Now a Shortage of Programs and Presenters?

[mxdata]

Well, if you do really nice programs, your "reward" is that you get asked to do more programs.....

MX

[mxdata]

This month's notices have arrived and the same groups are still looking for programs and presenters.

One thing I notice though, they don't put 1/2 of the effort into publicizing good programs presented by people who are not members of the group that they put into promoting very ordinary and local programs done by their own members. That may be part of why they are having trouble finding people who will travel in to do anything for them.

MX

[2behind1]

I concur with this topic of conversation. We have essentially lost a generation of train hobbyists due to museums, and NRHS chapters , "knowing what's best" and pandering to a small few special interests and alienating the rest of the general populace who found a better hobby.

Then again, the presenters have issues too. I know of one organization who petitioned and was willing to pay a train author and sportscaster to present. The group had no objection to him selling wares after the show. This person did not even have the decency to respond to numerous requests. It is this type of hoarding of history and pandering to "those in the know", which will continue to cause railfanning to die a slow and quiet death, unless we find a better way to reach the masses to convey our message: This can actually be fun.

[RAS]

Just look at the steam interests. Lots of people with knowledge, very few who share it openly. In many years of going to conventions I have seldom seen any presentations that make an effort to educate or to explain how a steam locomotive works. More often the knowledge is presented in ways that are condescending or even outrightly confrontational, to make "points" in arguments. It leaves the public and other fans with the impression the group are a bunch of arrogant snobs.

RAS