Public radio listeners hate on-air pledge drives. So some stations are looking for ways to eliminate the drives… and finding success. “With the help of well-timed renewal letters and on-air plugs for the mailings and website, WUWM’s fall donations were 73 percent higher without a pledge drive than in last year’s same period — with a nine-day on-air drive. The station also increased renewals by 296 percent and saw a slight upward bump in underwriting income.”