WRNI celebrates its independence

After following the rise and fall and rise of WRNI, it's good to see how Rhode Island's public radio station has finally separately itself from Boston University, its previous license-holder. And this statement from station GM Joe O'Connor, which he shared with me last year, is truer than ever:

With the local acquisition of WRNI, he says, “The burden is where it should have always been — it is now on Rhode Islanders. It is not on Boston University, who is trying to set us up for success. It is up to the residents of the state to really support this. They’re telling me they want this and they want this excellence [of public radio] on a regular basis. Well, that’s going to take their support “

With the well-publicized cutbacks at the ProJo, WRNI could play an important role by offering an expanded report of thoughtful news.