Boston-based NPR member station WBUR could be the latest major public radio station to face job cuts as a result of significant sponsorship shortfalls. CEO Margaret Low conveyed the stark reality of the station’s financial challenges in an email to donors.
A potential hiring freeze and layoffs are on the table, pressing the urgent need for increased donor support. Low revealed that sponsorship revenue has plummeted by 40 percent over the last five years, equating to nearly a $7 million shortfall.
Low, who took the helm at WBUR in 2019 after serving in executive roles at NPR and The Atlantic, is facing these challenges head-on, following a period of significant expansion and innovation under her predecessor, Charlie Kravetz. The station, which operates under a license owned by Boston University, is exploring all options to navigate this financial downturn while striving to safeguard its journalism and workforce.
WBUR’s union, part of SAG-AFTRA, is actively engaging with station management to mitigate the impact of these financial pressures, aiming to avert the “worst case scenario” of layoffs. Union representatives, including Chief Broadcast Officer for News and Broadcast at SAG-AFTRA Mary Cavallaro and senior news editor and union steward David Greene, have voiced their concerns about the station’s future and the imperative to protect both jobs and the quality of journalism.
The challenges at WBUR are not isolated, as evidenced by recent layoffs and strategy shifts at numerous other public radio stations, including Washington DC’s WAMU, Los Angeles’ KCRW, New York Public Radio, and Sacramento’s CapRadio.
WBUR’s management has yet to make final decisions regarding potential layoffs but would be required to provide 60 days’ notice for any cuts to union positions.
Exactly. Public radio used to be considered “Educational”. Now it’s just another news outlet.
What all NPR (and PBS) stations need to understand is this fact: down to earth, conservative, clean living, socially conscious, forward thinking listeners ( and viewers) were its early ardent and faithful supporters. When NPR took a sharp left liberal turn in its content many, many of those early listeners stopped tuning in, stopped financially supporting.