E-Mail This Article to a Friend MEDIA ‘Streamlining’ sparks cuts at WBUR BY IAN DONNIS

In its first significant personnel cuts in three years, WBUR Radio (90.9 FM) is revising the format of its midday newsmagazine, Here and Now, moving an unspecified number of the show’s staffers to other programs, eliminating one staff position, and, in what it calls an unrelated move, cutting two positions in the news/programming department. WBUR, which had lofty ambitions when it brought public radio to Rhode Island with the establishment of WRNI (1290 AM), in 1998, is also cutting in half that station’s four-person news operation and scrapping its weekly one-hour newsmagazine.

WBUR spokeswoman Mary Stohn attributed the moves, effective September 8, to a quest for greater efficiency at the two stations. In November 2001, when six employees at WBUR and three at WRNI were let go — an event that WBUR general manager Jane Christo called the first layoffs in her operation’s history (see "Don’t Quote Me," News and Features, November 29, 2001) — a 35 percent drop in corporate underwriting got the blame. Stohn declined to discuss the fiscal situation at the two stations.

In a statement, Stohn wrote that Here and Now will be revamped "to feature host Robin Young. Young will focus on the long-form piece and comprehensive interviews that have been her trademark throughout her career in broadcasting. The new Here and Now will highlight Young’s skill as an interviewer and showcase her considerable experience with in-depth journalistic pieces." Stohn declined to specify how many staffers will be reassigned to other programs, calling such a change "pretty common and pretty frequent."

When asked about the reason for the cuts, Stohn says, "The organization took a look at jobs and positions, and decided we needed to create efficiencies. Many organizations do this on a regular basis, and unfortunately, we realized that to create efficiencies, we need to eliminate two [news/programming] positions."

Although it sounds as if Here and Now may simply include fewer labor-intensive, highly produced pieces, the impact of the cuts at WRNI in Providence threaten to be far more serious. Stohn declined to elaborate much beyond saying that two of four news positions will be eliminated, and the displaced staffers (reportedly morning anchor Deb Becker and reporter Martha Bebinger, both marquee players) reassigned to WBUR. "We looked at WRNI and, again, needed to create efficiencies and streamline the organization," Stohn says. "It’s unfortunate." When asked about WRNI’s fiscal support, she says, "The audience is there. It’s doing well — it’s doing pretty much what we thought it would be from an audience standpoint."

The cuts at WRNI are broader than first indicated by Stohn. Although she initially indicated that Focus: Rhode Island was not being canceled, it is, in fact, being scrapped, she says, because of limited resources. Stohn blamed a "misunderstanding" on her part for the erroneous earlier information. Focus: Rhode Island, the weekly hourlong newsmagazine, replaced One Union Station, which had featured two hours of daily, locally produced, magazine-style programming, in early 2002 (disclosure: I have been an occasional unpaid guest on Focus: Rhode Island). Three years ago, the cuts at WRNI led some to question whether the station, and its Boston-based parent, was upholding the pledge used to attract initial financial backing. As Dr. Pablo Rodriguez, the medical director of Planned Parenthood of Rhode Island and a public-radio supporter, told me at the time, "My expectation was that the local programming would increase, not decrease, when they first began with One Union Station. It’s a big surprise to me."

For her part, Stohn notes that Rhode Island (as well as Delaware) didn’t have its own public radio station until WBUR came along. "It’s lived up to our expectations, and we believe the community is responding by listening to the station," she says, "and the numbers show that." Citing a number of awards from the Associated Press and other sources, Stohn adds, "The station has done nothing but excel."

Some of the changes in 2001 could be ascribed to the exigencies of reporting on the aftermath of September 11, and the subsequent development of WBUR’s thought-provoking On Point, hosted by Tom Ashbrook. Still, if Rhode Island supporters of public radio were cross in 2001, they seem likely to become far more upset now.