Radio Survivor's Top Radio Shows – Jennifer's #2: "Trading Time"
One of terrestrial radio’s many benefits is that is has the capacity to be a resource for the local listening community. Since in recent years there has been less and less local content on commercial stations, there’s a great opportunity for college and community radio stations to put even more emphasis on the needs of […]
Radio Survivor's Top Radio Shows – Matthew's #2: BBC World Have Your Say
I am totally addicted to listening to BBC World Have Your Say. To a degree this is a guilty pleasure, since some of the episodes definitely ask reality show questions. Right now I’m auditing a discussion titled “Should Fat People Pay More?” when they buy airline tickets and other items—with a weight sensitivity activist saying […]
FCC steps up investigation of mobile early termination fees
The FCC has begun a more extensive probe of wireless ETFs, evident in a letter they sent to AT&T, Google, Sprint Nextel, T-Mobile, and Verizon Wireless yesterday. The letters, written by the FCC Consumer Bureau Chief, Joel Gurin, and the Wireless Bureau Chief, Ruth Milkman, requests each company to provide information relating to facts and […]
What does the iPad mean for radio?
Already some of us have been listening to live streaming internet radio on our mobile devices, like iPhones and Blackberries. But, as I argued last month, the experience still doesn’t quite add up to true mobile internet radio, especially because when you’re using cell data like 3G it saps the heck out of your battery. […]
Radio Survivor's Top Radio Shows – Matthew's #3: Democracy Now!
Amy Goodman and Juan Gonzalez’s radio/TV program Democracy Now! is, without question, the most successful media vehicle in the history of the United States Left. Launched at Pacifica station WBAI-FM in New York City in the mid-1990s, it is now an independent venture, subscribed to by over 800 radio, TV, and Internet stations around the […]
RadioSurvivor’s Top Radio Shows – Paul’s #3: Incoming Wounded
Late night has always been a special time for radio, ever since station owners decided not to turn off the transmitter at midnight. Now that it’s no longer necessary to have a live human being operating the station during all the hours it’s on air, commercial late night radio is mostly a bland mash of […]
Radio Survivor's Top Radio Shows – Jennifer's #3: Skulltime for Kids
Debuting back in 1987, way before pirates were ever deemed cool and a full 8 years before “Talk Like a Pirate Day” was ever conceptualized, Skulltime for Kids hit the airwaves of Foothill College radio station KFJC 89.7 FM in Los Altos Hills, California. Captain Jack, the creator of the show, told me that the […]
Radio Survivor's Top Radio Shows – Jennifer's #4: Dr. Demento Show
Celebrating its 40th anniversary this year, the Dr. Demento show began in 1970 on Los Angeles freeform station KPPC as a “rarities” show. By 1974 the popular radio program, which specializes in a mix of music and comedy, moved into syndication all over the country. Hosted by former college radio DJ (at the Reed College […]
Radio as Hero in Post-Quake Haiti
In the aftermath of the devastating January 12th earthquake in Haiti, radio has played an important role in terms of keeping lines of communication open. A fascinating radio story on All Things Considered yesterday profiles one Haitian radio station, Signal FM 90.5, that has continued to broadcast after the quake hit. As way of background, […]
RadioSurvivor’s Top Radio Shows – Paul’s #4: Sound Opinions
As a proud thirty-eight year-old member of Generation X, I have become just a little disturbed by a trend I’ve noticed in the last few years. One might call this trend the “indie-rockification” of public radio. As my fellow grunge-survivors and I, raised on the so-called “first wave” of alternative rock and derided by boomers […]