When Duquesne University officials announced that the school would sell WDUQ-FM on Jan. 14, its buyers hailed it as a win for the community.

The station will, after all, be sold not to a religious broadcaster — as some feared — but to a joint venture of WYEP-FM and Public Media Company, a nonprofit born out of an organization that specializes in expanding public-radio licenses. And in a statement, WYEP board chair Marco Cardamone said the new venture, Essential Public Media, offered “an amazing opportunity to transform local journalism, offer reliable news and information, spark civic conversation and shed light on important issues.”

So far, though, there’s been little light shed on the station’s future. And no one has been more in the dark than WDUQ employees.

Once WDUQ officially changes hands later this year, the station will lose its call letters and be relocated to WYEP’s South Side headquarters. It also seems likely to downplay jazz programming in favor of stepped-up local-news coverage.  

WDUQ fans and staffers — who hoped to preserve the station’s current format of jazz, NPR and local news — formed their own non-profit to purchase the station. Their $6.5 million offer was larger than EPM’s $6 million bid, but the school rejected it. Adding insult to injury, a consultant they’d brought to Pittsburgh ended up on the winning team. 

 

Michael Marcotte

Pittsburgh Public Media, the nonprofit WDUQ staffers formed to purchase the station, saw little need to fix what isn’t broken. December rankings released by Arbitron, a media research firm, show that WDUQ leads its public-radio counterparts, WQED-FM and WYEP, in listeners. The gap is widest during the hours when WDUQ broadcasts NPR. 

To negotiate the bidding process, PPM hired Colorado-based Public Radio Capital in December 2009, shortly after Duquesne put the station up for sale. 

PRC, which served as PPM’s broker, worked on a contingency basis, getting paid only if a deal is made. But in early May, the Heinz Endowments and the Pittsburgh Foundation had purchased a 60-day option on the station, freezing the bidding process so they could determine the best use of the station. And PRC terminated the contract soon after.

In a June 2 letter to PPM, PRC managing director Marc Hand wrote, “PRC must be able to work with the local foundations and public broadcasters outside the confines” of its existing agreement.

“[T]he only viable strategy for acquiring WDUQ is to work with Pittsburgh’s foundation community,” Hand added.

News that PRC was involved with other bidders, however, came as a surprise to WDUQ staff, which learned of it only at the Jan. 14 announcement. That’s when they discovered PRC had created a new operating arm, Public Media Company, that teamed with WYEP to purchase their station.

WDUQ’s staff of 50 — 21 of whom are full time — have not been promised employment once the station is sold. Current staffers were wary of speaking on the record for fear of jeopardizing job prospects. But sources within the station say PRC’s move is widely perceived as a betrayal. 

Joe Kelly is not a WDUQ employee, but as chair of PPM he declined to speak with City Paper for this story. In a prepared statement, however, Kelly notes that “we are proud of the fact that PPM operated in a very open and transparent way. … We wish the best for WYEP and its partners, and we hope that they recognize and see the value of the talented and dedicated staff of the existing 90.5 FM.”

Technically, Public Media Company is an independent entity. Susan Harmon, a PRC co-founder and board member, says the two organizations have “complementary and clear roles.”

But they also share three of each group’s seven board members. And some observers question the propriety of the relationship.

“How can Public Radio Capital be in the business of consulting and helping finance stations in public radio if it’s also going to have this other entity … in the takeover and management business?” says Michael Marcotte, a Knight Journalism Fellow at Stanford University who closely follows reforms at local NPR affiliates. “It seems pretty darn convenient to be the guy you call when you need help … and then suddenly [there is] this other self that can then take advantage of that situation.”

Harmon says her group didn’t start talking with WYEP until six weeks after the consulting job with Kelly’s group ended. WYEP initiated the talks, she says, and PRC wouldn’t have considered the offer had its contract still been in effect. “We’re clear about our business dealings,” she says.

 

Less clear is what WDUQ’s new owner plans to broadcast.

Harmon says it’s too early to say specifically what programming will be offered. “But three things are on our mind: the role of jazz, NPR and local journalism.”

Some fans suspect only the last two have any future.

“My gut feeling is that the new owner is not especially strong for jazz,” says Joe Negri, a local jazz guitarist.

Fans of the current WDUQ format say it honors Pittsburgh’s jazz history: Such greats as Earl “Fatha” Hines, Art Blakely and Lena Horne had ties here. “To not have jazz on the airwaves in a significant way is unfathomable,” says Marty Ashby, executive producer of Manchester Craftsmen’s Guild Jazz. 

Ashby wonders why the owners would give up a programming niche they have cornered. “Why go to more journalism and more talk when there are 15 other stations that have a lot of talk? It seems like a bad business move.”

