Julia Altshuler wrote:
> My local PBS radio station is fundraising again. It seems like that's
> all they do. They keep telling me how much I value their station
> because of wonderful programs like All Things Considered, and I do like
> the show-- when it's airing. But more and more, it seems like all they
> do is fundraise. Does anyone know how many days out of the year are
> spent on fundraising and how many are actual news? It's one of those
> things where it seems like about 20% of the time is fundraising, but I
> doubt it could actually be that high. Anyone know where I could find
> the information without keeping track on a calendar? When I google, I
> get led to webpages cajoling me to give more money, not answering the
> question.


That is a good question and has long been a pet peeve of mine. The roll
out all kinds of the old favourites like Monthy Python, Fawlty Towers
and such and then tell the viewers that if they want to watch those
shows then let them know by calling in a pledge. That is the last you
will see of those shows until their next begathon. After a bit of
Googling I came across an article (a rant about the begathons) that
indicates that the pledge drives amount to about 2% of their air time.