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Status update
Nov. 20th, 2016 12:02 amThe FCC is still considering applications to transfer the licenses of six radio stations in Vermont and New Hampshire to my brother and me. We expect a green light in January, after which we'll consummate the deal and become radio station owners.
There are two country music stations, two news-talk stations, one with a "variety" music format, and one that plays classical music. The news-talk stations account for most of the advertising revenue, and that's a problem for me because "news-talk" in the radio industry is a euphemism for right-wing propaganda. Rush Limbaugh, Howie Carr, and Michael Savage feature prominently on both stations and we have to tread carefully lest we wreck the business. If we dump any of these shows, Great Eastern or Binnie Media, our two principal competitors, will pick them up along with the local advertisers who support them. Right now I am leaning toward adding more local content with the goal of broadening the range of views included in our programming, but whatever we do has to be compelling and interesting. We can't just slip "Democracy Now" into the schedule; it tends to focus on events and issues that aren't very relevant to residents of the upper valley, and the style of presentation leaves much to be desired.
But it particularly galls me when Howie Carr asserts that science is an arbitrary belief system comparable to religion, and calls global climate change a "cult". If the scientific method were not valid, technologies built on its findings -- such as radio -- wouldn't exist, and Howie Carr would have no audience.
I am greatly disturbed by the election of Donald Trump, and wonder if his regime will even allow us to broadcast once he consolidates his power.
There are two country music stations, two news-talk stations, one with a "variety" music format, and one that plays classical music. The news-talk stations account for most of the advertising revenue, and that's a problem for me because "news-talk" in the radio industry is a euphemism for right-wing propaganda. Rush Limbaugh, Howie Carr, and Michael Savage feature prominently on both stations and we have to tread carefully lest we wreck the business. If we dump any of these shows, Great Eastern or Binnie Media, our two principal competitors, will pick them up along with the local advertisers who support them. Right now I am leaning toward adding more local content with the goal of broadening the range of views included in our programming, but whatever we do has to be compelling and interesting. We can't just slip "Democracy Now" into the schedule; it tends to focus on events and issues that aren't very relevant to residents of the upper valley, and the style of presentation leaves much to be desired.
But it particularly galls me when Howie Carr asserts that science is an arbitrary belief system comparable to religion, and calls global climate change a "cult". If the scientific method were not valid, technologies built on its findings -- such as radio -- wouldn't exist, and Howie Carr would have no audience.
I am greatly disturbed by the election of Donald Trump, and wonder if his regime will even allow us to broadcast once he consolidates his power.