Pittsburgh has two daily newspapers — unusual in a city this size. Additionally, there are three commercial-TV news operations, two commercial news-radio stations, and a number of other outlets, including City Paper.

And journalism isn’t cheap. Robert Bellamy, a journalism professor at Duquesne University, says news operations are costly to run — and their stories can upset funders. 

“The obvious default for so many stations is to run a jukebox,” Bellamy says.

WDUQ’s local news coverage, which airs between NPR broadcasts during the morning and afternoon rush hours, primarily reports the day’s major headlines, including news about election campaigns and city-council meetings. On occasion, the station airs more in-depth stories, such as last year’s week-long series on autism, titled “Autism Through the Lifespan.”

The station’s news operation makes up a large chunk of the station’s budget. In a May blog post, WDUQ General Manager Scott Hanley said “WDUQ spends about 70 [percent] of its programming budget on news [local and NPR], about 20 [percent] on Jazz.”

But around the country, “The big shift has been toward local journalism,” says Marcotte, the Knight fellow. “Those stations that have [created] strong local-news departments have proven very cost-effective. If they can be like NPR in tone, quality, production, depth, then … that makes for a very valuable local-news station.”

Pittsburgh’s foundations were thinking along those lines last year. 

“We didn’t make any formal conclusions during the option period,” says Grant Oliphant, president and CEO of The Pittsburgh Foundation. But they suspected Pittsburgh “could be a very good market for a station that was more heavily news than WDUQ is right now.” (The foundations seemed less sure about the future of jazz: At the time, Oliphant expressed uncertainty about whether jazz was “the best use of philanthropic dollars.”)

With struggling newspapers less able to do labor-intensive, in-depth stories, Oliphant says, “that void is to some extent now beginning to be filled by nonprofit journalism.”

“I don’t think there’s any question [an expanded news operation] would succeed here in Pittsburgh,” agrees Charlie Humphrey, executive director of Pittsburgh Filmmakers, who acted as a liaison for the foundations during the time. “It’s succeeding everywhere it’s being done.”

In fact, Humphrey and Oliphant are proceeding with their own plans to fund local journalism. On Feb. 17 — just weeks after the sale of WDUQ was announced — The Pittsburgh Foundation announced plans to launch an online news initiative this summer that will focus on in-depth reporting about regional issues. Modeled after ProPublica, a nonprofit investigative journalism website, the venture will be funded with a $253,000 grant from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, of Miami, and $325,000 from the Pittsburgh Foundation.

The fate of WDUQ’s programming and employees, meanwhile, remain uncertain. Cardamone has assured the staff, “We know that all of you are anxious for more information about our plans.” What they’ve already learned, however, is that they won’t be charting them. 

This article appears in Feb 24 – Mar 2, 2011.

E-mail Chris Young about this story.

18 replies on “Mugged: The deal for WDUQ could leave employees and jazz fans feeling robbed”

  1. This whole affair has so many immoral issues surrounding it. But the biggest question is why take away the only jazz source in a city so important in the history of jazz in this country. As a lot of people do, I WATCH my news twice a day on any of the 3 major TV stations with which this city is blessed; there is NO need to rip apart a perfectly well organized radio station under the pretense of offering more news.

    This article calls up some very shady dealings and even if you aren’t a music listener, the public here who listen to “Public Radio” should be outraged that this is being allowed to transpire.

    Pattye Ludwig

  4. I’ve got to believe this will turn out OK. The WYEP and WDUQ are family, and this is a small town. This continued silence is pretty weird, though..especially after pledge weeks.

  5. I currently do not live in Pittsburgh but grew up in PA and went to school at IUP. Jazz is my first love, but, I must say Pittsburgh is behind the times – especially given how progressive the rest of the city is – not to have a more full-time NPR news station. To say that public radio news and talk is like the 15 other stations in the market is exactly the same thing as questioning why they would have played music as there are dozens of music stations. The quality of discourse and reporting available from national providers and the rich local reporting that can be done in Pittsburgh will make most forget about the old DUQ and is far, far, far better than anything available in the commercial band (and I know Pittsburgh radio). They can still do a lot for jazz and I hope they do keep it alive on their signal at certain hours, but, jazz on radio is not an entitlement. There are maybe 3 or 4 successful jazz stations in the United States and in markets WAY more steeped in heritage than Pittsburgh. New Orleans only has one and they don’t do 24×7 jazz at that. Change is hard and the folks at DUQ did a very good job. I look forward to seeing what WYEP can do to help keep public radio alive and vital in da ‘burgh.

  6. This article does a great job of explaining the deal that leaves many WDUQ employees and jazz fans feeling betrayed. If the new owners don’t keep jazz and the awesome staff that has run the station so beautifully under hostile circumstances, I doubt I’ll have the heart to tune to 90.5. I’m a “news junkie,” but the news can be downright discouraging if you’re paying attention — it’s the music and the people of WDUQ that keep me going.

