Maryland public radio host and reporter Marc Steiner was fired from the WYPR public radio station without any notice to the public this week. It seems the news also caught Steiner unaware himself.

From noon to 2 p.m. both Monday through Wednesday (Feb. 4 through 6), over a dozen WYPR members and fans of Marc Steiner protested outside the WYPR radio station on Charles Street in Baltimore. They protested during the Steiner Show's former regular time slot.

Marc Steiner possesses a reputation for strong, civic-minded reporting on issues important to the citizens of Baltimore and Maryland. Furthermore, Steiner served for many as the voice and face of WYPR through his daily Maryland news program and other reporting broadcasts.

WYPR President Tony Brandon says in a letter posted online at www.wypr.org that the firing was done "by senior management and after many meetings with board members." Brandon notes that the Marc Steiner show was experiencing a loss of audience size, or in his own words, an "the erosion of listening audience compared to other programs on WYPR."

In contrast WYPR community board member Ralph Moore says that no WYPR community board members were consulted in the decision. According to a Feb. 5 article in The Baltimore Sun's “Today” section, Moore contends that WYPR community board members were not consulted.

He adds that he and other members only found out on Monday, Feb. 4, in an email after the firing was over and done with.

Marc Steiner helped save the WYPR public radio station by working to raise $5 million to purchase the station from Johns Hopkins University. Steiner does not own a majority stake in the station however. The majority investors in the station have decided to part with Steiner.

This is sad news for independent journalism in Maryland. Steiner--whatever imperfections and faults he may have possessed on the show, if any--provided solid coverage of Maryland elections. He also provided daily coverage of the Maryland State Legislature, and covered politically sensitive issues such as the BGE rate hike and urban poverty. He hosted Maryland politicians, national authors, and rarely pitched soft ball questions.

In WYPR President Tony Brandon's open online letter to the public, Brandon promises the continued broadcast of national NPR shows on WYPR. Brandon writes, "Please be assured that the programs that you love and rely upon, Morning Edition, The Diane Rehm Show, Car Talk, [and] This American Life” will continue. This message only highlights the loss of local programming at WYPR with the loss of Marc Steiner.

For the WYPR Web site: visit www.wypr.org
For continued daily coverage, try: www.baltimoresun.com

Gregg Mosson is an independent reporter and author of "Season of Flowers and Dust" (Goose River Press). More can be found at his Web site at www.greggmosson.com