Xtra Sports 1360 to launch Nov. 1

[raccoonradio]

The change is Oct 28

http://www.signonsandiego.com/sports/weblog/2007/10/new_sports_radio_station.html

 

[raccoonradio]

>>But then maybe who will start in Sunday's Big Game is more important to you than that.

You can keep your Marxist ways for it's only just a phase
For it's money money money makes the world...go...'round
(Money money money money money money money money money)--Monty Python

http://youtube.com/watch?v=DkhOhUkhIFA

 

[SDRadio]

The change is Oct 28

http://www.signonsandiego.com/sports/weblog/2007/10/new_sports_radio_station.html

Line up and get your expensive HDRadio's now!

 

[Bob_Hudson]

So KLSD will be gone. How sad. Instead of being presented with the issue of whether or not the US should attack Iran and how to deal with the fallout (figurative, literal) of such an attack, the public will be considering who should start for the Chargers in Sunday's Big Game! A total replay of the classic Dakota train disaster in which the local Clear Channel station that could have been alerting the public about toxic clouds continued streaming oh whatever from San Antone. This is just on a much much much bigger scale. In the choice between the two philosophies, one--Knowledge Is Power, and the other, Ignorance Is Strength, Ignorance Is Strength wins again.

I had a conversation with a medical researcher who said labs are on the verge of being able to clone livers, pancreases, eye lenses, but unfortunately from stem cells and that technology is unfortunately politically impossible here, so it will be accomplished somewhere where the Knowledge Is Power philosophy has been embraced. If you are lucky maybe you can travel wherever that might be if, God forbid, you ever need a cloned organ.

But then maybe who will start in Sunday's Big Game is more important to you than that.

"The public" pretty much stayed away from KLSD's whining about the state of the world and why the US sucks and, if past experience is any indicator, most will ignore the sports format as well.

 

[davideduardo]

A total replay of the classic Dakota train disaster in which the local Clear Channel station that could have been alerting the public about toxic clouds continued streaming oh whatever from San Antone. This is just on a much much much bigger scale.

Ah, it has been about 6 months since this hoary old urban legend has been dragged out to make Clear Channel the punching bag for what is wrong with radio or society or the universe overall.

The Minot train incident happened at about 2 AM in a classic "small town America" location. Minot has nearly no all-night jobs, save hospitals and law enforcemnt. Typical radio listening at that time in smaller markets is less than 1%. Probably much less.

The Clear Channel cluster was running off local automation, a pretty common thing in medium and small markets. It's likely that the stations would not even have been on the air after midnight were they not automated. The cluster had a full complement of EAS equipment in operating condition. Such equipment is triggered by civil and government authorities, not by the station itself.

The local authorities had been inadequately trained by the state and civil defense authorities. It is not the radio station who trains police and civil defense authorities, in Minot or anywhere The radio station is the conduit. And the local authorities did not know how to initiate an EAS alert. The entire responsibility for the failure to issue a radio alert falls on local authorities, not the radio stations.

Clear Channel is guiltless in this incident. But the bigger issue is that, even if the EAS alert were broadcast, nobody would have heard it... EAS, at best, can reach a peak radio audience of about a quarter of all persons. That means at no time can it reach 3 out of every 4 persons, and most of the time would reach far less. The implementation of EAS in Minot was faulty, but the entire system has a major defect: not everybody is listening to the radio, ever. And most of the time, it is, on average across 24 hours, around 10% to 12% of the population... not enough to be truley effective. A better system is an American imperitive.

 

[Ray22]

What a CC SPIN! The FCC license is in the "name" of the station owners NOT "local authorities." Fines can be issued to the station owners if EAS fails, and NOT to "local authorities." Tower lights and EAS are station owner responsiblity. Just because no one might be listening to the station or flying near station towers doesn't mean the station can just say f-it. Yes, a better system is needed AND being worked on, but in the meantime EAS is the law and Minot is just another SMALL example of CC leadership. To spin it any way else is plain nuts.

 

[pbf1]

DE nails it.

Having a jock initiate an EAS is like having a fast-food manager strip-search employees because "the guy on the phone said to do it."

Unwise at best.

 

[davideduardo]

What a CC SPIN! The FCC license is in the "name" of the station owners NOT "local authorities." Fines can be issued to the station owners if EAS fails, and NOT to "local authorities." Tower lights and EAS are station owner responsiblity. Just because no one might be listening to the station or flying near station towers doesn't mean the station can just say f-it. Yes, a better system is needed AND being worked on, but in the meantime EAS is the law and Minot is just another SMALL example of CC leadership. To spin it any way else is plain nuts.

Radio stations do not declare states of emergency. Radio stations do not emit weather bulletins or tornado warnings. Radio stations do not issue Amber alerts. Radio stations do not declare tsunami alerts.

Radio stations are required to have EAS equipment so the proper authorities can issue alerts and have an "automatic" was of getting them on every radio station in a region or market.

Radio stations, unless one is actually part of the civil defense or government syste, can not trigger the EAS except to test it so that the proper authorities have a guaranteed way to communicate with the publc

In other words, in Minot Clear Channel had the equipment working. The local government authorities did not know how to make it work.

How can one blame Clear Channel for doint everything it had to and more... a smaller company would not even have had a station on the air at 2 AM in a market that size. They were ready, had the equipment in working order, but the g-o-v-e-r-n-m-e-n-t authorities failed and were derelect in their duties.

 

[davideduardo]

Re: DE nails it.

Having a jock initiate an EAS is like having a fast-food manager strip-search employees because "the guy on the phone said to do it."

Unwise at best.

