Re: WBUR-FM suspends 2 in "Connection" flap

[dan.strassberg@att.net]

Thanks to Mark Jurkowitz's article in today's Globe, 
Lydon's salary, that of his producer, and WBUR's 
proposed increases and bonuses are now public knowledge.

Christo's salary and bonuses are still private 
information, however.

My guess is that Christo gets more money than any other 
individual in Boston radio today. I have no inside 
information, but I suspect that she pulls down close to 
$500,000 per year.

Arguably, she is worth it. The Globe article says that 
WBUR's annual budget is $19 million. I imagine that one 
or two Boston stations (WMJX, WBZ, maybe WBCN) bill 
more, but $19 million has got to be one of the highest 
annual budgets of any US public radio station.

If Christo were GM of, say, WRKO, do you think she could 
get the station to bill $19 million? I doubt it. WBUR 
may or may not have better numbers than WRKO, but what 
WBUR has in spades that no commercial station in Boston 
(save possibly WCRB) can ever hope to have is cachet. A 
10-second underwriting credit on WBUR, buried in the 
middle of five other such credits has to be worth more 
to an advertiser than six 30-second spots on WRKO or WBZ.

> Another thought:  The article shows that management at the allegedly
> "non-commercial" WBUR is no less driven by money than their counterparts at
> "commercial" stations.