08.07
As many of you may know, KPFT just had a fund drive and we had 2 episodes of fundraising for Technology Bytes. We were not able to make our goal on either night and we barely made half of the goal on the second night. In 4 of the past 5 fundraising episodes of Technology Bytes we have fallen short of our goal.
I am growing more and more concerned that we do not have enough of an audience or enough support to continue to be worthy of a 2 hour primetime weeknight slot on KPFT. Our fundraising goals add up to pretty much what it costs KPFT to have the show on the air – when we don’t make the goals it means some other show is paying our way. It can’t be lost on station management when Technology Bytes can’t raise enough to cover its own airtime. They have been nothing but supportive of the show over the years and it is painful when the show doesn’t live up to that support.
So where do we go from here? Is there something we need to change about the show? Something that we are doing (or not doing) that prevents our listeners from supporting the show? It isn’t a passing comment when we say during fund drive that meeting our goals is a way that we measure how much you support the program. Is it time that we wind the show down and give up the slot to someone new?
If you want the show to continue and you didn’t pledge recently, you can still support Technology Bytes in the current fund drive by using the tip jar and making sure to note that this is a pledge for Technology Bytes. If you call in during a different show and pledge, I don’t know if it will get credited to Tech Bytes. You can make sure the volunteer notes it down and email us or use the contact form on this site to let us know when you pledged and the amount. I would think that if we raised about $1,000 through these alternate methods that it would show that Technology Bytes can still meet its goals and does have an audience that supports it. It would let us know that the show has something to offer for you. If not, do you really think it is time to bring it to a close?
Peter Hughes
Host, Technology Bytes