In the Trenches: Membership in Turbulent Times

It’s hard to get members to focus when their personal finances are in peril and many aren’t sure their local banks will be around next week.

Two questions are being asked by nearly everyone:

1. What’s happening?

2. What should I do?

Let’s take them in order. According to a recent public-television station poll taken during a conference call last week, pledge dollars are down 13 percent and pledges are down 9.8 percent. Direct mail and telemarketing vary widely — with more of a performance swing from station to station than we have seen in a long time. On the other hand, public radio news and information pledging is generally strong.