To my shock, I learned this morning that WETA, the local NPR station, no longer broadcasts classical music. Instead, it has an endless stream of fatuous pontificators on world events (whoops -- I mean an "expand[ed] . . . portfolio of informative and enriching radio offerings"), principally from NPR and the BBC.

Oh well. Why should the public subsidize my taste for classical music, especially because my options are expanding rapidly? I can subscribe to Napster, or to satellite radio, or, at home, tune in to three channels of 24/7 classical over my cable TV connection.

It is indeed time for the broadcast model to change, and in the end I will benefit greatly from being able to vote with my money. So bring it on. Pay radio is the wave of the future, and hurrah!

But by the way, explain to me again: just why is it that my tax money should pay for you to listen to the BBC?

posted by James DeLong @ 1:37 PM | Markets: Business, Investment & Innovation

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