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WNYC’s refusal to allow representatives of “too Jewish” Jews a seat at the microphone shines a revealing light on point three of the station’s own Media Code, mentioned above, in which it pledges to “Pursue fairness and responsiveness in content and services, with particular attention to reflecting diversity of demography, culture, and beliefs.”
In case you’re wondering if any of this really matters, I can assure you it does. Its audience may not be a huge one, but as evidenced by its advertisers and contributors, WNYC reaches an upscale group of opinion makers and political movers and shakers.
We should be very concerned when a media outlet like WNYC – which still gets 10 percent of its funding from our taxes – denies us representation and a voice, even as it offers our critics and antagonists ample airtime.
It is surely ironic that a unanimous Supreme Court – on grounds that it violated the Fourteenth Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause with regard to equal representation – declared the city body that created WNYC unconstitutional.
The city’s Orthodox Jews still suffer from unequal (many would call it non-existent) representation in the programming heard on WNYC.
WNYC launched its winter fundraising drive this week. The station is asking listeners to pledge their financial support. I think it might be a good time for all who share the concerns I’ve raised to consider offering their support for what is often excellent radio only if the station begins to show signs of trying to live up to the goals of its own stated code of conduct.
The first step would be to stop denying a voice to the city’s burgeoning Orthodox community.
