WETA DEMANDS $50K BY JAN.16 TO KEEP EE ON AIR
By Larry Jaffee
WASHINGTON, DC—WETA has given EastEnders fans an ultimatum to come up with $50,000 by Jan. 16, 2007 or lose the show on Jan. 27.
By Dec. 5, the fans already made pledges totaling $27,600 — believed to be enough to cover the station's licence fee for the show — only to be told by station program director Kevin Harris that they needed to raise nearly twice as much to cover a second year, according to Michael A. Gordon, a Washington, DC real estate lawyer, who has spearheaded the fan effort to save the series.
(Editor's note: If you're from outside the WETA viewing area and would like to contribute to the cause, call immediately either Michael Gordon at , Saul Rosen at , or Florence Neider at .)
"The January 16 deadline is "contrary to what we were told at our meeting, but we were anticipating the change," said Gordon. Harris' reason for demanding a two-year amount is that he "doesn't want to have to go through this again next year."
Gordon told the Walford Gazette he is urging everyone who has already pledged to double his or her commitment.
The WETA board of trustees did not allow EastEnders fans to speak at a meeting in early December. Prior to that meeting, Gordon and Judy Hallett, a local college professor in late November met with Harris, WETA president & CEO Sharon Rockefeller and WETA board chairman John Hechinger to urge WETA to reverse the cancellation decision. They left with knowing that "the only way" EastEnders could be saved was coming up with $50,000.
This ultimatum easily eclipsed WLIW's January 2005 demand of $29,000 (nearly $35,000 was raised) for only one year, and to the station's credit the show is still on the air in the New York area.
The DC-area fans, who hail from Maryland, Virginia and the nation's capitol, will receive their checks back from Gordon if they fall short of the $50,000 needed.
Gordon and his steering committee contacted other public TV stations in the area, and initially there was some interest from one but only if it could control "national rights," which is not the case with EastEnders. Hence, it purportedly lost interest.
"All of us believe that the 'offer' that was made by WETA borders on being extortionate," wrote Gordon in an e-mail to concerned fans. "However, the station has made it clear that it is non-negotiable and it seems as if they would prefer we simply give up. If we do so, we will only be spiting ourselves. THEREFORE, IF YOU STILL WANT TO SAVE THE SHOW, THIS IS OUR ONLY CHANCE FOR DOING SO. There is simply nothing else we can tell them that will change the terms of the offer."
The Washington Post published in October a favourable piece about the fans' plight and was somewhat sympathetic to their cause, but the writer obviously knew nothing of the show.
Back to Latest Articles