WETA responds:

From: Sheryl Lahti
Sent: Friday, January 26, 2007 12:16 PM
To: undisclosed-recipients
Subject: Re: Traditions w/Mary Cliff


Dear Friends of Traditions with Mary Cliff,

It is always my preference to respond to every call, e-mail and letter personally. But, this is an exceptional time…

I have heard from so many Traditions fans like you. It's touching. I truly appreciate that you took the time to let me know how you feel. I share your fondness for the show. Often on Saturday nights, I hope I will be some place where I can tune in to Traditions, if only for a short while.

So, I hope you'll forgive me for responding en masse. Please know that I did read your personal message and I am tracking and reporting all of the feedback I receive.

In addition to voicing sadness over the departure of Mary's show, most of you have also praised WETA's decision to return to a classical format. Let me address both matters.

As you know, WETA has a 35-year history in broadcasting classical music. When we made the difficult decision to change to a news and information format two years ago, we did so in a media landscape that included a full-time classical music station, WGMS, where music fans could tune for classical music.

Since 2005, however, a number of dramatic shifts to the local landscape have impacted us greatly. Among those changes were the introduction of another news format station (WTWP – Washington Post Radio) and the possible change of formats on WGMS.

We are very proud of the service we created in the past two years, but amid the new radio landscape in Greater Washington, we determined that adopting a classical music format is the best way for WETA to serve the community. As the exclusive classical music station in this area, WETA can now provide a unique public service. And in order to make the new Classical WETA 90.9 FM successful, we believe it is best to concentrate our resources and energies on the classical music genre alone.

Many listeners celebrate that development. But, we knew that other friends would be let down in the process. Like Traditions, other beloved programs such as A Prairie Home Companion and Car Talk have also departed. It reflects the very nature of broadcasting: what pleases one listener may disappoint another. We do not say goodbye to Traditions without some grief – we are fans, too. But, no matter how tough they might be, we have a responsibility to make decisions that we feel are in the station's best interest. By the way, Prairie Home has been picked up by WAMU 88.5, and can be heard there beginning Saturday, January 27, at 6 p.m.; WAMU is reportedly considering adding Traditions; and many of the NPR programs formerly heard on WETA are already on WAMU.

I respect your views and appreciate your long-time support and friendship. Thanks for writing.

Sincerely,


Sheryl Lahti
Executive Director
Membership and Audience Support
WETA