Program Costs Rising

August 4, 2013

This is from the Manager’s Desk.

This is the month when we look at the new pricing for programs we purchase from our program suppliers. The largest three suppliers are National Public Radio, Public Radio International, and American Public Media.

The program costs from these big three sources for this new fiscal year are increasing by a total of 10%. That means for this next year, we will pay over $32,000 more for the programs we have on the air right now.

This is the steepest increase we have seen in several years, and is almost double what I was expecting. Even more, we are facing decreases in support from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and the University in this new fiscal year. What that means is that listener and underwriting support will be even more important.

In the next few weeks, we will be evaluating the situation and I’ll keep you informed.

Thanks! From the Manager’s Desk, I’m Karen Holp.