WFSU program cuts: your show could be next
- Publication: Florida Flambeau
- Date: 1985-05-06
- Author: Will Crooke
- Page: 18
- Language: English
Eleven at Noon bites the dust. Could Dr. Who be next?
The first casuality of rising costs and decreasing funds at WFSU-TV will be Eleven at Noon, which airs for the last time on May 31. The live, community affairs talk-show, produced by WFSU, had a large following among retirees in Panama" City and within the environs of Tallahassee, but apparently not enough financial support to keep it on the air.
Other popular shows such as Dr. Who, Latenight America, and Hitchcock Presents may also go to the financial chopping block if funds are not raised soon, said WFSU's Program Director Pat Keating.
"During our last fundraiser (March 8 to 24) we only raised $128,000 towards our $150,000 goal. But even if we had made that goal, it still wouldn't cover all of our $230,000 yearly programming costs," Keating said.
Although WFSU has a large following of devoted viewers for many of its programs, people just don't realize how important their financial contributions are to the survival of their favorite shows, he said.
"Dr. Who is wildly popular, and if we run a series out of sequence we get plenty of phone calls, but we're just not getting the pledges we hoped for to be able to continue it," he said.
Ironically, Keating added, if the over 250,000 households reached by the WFSU air signal donated just one dollar per year, WFSU would have ample funds to purchase the standard PBS programs, and shows as Dr. Who which have become cult favorites. While this may seem like a good buy in today's television market where cable bills can reach hundreds of dollars per year, viewers have not responded to WFSU's fundraising efforts, Keating said, and cuts will have to be made.
"We decided to cut Eleven at Noon because of the wear and tear on the cameras, and the cost and number of people involved in producing a live, daily talk-show," Keating said.
Keating said that although the shows which WFSU produces — Southern Circuit, Vibrations, the Newsmakers — take the biggest bite out of the budget, they also make the difference between a TV station which is just a transmitting link, and one which serves the community in a personal way.
"Our programming is aimed at people who decide to watch a program they may have to think about. We are especially concerned about that kind of values kids are picking up on Saturday mornings, seeing cartoon characters crashing cars and bashing each other," Keating said. "Parents don't have to worry about that with programs like Sesame Street."
Keating doesn't blame the community, however, for WFSU's present financial jam. He said viewers have stuck with WFSU, but due to inflation in the TV industry programming costs at WFSU have increased from $175,000 to $230,000 just over the past year.
"We'd like to get that message across to people, so we can stop doing these fundraisers," Keating said. "People tell us these things are getting annoying. I feel the same way."
Other plans for raising funds are under consideration, he said, including the use of the WFSU satellite system to sell programs to other stations, but these plans won't come to fruition for some time.
"In the meantime, we'll keep trying to remind people on a year-round basis that we need their help to serve them better... We still need you," Keating said.
If you would like to make a pledge of a financial contribution to WFSU-TV, call 487-3060.
Disclaimer: These citations are created on-the-fly using primitive parsing techniques. You should double-check all citations. Send feedback to whovian@cuttingsarchive.org
- APA 6th ed.: Crooke, Will (1985-05-06). WFSU program cuts: your show could be next. Florida Flambeau p. 18.
- MLA 7th ed.: Crooke, Will. "WFSU program cuts: your show could be next." Florida Flambeau [add city] 1985-05-06, 18. Print.
- Chicago 15th ed.: Crooke, Will. "WFSU program cuts: your show could be next." Florida Flambeau, edition, sec., 1985-05-06
- Turabian: Crooke, Will. "WFSU program cuts: your show could be next." Florida Flambeau, 1985-05-06, section, 18 edition.
- Wikipedia (this article): <ref>{{cite news| title=WFSU program cuts: your show could be next | url=http://cuttingsarchive.org/index.php/WFSU_program_cuts:_your_show_could_be_next | work=Florida Flambeau | pages=18 | date=1985-05-06 | via=Doctor Who Cuttings Archive | accessdate=21 August 2025 }}</ref>
- Wikipedia (this page): <ref>{{cite web | title=WFSU program cuts: your show could be next | url=http://cuttingsarchive.org/index.php/WFSU_program_cuts:_your_show_could_be_next | work=Doctor Who Cuttings Archive | accessdate=21 August 2025}}</ref>
