Seattle's KEXP, heard in the Bay Area at 92.7, had a 27 hour marathon broadcast hosted by DJs John Richards and Morgan Chosnyk. In addition, they kept the "Gathering Space" and coffee shop open, and listeners were able to socialize and show their support. The loyalty of the listeners and the unique things they do here is inspiring, regardless of your views on funding. It's a radio station that manages to super serve their audience and inspire so much audience passion. As someone who loves radio and wants to see it succeed, that's something worth appreciating.
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KEXP 27 hour marathon broadcast in support of public media
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K.M. Richards
Program Director, The Eighties Channel™
I wonder if they are regretting spending $3.75 million to buy the San Francisco 92.7 out of bankruptcy now.
Perhaps, but if anyone has the know how to make it work, it's the leadership there. The money for the KEXC purchase was, to my understanding, coming from wealth someone bequeathed them, and so at least it wasn't done with financing/debt. They have a sizable contingent of listeners there before they purchased it, and have been doing in person outreach with live broadcasts and added a local music show.
I can't speak for them but I think KEXC with their experience and leadership stands a decent chance of sustaining itself. I have no idea of the size of what was gifted to them, but if they'd had it in investment, that too may pad them a bit in an uncertain time. I don't know what exactly the idea is - to have "KEXP" be the brand, or to ultimately have each station be a standalone, or some hybrid thereof, in the long run. It's one of the tensions of public media that the local or regional approach is both a strength and I believe, has held it back from going the EMF route. When part of your role is to support and grow "local" and independent music, some people become very protective and don't want to actually see significant growth outside of Seattle or wherever.
I can't speak for them but I think KEXC with their experience and leadership stands a decent chance of sustaining itself. I have no idea of the size of what was gifted to them, but if they'd had it in investment, that too may pad them a bit in an uncertain time. I don't know what exactly the idea is - to have "KEXP" be the brand, or to ultimately have each station be a standalone, or some hybrid thereof, in the long run. It's one of the tensions of public media that the local or regional approach is both a strength and I believe, has held it back from going the EMF route. When part of your role is to support and grow "local" and independent music, some people become very protective and don't want to actually see significant growth outside of Seattle or wherever.
Correct. There was a $10 million donation:
KEXP -- Coming Soon to the Bay Area
www.kexp.org
They have a few other endowments that also keep them afloat. Remember they built a new $15 performance space a few years ago.
SEATTLE’S KEXP PUBLIC RADIO $15 MILLION BROADCAST COMPLEX
Walters-Storyk Design Group-WSDG
www.architectmagazine.com
But they still need to rededicate themselves to this mission, and not become complacent. Every day is a new audition, and a new challenge for arts organizations in this country. There is a desire by some to control our culture.
Correct. There was a $10 million donation:
KEXP -- Coming Soon to the Bay Area
They have a few other endowments that also keep them afloat. Remember they built a new $15 performance space a few years ago.
SEATTLE’S KEXP PUBLIC RADIO $15 MILLION BROADCAST COMPLEX
Walters-Storyk Design Group-WSDGwww.architectmagazine.com
But they still need to rededicate themselves to this mission, and not become complacent. Every day is a new audition, and a new challenge for arts organizations in this country. There is a desire by some to control our culture.
The late Paul Allen, co-founder of Microsoft, helped to relaunch the station as KEXP. They obviously had the support of Seattle's tech industry.
Obviously, the Bay Area has an even greater tech industry. And the market has lost longtime AAA station KFOG. So, there is a niche. Their biggest obstruction obviously is the signal. But that will be less of an obstacle if they can build a local presence, which could help increase the streaming audience.
And $3M does sound like a good investment to expand into the Bay Area. I think it'll pay off. Plus, they saved the signal from going to VCY America, which is arguably the worst of all the religious broadcasters. They just happen to have a lot of money by way of selling their spectrum back to the FCC during the last digital repack. But I'm still not sure if they actually have listeners or viewers.
I’m not really a big KEXP fan, and I’ve certainly been critical about how they spend their money and how they operate. With that out of the way, I definitely am glad that they exist. KEXP provides something very unique on the FM dial that can’t be heard in many other places. The music may not be my forte, but stations like this are far and few between.
I’m glad they are using their influence to make a difference and keep their mission going.
I’m glad they are using their influence to make a difference and keep their mission going.
I've never listened much to KEXP, if at all. I'm sure the purchase of the bankrupt Bay Area station is a plus for Bay Area radio. I'm not sure how well an extra religious station would do on the commercial FM band in that marketplace.
In my view, KEXP was better when it was KCMU. Less 'commercial' in nature. But that's just my bias, as I worked at KCMU for 3 years when it really counted.
As for the marathon, I'm sure it inspired the base, but here in Seattle there are tons of people who are already virulently anti-Administration and are well aware of every single attack the Administration has made on policy -- public radio/TV policy and otherwise. They were probably preaching to the choir. But power to them.
