The NPR Ombudsman, Jeffrey Dvorkin, posted this week an entry on the NPR website titled, “The Year in Review.” I was so annoyed by some of his comments that I felt compelled to respond:

1) The man’s name is Bob EdwardS, not Bob Edward. He hasn’t been gone so long that you should have made that mistake. But then, NPR always gets a little…goofy…when discussing him.

2) You seem to be alone thinking the current NPR Morning Zoo holds a candle to the show prior to 30 April. I haven’t talked to anyone who thinks the “Barbie and Ken” happy-talk nonsense is a reasonable substitute.

3) Not everyone trusts NPR - lord knows the network has worked very hard to destroy any trust we once had in it. There are many of us so disillusioned with the current state of NPR that we are cheerfully finding other places for our ears…and our dollars. Unlike the good-old-days when you had a monopoly and we’d listen whether we liked it or not, there are many other options today. Many of us are finding them, and leaving you behind in your search for higher ratings. When a single member station can put together an afternoon news magazine that blows the NPR offering out of the water, it’s clear NPR is not only one option of many, but not necessarily the best choice.

4) Someone suggested in a posting I read you might change your title to “The Ombuddy.” I think that’s too harsh, but at the same time you do tend to be an apologist for the network. Not that they don’t consistantly need one, of course, to try to explain their bizarre decisions…

Charlie Summers