Public Radio Acting Like Clear Channel

[fred flintstone]

All Access:

Juneau Pubcaster To Buy, Convert Two Commercial FMsALL ACCESS hears that CAPITAL COMMUNITY BROADCASTING, INC., owners of noncommercial KTOO and PBS affiliate KTOO-TV-DT/JUNEAU, AK, has purchased crosstown Hot AC KFMG (MAGIC 100.7) and Soft AC KSRJ from WHITE OAK BROADCASTING with plans to convert them into separate noncommercial stations and split KTOO's programming into three streams as "K3: PUBLIC RADIO TO THE POWER OF 3." The initial plan is to have stations for News-Talk, "contemporary music" (from many genres), and Classical/Jazz sometime this FALL.

While I admire public radio generally, I don't feel good about this.Public radio stations, especially those in smaller markets, keep poor-mouthing and telling us how they need pledge drives and government funding to stay on the air. This one has enough spare change to buy two commercial stations. One has to ask where the money is coming from.If/when this goes through, KTOO will own three out of seven stations in the market - and take two formats (Soft AC and Hot AC off the air) which, according to Arbitron, get bigger audience shares than jazz or classical (actually jazz gets zero audience share). This serves the public interest only if you define "public interest" as programming what a few elitists think the public SHOULD be interested in hearing.

 

[jal41]

All Access:

Juneau Pubcaster To Buy, Convert Two Commercial FMsALL ACCESS hears that CAPITAL COMMUNITY BROADCASTING, INC., owners of noncommercial KTOO and PBS affiliate KTOO-TV-DT/JUNEAU, AK, has purchased crosstown Hot AC KFMG (MAGIC 100.7) and Soft AC KSRJ from WHITE OAK BROADCASTING with plans to convert them into separate noncommercial stations and split KTOO's programming into three streams as "K3: PUBLIC RADIO TO THE POWER OF 3." The initial plan is to have stations for News-Talk, "contemporary music" (from many genres), and Classical/Jazz sometime this FALL.

While I admire public radio generally, I don't feel good about this.Public radio stations, especially those in smaller markets, keep poor-mouthing and telling us how they need pledge drives and government funding to stay on the air. This one has enough spare change to buy two commercial stations. One has to ask where the money is coming from.If/when this goes through, KTOO will own three out of seven stations in the market - and take two formats (Soft AC and Hot AC off the air) which, according to Arbitron, get bigger audience shares than jazz or classical (actually jazz gets zero audience share). This serves the public interest only if you define "public interest" as programming what a few elitists think the public SHOULD be interested in hearing.

The same thing is happening in Rome, Georgia (50 miles NW of Atlanta), where Georgia Public Broadcasting is acquiring WKCX-FM 97.7, a hot AC, from Mills Fitzner, who owned the station for 21 years (Yes...individual people still own FM stations). The station will become WGPB-FM on June 30th as part of the GPB network, but will have a good amount of local (Rome) programming, and the station will have it's own advisory board. The studios will be on the campus of the local community college (Georgia Highlands College, formerly Floyd College).NPR and classical/jazz music will never have the popularity of a top 40 pop or political talk station. People would rather hear Kelly Clarkson and Rush Limbaugh than Beethoven and Steve Innskeep. In the Juneau situation, they went overboard with going from one to three stations. Juneau has an NPR station. In Rome, there currently is no NPR station. The need is there in Rome.Besides, hot AC and AC listeners are listening more and more to iPods and satellite radio.

 

[bueller]

I think this plan sounds great. As commercial radio becomes more sterile and ignores intelligent contemporary music, public radio stations are stepping forward, in the vein of KCRW and the Current to bring that form of art to the public, and I applaud it. I love seeing new public stations embracing contemporary music that is ignored on mainstream commercial radio. It's good for the community.

 

[radiomike]

All Access:

Juneau Pubcaster To Buy, Convert Two Commercial FMsALL ACCESS hears that CAPITAL COMMUNITY BROADCASTING, INC., owners of noncommercial KTOO and PBS affiliate KTOO-TV-DT/JUNEAU, AK, has purchased crosstown Hot AC KFMG (MAGIC 100.7) and Soft AC KSRJ from WHITE OAK BROADCASTING with plans to convert them into separate noncommercial stations and split KTOO's programming into three streams as "K3: PUBLIC RADIO TO THE POWER OF 3." The initial plan is to have stations for News-Talk, "contemporary music" (from many genres), and Classical/Jazz sometime this FALL.

While I admire public radio generally, I don't feel good about this.Public radio stations, especially those in smaller markets, keep poor-mouthing and telling us how they need pledge drives and government funding to stay on the air. This one has enough spare change to buy two commercial stations. One has to ask where the money is coming from.If/when this goes through, KTOO will own three out of seven stations in the market - and take two formats (Soft AC and Hot AC off the air) which, according to Arbitron, get bigger audience shares than jazz or classical (actually jazz gets zero audience share). This serves the public interest only if you define "public interest" as programming what a few elitists think the public SHOULD be interested in hearing.

Let me see, 3 seperate public radio services vs juke box Soft AC? Pleaz Spare me. Sorry, but the public station will provide more local service to the community then either of these commercial stations. To be honest, considering the money, if public radio did not buy them, they would likely have gotten bought by a god squad group, which would have been a huge loss for the community. I see this as a big win for the community, not the loss to "elitists" as you state. This statement usually comes from someone who realy does not listen to public radio today or at all. It is far from elitist.