Programming Announcements

Information about changes to the WAMU 88.5 schedule

FAQ Program descriptions Schedule changes

Letter from Program Director Mark McDonald

Dear listeners,

We've made some changes to our weekday and Saturday schedule starting on Monday, Dec. 11. These changes are in response to feedback and suggestions from listeners over the past couple of years, and the result of intensive audience research into our listeners' preferences. The changes also are designed to help us to introduce both new, innovative programs and established shows not currently heard in this market.

I realize that, for many listeners, WAMU 88.5's programming is part of their daily routine, and when we debut a new show, another program has to leave that slot. Some listeners may wonder why one or two of their regular programs have either moved or are no longer airing (we've added links to where you can now find those shows, below.) However, I'm confident that the new line-up will please you, our listeners. I hope I have answered many of the specific queries you may have in the FAQ's below; if I haven't, or you have additional comments or suggestions, please contact us.

Many thanks for continuing to support, and listen to, WAMU 88.5.

Mark McDonald
Program Director, WAMU 88.5

FAQ Program descriptions Schedule changes

New Weekday Shows

Fresh Air (2 p.m., Monday–Thursday, NPR and WHYY)
Fresh Air with Terry Gross, the Peabody Award-winning weekday magazine of contemporary arts and issues, is one of public radio's most popular programs. Each week, nearly 4.5 million people listen to the show's intimate conversations broadcast on more than 450 stations across the country, as well as in Europe on the World Radio Network. Though Fresh Air has been categorized as a talk show, it hardly fits the mold. Its 1994 Peabody Award citation credits Fresh Air with "probing questions, revelatory interviews, and unusual insights." A variety of top publications count Gross among the country's leading interviewers. The show gives interviews as much time as needed, and complements them with comments from well-known critics and commentators.

Radio Lab (10 p.m., Tuesdays, WNYC)
Radio Lab is an investigation. Each episode is a patchwork of people, sounds, stories, and experiences centered around One Big Idea. On Radio Lab, science bumps into culture... information sounds like music. Hosted by Jad Abumrad and Robert Krulwich, Radio Lab is designed for listeners who demand skepticism but appreciate wonder, who are curious about the world but who also want to be moved and surprised.

Homeland Security - Inside And Out (10 p.m., Wednesdays, Independent)
Homeland Security features news and insight from key homeland security officials at the federal, state, and local levels plus private sector leaders, the academic community, and the media. Homeland Security is produced by the non-partisan, non-profit Institute for Homeland Security based in Washington D.C., in partnership with Texas A&M University and KAMU-FM in Central Texas.

Interfaith Voices (10 p.m., Thursdays, Independent/WAMU)
Maureen Fiedler, SL, hosts engaging and informative discussion on the key public issues of the day through the lenses of many different faith perspectives. The program fosters religious tolerance and educates listeners on the broad diversity of religious traditions and viewpoints in the United States. Its purpose is to promote interfaith understanding through dialogue. The show does not proselytize; it deals with a wide range of issues where theology intersects with public policy, including social justice, war and peace, electoral politics, separation of church (synagogue/mosque, etc.) and state, human rights, sexual and reproductive issues, racial/ethnic discrimination, women's rights, and many more.

New Weekend Shows

Calling All Pets (7 a.m., Wisconsin Public Radio)
Zoologist Patricia McConnell and co-host Larry Meiller team up to help listeners bring out the best in their pets. Get down-to-earth advice about pet problems, big and small, and fascinating information about wildlife.

Only A Game (1 p.m., WBUR/NPR)
There's the sports world and there's the rest of the world; NPR brings them together on Only A Game. An award-winning weekly sports magazine hosted by veteran NPR commentator Bill Littlefield, Only A Game is radio for the serious sports fan and the steadfast sports avoider. Produced by WBUR in Boston, Only A Game puts sports in perspective with intelligent analysis, insightful interviews, and a keen sense humor.

The Splendid Table (2 p.m., American Public Media)
The Splendid Table is a culinary, culture, and lifestyle one-hour program that celebrates food and its ability to touch the lives and feed the souls of everyone. Each week, award-winning host Lynne Rossetto Kasper leads listeners on a journey of the senses and hosts discussions with a variety of writers and personalities who share their passion for the culinary delights.

Marketplace Money (5 p.m., American Public Media)
Host Kai Ryssdal looks at the week's major national and international stories that will impact the average listener's wallet. During the hour-long program, Ryssdal and his guests help listeners map out the course to financial well-being, offering advice on topics like how to pay for college and whether to buy or lease a car as well as the individual impact of national stories like the mutual fund scandal.

FAQ Program descriptions Schedule changes

FAQ

What's moving where?

Weekdays

Fresh Air with Terry Gross will replace Talk of the Nation at 2 p.m., Mondays-Thursdays.

To The Point with Warren Olney will move from 10 p.m., to air at 3 p.m., Mondays-Thursdays, replacing The World, which moves to 7 p.m.

Talk of the Nation: Science Friday will air from 2-4 p.m., Fridays.

At 10 p.m., we are introducing a diverse, rotating line-up of local and syndicated programming including Interfaith Voices, Latino USA, Soundprint, the second hour of the newly expanded "Friday News Roundup" of The Diane Rehm Show, and Homeland Security – Inside and Out, slated to première on January 10. On Tuesdays, the 10 p.m., hour will be dedicated to special in-house productions, timely local election coverage, and experimental programming such as the patchwork of sounds of the New York-based Radio Lab.

Weekends

Changes to the Saturday schedule are: the addition of Calling All Pets, featuring down-to-earth advice to help listeners bring out the best in their pets, at 7 a.m.; moving This American Life to noon; and adding the award-winning sports show Only a Game at 1 p.m., award-winning host Lynne Rossetto Kasper's culinary and lifestyle program The Splendid Table at 2 p.m., and Marketplace Money's insights on personal finance at 5 p.m.

Why is The World moving?

Many listeners asked for The World to be given a slot in drive-time, which happens late in the Washington region. So we have moved the program to 7 p.m., where it will provide an international perspective on the day's events at a time when workers are heading home. Local news, weather, traffic, and information from James White will still be heard within the broadcast.

Why is To The Point moving?

Warren Olney's program has been so successful at 10 p.m., that we felt we should make it available to a bigger listening audience earlier in the day. We hope that our many loyal late-evening listeners will enjoy the diverse range of public affairs programs we'll be offering in that time slot, and also enjoy To the Point at its new time.

Why is This American Life moving?

Audience research shows that fans of Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me also like Ira Glass, so we thought we'd pair the shows together earlier on Saturdays. We realize that we have moved this enormously popular program twice in four years, but we believe this slot will be its permanent home.

Why is Talk of the Nation being removed from the schedule?

The Talk of the Nation team has produced a consistently high-quality and captivating news and public affairs program day after day. The show has been a consistent presence on WAMU 88.5 for many years. However, The Diane Rehm Show and The Kojo Nnamdi Show already offer a total of four hours of public affairs programming daily, with significant input from listeners through calls and emails. In addition, many listeners have written to us demanding a better slot for Fresh Air with Terry Gross, which currently airs at 3 a.m. We believe 2 p.m., is a good opportunity for a gear-change, to a program which focuses more on in-depth interviews of authors, artists, and prominent public figures.

Why is Whad'ya Know being removed from the schedule?

The program has built a following on WAMU 88.5, but we've found from our audience research that a lot of you were tuning out at middays on Saturdays. We decided it was time to make some changes, offering programming that is previously unheard in the market, but is just as friendly and compelling, and moving This American Life to a new time slot.

If I'm still interested in these shows, where can I go to find them?

Audio, transcipts, archives, streams and podcasting of Talk of the Nation can be found online at npr.org. Streams of archive programs, podcasts, and information on Whad'ya Know are at notmuch.com.

If I have comments about these changes, how do I communicate them to WAMU 88.5?

We'd like to hear your views, especially once you've heard our new programs.

FAQ Program descriptions Schedule changes

WAMU 88.5 Monday-Friday Schedule Effective December 11

Schedule changes in bold.

5:00 a.m. Morning Edition

5:50 a.m. Marketplace Morning Report

6:00 a.m. Morning Edition

7:50 a.m. Marketplace Morning Report

8:00 a.m. Morning Edition

10:00 a.m. The Diane Rehm Show

12:00 p.m. The Kojo Nnamdi Show (1 p.m., Fridays, Metro Connection)

2:00 p.m. Fresh Air (2-4 p.m., Fridays, Talk of the Nation: Science Friday)

3:00 p.m. To the Point

4:00 p.m. All Things Considered

6:00 p.m. Marketplace

6:30 p.m. All Things Considered

7:00 p.m. The World

8:00 p.m. Stardate

8:06 p.m. The Kojo Nnamdi Show

9:00 p.m. The Diane Rehm Show

10:00 p.m. M: Latino USA/Soundprint, T: Public Space,
W: Homeland Security, Th: Interfaith Voices,
F: Friday News Roundup second hour

11:00 p.m. As It Happens

12:00 a.m. The World Today

12:30 a.m. Newslink

1:00 a.m. The World Today

2:00 a.m. News & Notes

3:00 a.m. Fresh Air with Terry Gross

4:00 a.m. World Briefing

4:20 a.m. World Business Report

4:30 a.m. Outlook

4:45 a.m. Off The Shelf

WAMU 88.5 Saturday Schedule Effective December 16

4:00 a.m. The Ticket

5:00 a.m. Metro Connection

6:00 a.m. The Parent’s Journal

7:00 a.m. Calling All Pets

8:00 a.m. Car Talk

9:00 a.m. Weekend Edition Saturday

11:00 a.m. Wait, Wait...Don't Tell Me

Noon This American Life

1:00 p.m. Only a Game

2:00 p.m. The Splendid Table

3:00 p.m. On the Media

4:00 p.m. Studio 360

5:00 p.m. Marketplace Money

6:00 p.m. All Things Considered

7:00 p.m. Hot Jazz Saturday Night

10:00 p.m. American Routes

Midnight Bluegrass Overnight