biased he didn't immediately follow up on it in HIS interview? They had to follow up 3 weeks later! And Kookie R? :puke: