KPLU: A View From Inside

"On Nov. 12, 2015, at a few minutes before noon, KPLU employees filed into a conference room in the Seattle office for a mysterious all-staff meeting. There were two empty chairs at the front of the room. One of our freelance reporters, Monica Spain, came into the room with her recording gear and headphones. 

"I looked at our news director, Erin Hennessey. 

“'Why does Monica have recording gear? What’s going on?' I asked her. 

“'This is going to be news,' she answered. I got a pit in my stomach, bracing myself for what was to come. 

"In walked Thomas Krise, president of Pacific Lutheran University, and Donna Gibbs, the university’s vice president of marketing and communications. They sat down in the two chairs in front and then delivered the news none of us wanted or was prepared to hear. The university had reached a secret deal to sell the station to the University of Washington, which runs the rival public radio station, KUOW. 

"KUOW would turn our signal, 88.5 FM, into a 24-hour music station. KPLU’s award-winning newsroom would cease to exist. None of KPLU’s 54 employees would be guaranteed a job at KUOW or at the new music station. Krise framed the decision as one that would benefit listeners by giving them a dedicated news station, KUOW, and a dedicated music station on 88.5 FM. 

"But reaction from KPLU’s approximately 440,000 on-air and online listeners was swift and intensely critical. People around Western Washington have come to depend on KPLU’s blend of NPR news shows and local reporting covering beats such as law and justice, business and labor, the environment and education, as well as celebrated and knowledgeable jazz and blues shows featuring hosts such as Abe Beeson, Dick Stein, Mary McCann and John Kessler. The outcry from fans of Kessler’s All Blues shows, in particular, was extraordinary. Some suggested that if KPLU could remain independent, its new call letters should be KSLR for Kessler. 

"More than 200 people packed a hotel conference room a week and a half later to register their frustration and sorrow. 

“'When I first heard about the news, I cried,' said Linda Farmer. 'I’m heartbroken. It’s like losing a trusted friend.'

"Ashley Salazar gave an emotional plea. 

“'I humbly come before you as the spouse of a special forces military member,' she said. 'KPLU has been there for me for a decade of many sleepless nights.'

"Coming to work every day was difficult. People were emotional and distracted. Some began job-hunting. Others remained stunned. A grassroots Save KPLU campaign got underway but many of us had a hard time seeing how the deal could be undone. 

"Then, shortly before Christmas, came the unbelievable news. Both universities and their boards of regents had been flooded with so much outraged email from KPLU fans that UW President Ana Mari Cauce decided to give a community group the chance to fundraise and buy KPLU to keep it as an independent station. UW Associate Vice President Norm Arkans said if the community group was successful, UW would step aside. 

"The news was the best Christmas present ever for KPLU fans and employees. Raising $7 million by the end of June is no small feat, and we’ll need lots of help to reach that goal. But preserving a source of independent, in-depth news reporting and a unique station known for some of the funniest and most knowledgeable music hosts in the country is worth the effort." 

This item was originally featured in the April 2016 local newsletter.