As they announced Steiner's departure, station officials said his program was the only one with falling ratings. But reports indicate that WYPR's ratings have been falling overall.
In the fall of 2005, about 170,500 listeners were tuning in to the station every week, according to Radio Research Consortium. By last fall, the number had dropped to 142,000, a decline of about 17 percent. During the same time, Steiner's audience sank about 21 percent, to 37,400 from 47,300.
When the station faced financial troubles in 2002, Steiner waged a campaign to purchase it, appealing for funds in an e-mail drive that raised $750,000, an amount that station officials question. Eventually, the station was saved when eight investors stepped in as guarantors to secure a loan to buy the station.
FOR THE RECORD - An article in Thursday's Maryland section about a meeting of the WYPR community advisory board said incorrectly that it appeared that no one from the station's management was there. WYPR President and General Manager Anthony S. Brandon and other station representatives attended the meeting.
The Sun regrets the error.
As a result of his efforts on behalf of the station, Steiner, 61, had become WYPR's public face. Since he was fired, protesters have gathered outside the station every day, petitions have circulated, and many people have threatened to stop listening or withhold their financial support for the station. Fearing that the public mood would ruin the pledge drive set for this month, the station canceled the fundraiser.
"Without Marc Steiner, I don't listen to WYPR," Gregg Mosson, a teacher and writer, told the board. "I'm not going to renew my membership unless Marc Steiner is back on the air."
The community board promised to pass the audience sentiments on to the station's board of directors at its next meeting, on March 12. Board members said a tape of the meeting would be posted on the advisory board's part of WYPR's Web site.
Ellen Robbins, a Johns Hopkins University lecturer and "Ellen from Baltimore," said she felt "bereft" at the loss of the show. Others spoke of how the show taught them about their community.
"Did they realize we had one of the best talk show hosts in the country?" asked Dave Eberhardt of Guilford. "Did they realize the community considered him a gem?"
jill.rosen@baltsun.com
