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Strategies & Market Trends : Zeev's Turnips - No Politics -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Math Junkie who wrote (43630)	3/25/2002 1:15:39 AM
From: puborectalis	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 99280

Business: Maryland Public Television fires Louis Rukeyser By JAIME HERNANDEZ, Associated Press BALTIMORE (March 24, 2002 11:03 p.m. EST) - Maryland Public Television is firing Louis Rukeyser from its popular finance and investment show, saying the longtime host used the program to talk about a contract dispute and promote his new show. Robert J. Shuman, MPT's president and CEO, said Sunday night that "Wall $treet With Louis Rukeyser" aired for the last time Friday. Rukeyser, the show's host for all of its 32 years, said last week that he was leaving the program as it was being revamped by MPT. Alternate shows will be used until the station launches its new "Wall $treet Week with Fortune" next fall, he said. "We were surprised and saddened that he chose to use the show as a medium to air contract disputes and promote his new show," Shuman said. "The purpose of the show is anything but that. The qualities of this show aren't attached to one single person." Shuman said he has not spoken to Rukeyser since last week but he was being informed of the station's decision to fire him. Rukeyser's contract with MPT ends June 30. Shuman declined to discuss details of the contract. Rukeyser, who gives a commentary at the opening of each show, started Friday's program by criticizing MPT for the new show's format. He also thanked viewers for their "amazing outpouring of support" after the station announced last week that he would no longer be the show's host. "Another weekly program with me as host and commentator will be on television," he said. "I want to assure all our loyal viewers ... that Louis Rukeyser will still be very much around." Rukeyser told the audience that the "woods are full of smart television executives who are wonderfully excited at the prospect of producing the new Louis Rukeyser program." He also asked viewers to write to their local public television stations and demand that they air his new show. Rukeyser said Sunday that he was still considering offers from several public and commercial television outlets and would decide which one to go with in a week or two. MPT, which normally retransmits the latest "Wall $treet With Louis Rukeyser" on Sundays, didn't do so this weekend because of Rukeyser's comments, Shuman said. The station also didn't post its usual transcript of Rukeyser's latest opening statement on its Web site. "All I can tell you is that many, many viewers are telling me how angry they are not to be able to find this commentary," Rukeyser said. The station entered a partnership with Fortune magazine to produce a new version of the show. Rukeyser, 69, was offered a senior commentator role on the new program but declined, saying he didn't want to have anything further to do with MPT. MPT officials said the shake-up was necessary because the show's audience and expectations had changed, and they felt Fortune was a powerful partner. One of the new program's co-hosts will be a Fortune editor. His show, which has received widespread acclaim and boosted viewership of public television around the country, claims to plug into every businessman in America. Though he did not have any ownership rights over the show, he said he did have co-production rights.