If you listen to public radio, you’ve come to dread it too, writes June Thomas in Slate; at least twice a year, the airwaves are dedicated to fundraising, with broadcasters plying listeners with New Yorker subscriptions and tote bags in exchange for a few bucks. Thomas studied the pleas from two winter drives and came up with 10 cunning ways public radio gets you to pay up:
- The guilt trip, in which the stations manage to squeeze in plenty of heart-tugging stories between its pleas. "In other words: Hey, liberal, are you sure you'd rather spend your money on a new iPhone case?"
- The “overdue bill” pitch, where the host reminds you how much you take from public radio.
- The “only you can save journalism” plea. "Don't trust the capitalist press, comrades! Now give us some money."
- The sign-of-the-times pitch. In these dire economic straits, all who are solvent should pay in to help those less fortunate maintain their favorite programming.
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National Public Radio stories.)