Rural Programming Initiative
Final Report, KDNK

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1. You set some programming-related goals for your station when we began this project.
Please describe which ones you have accomplished; which ones you are still working on and where you are in that process; which ones you have abandoned and why you abandoned them.

On the most part, we accomplished our programming goals. We have tightened up our "air-sound" and added Democracy Now to our program schedule.

Has there been a financial impact-either directly or indirectly-as a result of your participation in this project? (For example, has membership increased or decreased; have you used the research to get new underwriters or raise your rates; have you used the research in seeking and getting grants). Please tell us the percentage increase or decrease in financial support since the summer of 2001 that can be tied to programming and/or the use of the research.

I believe there is a direct financial impact from the changes we've made. Adding Democracy Now to our schedule, Monday-Friday, especially during these times of war and unrest in the world has brought a huge amount of new members to the station. The increase in members is about 20% since 2001. We created underwriting demographic and listener packets for use in underwriting sales. We've had one rate increase since the project began and plan another for the first of the year. I have used the information for several grants. It has finally given us the data needed to prove our powerful voice in our area.

3. Please summarize what you have learned about programming and listening at your station as a result of your participation in this project.

Being part of this project has been an incredible experience for me. There are so many assumptions we made about programming and listener response that are really not valid. Learning about how people listen to radio, how to evaluate a program, identifying the number of listeners we have, when they listen, how they listen, where they live, etc. has been an incredible tool for the staff and board. Ginny Berson /is a wonderful teacher of radio programming. Rural stations have their own set of circumstances that require the kind of respect and thoughtful consideration Ginny gave.

I've learned so much it's difficult to relay all the information. The project is an outstanding service to small stations like ours.

4. Can you generalize from anything you have learned about programming and listening at your station that would be useful for other rural public radio stations?

One of the biggest things I learned was to try and understand the audience in a fair way. Realizing that one phone call from a listener does not necessarily reflect the full audience. Also, I learned to listen to the station with a keen ear. Improving our air sound while respecting the eclectic patchwork programming the station is known for.