  8. Would there be opportunity to split the baby: local news and NPR goes to 91.3 and jazz remains on 90.5 along with the old WAMO-FM folks – a jazz, R&B, HipHop station seems viable?

  9. no african american radio now no jazz whats next mass gentrification oh yeah thats a work in progress look at the hill district

  10. Speaking as an out-of-state resident and a long-time jazz advocate, this is really a case of not seeing the forest for the trees for the new owners. WDUQ’s all-day jazz programming is quite unique and is something that should be treasured and preserved. And unfortunately, once these things go, they never come back. Pittsburgh radio will be the lesser for it.

    I know that whenever I visit my hometown of Pgh, the first thing I do is lock into WDUQ and it stays that way for my entire visit. What WDUQ (or WYEP) should be concentrating on is taking the brand equity they have in being a leading jazz radio station, and projecting that brand nationwide or even worldwide. I have a jazz radio show on an FM channel and I can attest that more people listen to my show online now than those who tune in via the FM dial. I have many listeners in places like Spain and the Netherlands. The online webcast also opens up many opporutnities for advertising, too, and without breaking up the content of the shows.

    Too often these days, channels think it’s good business to be local. But in truth, it’s a global media environment now. Look how many people have XM Radio. The local news avenue is interesting, but over the long haul it becomes tedious and listeners eventually tune out. As the one poster indicated, there are a billion ways to get news these days. Why would you fidget with your antiquated FM radio to obtain it?

    Don’t let this unique jazz station go down the loo. Take its strenghts and build upon them.

  11. The stewards of WYEP have done such a great job of creating a truly unique Pittsburgh radio institution that not only provides great music programming, but is so tied into Pittsburgh’s art and non-profit scene. I trust that they will make the best choice for the programming on WDUQ after it changes hands. If Jazz needs to go to make way for a local news and information / NPR News format, I am sure Jazz fans will be able to find Jazz music on the internet, satellite radio or through personal music collections.

  12. i disagree with pretty much everyone

    jazz should be on the radio, but duq’s playlist is incredibly sterile. wrti in philadelphia is half-jazz/half-classical but manages to put some interesting, semi-progressive stuff on the air. duq is elevator jazz and glenn miller on the weekends. brutal

    wyep just sucks

  13. markdaniels1010 really?
    WYEP (except for 2 partial days a week)is a adult alternative format- based pre-programmed pseudo top 40 station that has very little to do with its community based origins ( I remember back in the day when they used to actually not have play lists)

  14. I think I am one of the ‘silent majority’ who would listen more to WDUQ if they cut back on the jazz. I understand that some regard the jazz format as something to be “preserved,” because of its uniqueness in the radio world–but I’ll bet a lot of us who love NPR do not love jazz. The constant jazz becomes a reason to turn the dial during the day.
    Sorry to say, but the jazz preservationists probably fit into the category of ‘snoots’ who don’t understand what the rest of the listening public wants. Check out this nice article on a different element of the same NPR debate: http://www.slate.com/id/2286927/

  16. Back when I was young and Jazz was old-people music, I listened to WYEP. That was in the late 70’s. When I started making real money, I started contributing to the station — thousands of dollars, over 20 years for my girlfriend and I (we met at a WYEP member show).

    But sometime in the last decade, WYEP started playlisting, and they started shaving back the hours on their “non-mix” programming. We protested, then stopped contributing, and now, except for a few niche shows, we can’t even stand to listen to it. Like another poster said here, “now they’re an adult alternative format- based pre-programmed pseudo top 40 station that has very little to do with its community based origins.” They abandoned the people who helped build the station. And I know dozens of over-fifty ex-WYEPers who feel the same way.

    Now I listen to WDUQ more than I used to listen to WYEP. It’s not groundbreaking music, but I never feel like someone’s pandering to my listening habits. I think the whole EPM/PPM/PMC/PRC thing smells fishy. The fact that PPM hired initially PRC to act on their behalf, the fact that PPM’s bid was for MORE money (kinda reminds you of the casino fiasco with the Isle of Capri deal), the fact that no one’s talking about it………….. I think WYEP’s got an agenda here, that they want to become content providers (no Virginia , the music doesn’t matter anymore), that they’re just itchin’ to send Wrett and Bumblebee and Mike Canton and Ken Batista packin. WDUQ will provide a handy repository for anything (prosidy, the Allegheny front, etc.) that doesn’t meet their adult contemporary mold. That way, they will finally achieve their manifest destiny of ALL MIX, ALL THE TIME.

    Jack Barton was a visionary.

  18. Why do we need more talk and “information”. I am tired of listening to opinionated news–there is enough talk on the airwaves. Blah, blah, blah all day long. These talk junkies need to learn how to sit down, have a drink, and relax.

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