That is indeed why the EAS has activation ´procedures, so someone at a radio staiton who just scored an 8-ball can not decide it would be funny to press the button and tell floks World War III has just started.... stations don't activate it, civil and govenment authorities do. Anything else would be very dangerous, and that is why it is designed to work the way it does.

 

[pbf1]

In other words, in Minot Clear Channel had the equipment working. The local government authorities did not know how to make it work.

Actually, the authorities had never INSTALLED their equipment; it was still sitting on a shelf.

 

[SDRadio]

They were ready, had the equipment in working order, but the g-o-v-e-r-n-m-e-n-t authorities failed and were derelect in their duties.

Have you heard how LA county does it? the announcer is not a station official (like KOGO or KLSD); it is from the sherriff's office.

 

[Lopaka]

Before "deregulation" when there was CAPITALISM and competition in radio that capitalism requires, stations competed, yes they actually competed, to get the scoop, to get the first news out on breaking stories. Its just so much easier to do...nothing. Last earthquake I tried getting information from any radio station at all but there was...nothing. That will be so great next time a big fire is raging toward the unsuspecting, anesthetized public. Recalling the Cedar Fire, radio did a credible job once it got started covering the story, but valuable time was lost basically because of the lack of capitalistic competition any more.

Think about how selective "deregulation" was: real deregulation would have meant that you or I or anybody could have plunked down a 250 kw transmitter in the middle of downtown LA on any frequency we wanted, 650 kc for example. Obviously you have to have regulation, the chaos of the early '20's was almost comical. The same in any other industry, airlines are a prime example. Radio deregulation was designed, like the electricity market deregulation, only to benefit a select few. As commodore Vanderbilt was famous for saying, "The public be damned!"

 

[davideduardo]

In other words, in Minot Clear Channel had the equipment working. The local government authorities did not know how to make it work.

Actually, the authorities had never INSTALLED their equipment; it was still sitting on a shelf.

But there will still be people who believe it is Clear's fault... the fact is, at most radio stations there is no procedure to run a "live" EAS alert via phone or other device... how would the station even validate a caller and know it was the Police Chief and not the Unibomber?

The inability of some tho think this through correctly is the reason this false story has become urban legend and the symbol of all that is "wrong" with larger radio companies.

 

[SDRadio]

[

But there will still be people who believe it is Clear's fault...

People tend to blame the biggest target, the most public target. Never let the facts get in the way of a good story.

It's hard to blame an anonymous poster David; that is something we both know about.

Personally, I blame Al Gore. If he didn't invent the internet, this blame thing would not happen.

 

[raccoonradio]

>>Line up and get your expensive HDRadio's now!

Hmm maybe it's a plot to get prog talk fans to buy them!
Or they could get satellite radios--I think XM is the one that carries Air America. Great
listening while you go out and walk your dog, fall down, and have someone blame
a right-winger for mugging you!

 

[davideduardo]

[

But there will still be people who believe it is Clear's fault...

People tend to blame the biggest target, the most public target. Never let the facts get in the way of a good story.

It's hard to blame an anonymous poster David; that is something we both know about.

Personally, I blame Al Gore. If he didn't invent the internet, this blame thing would not happen.

Right! When in doubt, blame a politician an you will almost always be right!

This story just will not die... it's like the one that says that major market playlists are determined by people in dark rooms in corporate offices instead of by music testing in the local market; despite the existence of more than a dozen music research companies, people still cling to this one. Oh, and the idea that conservative station owners caused the Dixie Chicks to be dropped from play after natalie's unfortunate statements rather than the true story which was all about adverse listener reaction by the country listeners themselves.

 

[davideduardo]

>>Line up and get your expensive HDRadio's now!

Hmm maybe it's a plot to get prog talk fans to buy them!
Or they could get satellite radios--I think XM is the one that carries Air America. Great
listening while you go out and walk your dog, fall down, and have someone blame
a right-winger for mugging you!

What a great analogy! What is amazing is that the mugging fable seems to have originated with another host on AAR who seems to not be burdened by fact.

 

[Bob_Hudson]

What a CC SPIN! The FCC license is in the "name" of the station owners NOT "local authorities." Fines can be issued to the station owners if EAS fails, and NOT to "local authorities." Tower lights and EAS are station owner responsiblity. Just because no one might be listening to the station or flying near station towers doesn't mean the station can just say f-it. Yes, a better system is needed AND being worked on, but in the meantime EAS is the law and Minot is just another SMALL example of CC leadership. To spin it any way else is plain nuts.

You're completely willing to ignore facts in order to support your politicial spin: ah, to be young and stupid, er uh naive again :

 

[RBA]

Ah, it has been about 6 months since this hoary old urban legend has been dragged out to make Clear Channel the punching bag for what is wrong with radio or society or the universe overall.

The Minot train incident happened at about 2 AM in a classic "small town America" location. Minot has nearly no all-night jobs, save hospitals and law enforcemnt. Typical radio listening at that time in smaller markets is less than 1%. Probably much less.

Minot is home to Minot AFB. One of the most important military installation in the entire country, if not world. Minot is not a "typical" small market. Many military personnel work overnight, especially at a base like Minot AFB. Many military graveyard workers listen to the radio to help them stay awake.

 

[davideduardo]

Minot is home to Minot AFB. One of the most important military installation in the entire country, if not world. Minot is not a "typical" small market. Many military personnel work overnight, especially at a base like Minot AFB. Many military graveyard workers listen to the radio to help them stay awake.

And what do people on a base have to do with a train wreck near the center of town? We are talking about alerting the civilian population, not a military installation. I will bet the military has a vastly better alert system than the EAS.

In any case, there was no reason to blame Clear Channel as they did everything required of them and there was nothing more they could have done in this case.