In my view, KEXP was better when it was KCMU. Less 'commercial' in nature. But that's just my bias, as I worked at KCMU for 3 years when it really counted.
As for the marathon, I'm sure it inspired the base, but here in Seattle there are tons of people who are already virulently anti-Administration and are well aware of every single attack the Administration has made on policy -- public radio/TV policy and otherwise. They were probably preaching to the choir. But power to them.
I agree on all points. Ironically, KEXP likes to try and be off-the-wall and “underground,” but the structure tends to be very much the opposite. It’s definitely programmed top down to target the hipster Seattleite crowd.
There are other small (college) radio stations out there who are a lot closer to what KCMU used to be. Listening to those stations would probably be the ultimate “hipster” thing to do. Even stations like KBOO in Portland are still pretty off-the-wall (for the crowd that enjoys that kind of thing).
As I recall, KEXP already acquires a major chunk of their funding from their base of listeners. This is a good opportunity to ask for more I guess.
I don't know that it's "programmed" from the top down so much as marketed professionally. Most of those sorts of stations never reach that scale. Because of Paul Allen, they were able to build a brand, but the shows can be wildly varied in style and approach depending on what one likes. The more traditional late KCMU/early KEXP sound rooted in indie is reliably delivered by John Richards and Cheryl Waters, but listening to Larry Mizell Jr.'s"OG Thursday" is an education in music history rooted in soul and R&B and other associated sounds. I think a lot of the 2000s KEXP audience may actually have aged out of a lot of what they offer now. They dropped the long-time blues show and one of the Americana shows when Don Slack left. It definitely does feel like a "brand" now and less underground but the experience they offer has also coalesced into something that's sustainable, pays their employees decently and offers a unique cultural experience. A lot of the "underground" stations are that way because they can't become anything more and disappear.
But for people who prefer that more underground vibe, I'd say a station like X-Ray FM in Portland would be a solid choice balanced between professional and knowledgable hosts and musical depth. In Seattle, I think KMGP (LP) fills some of the more "indie" days of KEXP void with a decent mix of local and alternative/indie music with a splash of vintage rock & soul. KBCS has some interesting programming too. It's been an evolution of my tastes that while I love eclectic choices, some of the outfits that attempt to provide it offer zero accessibility or training in professional hosting, which as a broadcaster gets painful to listen to. Hard to find both. And as I've opined regarding people idealizing freeform radio of old, it's not an easy task to balance between good (or interesting) taste and giving the audience a welcoming experience. Too often it can either feel like a clique or completely amateur. At least KEXP has a unified sense of what their mission is and who's likely to engage with it.
I do think that there's a gap between what KEXP used to do to a greater degree and some of the current product, particularly the Americana leaning material. KBCS covers to some extent, and I suppose that demographic (more mainstream than KEXP, more eclectic than KNDD) was what KPNW hoped for. For whatever reasons, which we've debated here, we all know that didn't happen. And I don't know that that's a gap anyone sees it being lucrative in Seattle to fill to any degree greater than what's done now between KBCS, KMGP, and in some parts of the DMA, KSER and KPTZ.
But for people who prefer that more underground vibe, I'd say a station like X-Ray FM in Portland would be a solid choice balanced between professional and knowledgable hosts and musical depth. In Seattle, I think KMGP (LP) fills some of the more "indie" days of KEXP void with a decent mix of local and alternative/indie music with a splash of vintage rock & soul. KBCS has some interesting programming too. It's been an evolution of my tastes that while I love eclectic choices, some of the outfits that attempt to provide it offer zero accessibility or training in professional hosting, which as a broadcaster gets painful to listen to. Hard to find both. And as I've opined regarding people idealizing freeform radio of old, it's not an easy task to balance between good (or interesting) taste and giving the audience a welcoming experience. Too often it can either feel like a clique or completely amateur. At least KEXP has a unified sense of what their mission is and who's likely to engage with it.
I do think that there's a gap between what KEXP used to do to a greater degree and some of the current product, particularly the Americana leaning material. KBCS covers to some extent, and I suppose that demographic (more mainstream than KEXP, more eclectic than KNDD) was what KPNW hoped for. For whatever reasons, which we've debated here, we all know that didn't happen. And I don't know that that's a gap anyone sees it being lucrative in Seattle to fill to any degree greater than what's done now between KBCS, KMGP, and in some parts of the DMA, KSER and KPTZ.
It has a cume of over 200,000. That is a TON of hipsters. Especially since they have a somewhat limited signal. I don't know what you mean by hipster, but the client care manager of my insurance company is 61 years old. And wouldn't know hip if it hit him in the face. But he is totally a P1 for KEXP.
I'd say they do a really good job of programming to the Seattle audience. Real hipsters do NOT listen to the radio- that's so 2004.
On the contrary, it could be a very hipster thing to do to pull out a radio in 2025 and listen to KEXP. Bonus points if it’s some sort of vintage radio.