Youth Radio named in Google Buzz settlement
Twelve organizations are named to share an $8.5 million class action settlement pot over the great Google Buzz Fiasco. I was happy to see that Youth Radio of Oakland is one of the groups listed. The outfit just won a Peabody Award for its series on prostitution. Some background: about a year ago Google tried […]
Pirate Radio Roundup: Albuquerque memories, Ottawa teen tantrum
A couple of interesting pirate radio stories passed through the transom this week that I need to share. First, a writer calling himself “Captain America” wrote a short piece for the Albuquerque, NM Alibi fondly recalling an unlicensed micropower station called Rebel Radio that broadcast from that city’s “student ghetto” during the mid-90s, a period […]
How the CIA used radio in the 1954 Guatemala coup
I am reading Tim Weiner’s disturbing history of the CIA, Legacy of Ashes. The tome portrays the agency as a dysfunctional outfit which often failed to achieve its goals. When the CIA did get something done in its formative years, it was usually a dastardly deed, accomplished by a combination of brute force, bribery, and […]
Report: Pescadero LPFM KPDO does not own Pirate Cat Radio
In the aftermath of the departure of Pirate Cat Radio founder Daniel “Monkey Man” Roberts from the scene, the Pescadero low-power community radio station he was managing is carrying on, trying to clear the haze of confusion he left behind. The San Mateo County Times followed up with KPDO, including its founder Maggie Celeste Worden, […]
Happy 47th birthday Radio Caroline!
One of the most famous off-shore British pirate stations of the 1960s celebrates the 47th anniversary of its first successful broadcasts today. Gibson’s This Day in Music Spotlight reminded me of the occasion. As writer MIchael Wright retells, the next day, the 29th, was Easter Sunday and Caroline was ready to officially launch. At 12 […]
Friends of KUSF Respond to CPRN and USF in Latest Phase of FCC Battle
Lawyers and wordsmiths on both sides of the fight over KUSF 90.3 FM have put pen to paper, filing lengthy documents supporting their positions to either defend the purchase of KUSF by Classical Public Radio Network (CPRN), or to cast doubt on the propriety of a formerly commercial service being broadcast over a non-commercial educational […]
Documentary on Arhoolie legend Chris Strachwitz “close to a rough cut “
He’s produced albums that inspired The Rolling Stones. The 50th anniversary of his Arhoolie Records label was noted by The New York Times. His voice has regaled public radio listeners about “down home” music for decades, especially at KPFA in Berkeley. Generations of Blues, Cajun, Tejano, Gospel, Polka, and Bluegrass legends have graced his studios. […]
Students Hold Wake for KUSF
As the battle over the future of college radio station KUSF continues, students at University of San Francisco (USF) expressed their displeasure over the proposed station sale by holding a wake on the lawn outside of a USF Board of Trustees meeting at noon today. Mourning students dressed in black held forth in front of […]
Spring Hill College to Sell WHIL to University of Alabama
In a familiar-sounding tale, University of Alabama is in talks to purchase public radio station WHIL from Spring Hill College in Mobile, Alabama for $1.1 million. WHIL currently airs a public radio format, mainly comprised of classical music programming and syndicated NPR shows like “Weekend Edition” and “All Things Considered.” It is expected that the […]
Elizabeth Taylor: the radio days
Everybody knows by now that legendary screen actor Elizabeth Taylor has died at the age of 79. You can expect plenty of well deserved praise to be heaped on Taylor over the next few weeks —for her terrific performances in movies like Suddenly, Last Summer, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Wolff, and Cat on a Hot […]