[BC] Another public station bites the dust

[gRAdy Moates]

> > both are formats that I personally would never listen to, and 
> > in most markets attract a negligible audience overall outside 
> > my personal opinion.
> > So why waste the spectrum or the energy to transmit on it :)

> I have the answer:  let's run TV "infomercials" and radio ads for the
> Psychic Friends Network, Procylon, and the International Star 
> Registry on our scarce "public airwaves" instead!
> 
> The Federal government's position on format choice is clear:  whoever
> raises the most money to buy a license is in the best position to
> decide what programming best serves listeners.  We wouldn't want to 
> be confused with Canada, would we?

( rant mode on )

    About ten years ago, Kentucky Fried Chicken introduced a new product: 
skinless chicken, breaded and high-pressure-deep-fried like the 
regular stuff, but much lower in cholesterol and "bad fat", while 
tasting almost exactly the same as the regular stuff.  
    I loved it.  It was the right fast-food product at the right time, 
just as the general public was starting to show concern for dietary 
health issues.  
    Five months later they discontinued it.  Why?  "Because it wasn't 
a large enough percentage of our overall sales!"  I swear to Todd that 
was the answer I got from the manager of the store I frequented.  
    Every product on the menu can't be more than 50% of sales.  As soon 
as you have three products, one of them will be less than 33%, usually 
quite a bit less.  With four products, that number plummets to 25%, and 
is usually less than 15%.  

    Just because a "format" is not of interest to the majority of 
listeners does not make it less important.  In some cases, it makes 
it MORE important.  As an example, look at the Billions (B) of dollars 
that are spent on creating and maintaining the many museums and libraries 
around the world, and then examine the percentage of the population 
who actually USE these resources.  By the logic of "hey, if most people 
don't want it, it has no value", we should close all the museums and 
libraries tomorrow!  

( rant mode off )  ( for now ) 

Grady