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Radio Follow-up

So I’m in Madison, WI with my wife last weekend spending some time together, and I tune to the radio to 92.1 WMAD, one of my all-time favorite alternative radio stations. And what do I find? Some light alternative called “The Mix”. So another one bites the dust. In the last couple of years they had gotten a bit harder, but still played awesome alternative with some Limp Bizkit, Staind, etc thrown in. Almost a cross of Drive105 and 93x here in the Twin Cities.

So I google for information about the format switch, turns out it took place Oct. 29th, 2002. Figures, right about when football season ended and I hadn’t been to Madison in a while.

So I found some articles talking about “it was just an evolution” for the format switch, and other lame excuses.

But then I came across the Upper Midwest Broadcasting website. This must be one of the most depressing websites ever.

It’s a site dedicated to radio and TV news in the Upper Midwest (Nebraska, Iowa, Wisconsin, Michigan, and Minnesota). It details format changes, anchors / DJs coming and going, and ownership changes. What makes it so depressing is seeing all the consolidation. I can’t even count the number of times I’ve seen Clear Channel discussed, and then ABC. Even smaller regionals consolidating to fight back. Whoever said less choice is good? And the number of DJ’s doing the voictracking thing – where they pre-record snippets of conversation from one city and are replayed as if “live” if another city or on multiple stations depresses me.

What’s interesting, and maybe a bit inspiring, is the number of low power stations that have been granted. Maybe there is hope yet.

Check out the Dead Radio Stations Website page. Rev105 guestbook, 93.7 The Edge, 93x, lots of old stations who have their old sites mirrored. Good stuff to keep alive!

Why is it so hard for so many Democrats to believe?

That Howard Dean could get the nomination?

This article at MSNBC sums up centrist Democrats’ fears.

Is it really only his anti-war stance? Many, many people believe that the war in Iraq was unjustified – yes we have removed a menace, but it’s how we went about doing it as well.

As many people learn more about Dean, they’ll find out he’s not that far left. Yes, on the war he absolutely is. His health care proposal is excellent – but liberal. His take on gun control is moderate – and some would even say to the right of most centrist Democrats.

But for Democrats to say their worst fear is his nomination and compare that to McGovern, Mondale and Dukakis, that’s a reach.

Let’s face facts – when was the last time a sitting Senator won a presidential election? What do Kerry, Lieberman, or even Edwards offer that’s unique or not a line handed to them from the DLC? And for Lieberman to go on the Today show and sound off yesterday, if that’s not spin, I don’t know what is. Bob Graham has an interesting opportunity, but is he late to the party?

Dean has been consistent. Much more so than any other Democratic hopeful. Yes, he was Governor of a small state – but at least he has hands on experience governing, which I don’t believe the current crop of Senators necessarily do.

I’ll save my Lieberman rant for a later date.

  • in General
  • 1 min read

It doesn't get much better…

than a hotel room with your wife, a 2 person hot tub, all cable TV channels, and free broadband access. Oh, and a water park… but my son wasn’t joining us on this trip. :>>

  • in EFF
  • 1 min read

EFF Hat Update

Hat came. It’s perfect.

I need to get a firepit. Good time at Kento’s tonight. And god knows I have plenty of wood to get rid of. ;)

Quote of the Day – Unemployment

“‘With 30,000 more jobs lost last month on President Bush’s watch, more than three million Americans have been thrown out of work in less than three years,'” said Democratic presidential hopeful Senator John Kerry of Massachusetts. “‘I think everyone knows that the only person in this country who deserves to be laid off is George W. Bush.'” – Sen. John Kerry, July 2003

  • in EFF
  • 1 min read

EFF Hat

So I’ve been wanting to join the for quite a while. The only catch was I wanted to donate $100 and get the EFF Swat Hat. However, I haven’t really had the money to do that (well, I probably do, but my better half disagrees).

So last month the EFF started up a store, and sure enough, And free shipping! So now I’ve found a way to support the EFF that’s a little more in my price range. Hope it comes soon…

EFF Hat

V: The Second Generation

One of my favorite miniseries from when I was a kid, V: The Original Miniseries has been in the news. Kenneth Johnson, the original writer / director has struck a deal with NBC to make a new 3 hour movie bringing V back.

Taking place 20 years in the future, mankind is still fighting the Visitors when a new ally shows up to help the humans win.

Too bad it’s not a mini-series. I bought V and V:Final Battle when they came out on DVD last year. Of course it wasn’t as good as I remembered it, but considering the first one was in 1983, it’s suprising how well it did hold up. I more than enjoyed watching it on DVD, especially without commercials, and the quality was really good.

We’ll see how good the new one is. :)

On this one, I'm with Colin Powell

Last Thursday, the Minneapolis Star-Tribune ran an article saying Sen. Mark Dayton, with Sen. Coleman, would support the Amendment to ban flag-burning.

I am absolutely outraged that Sen. Dayton, would change his mind on this topic.

So Sen. Mark Dayton has hopped on the flag-burning-amendment bandwagon (Star Tribune, May 30).

Ben Seymour, in a letter to the editor in the Star Tribune, put it best:

Dayton is echoing the rhetoric used to stifle criticism of our government. “There’s something in this country that ought to be above government and all the debates in the parties,” he says.

In a democracy, no idea with broad support is above debate. We should question the motives of these politicians.

It’s pathetic when they return from their dead soldier pilgrimages with “patriotic” epiphanies, which in reality are ill-reasoned, American-ideal-desecrating attempts at popularity boosting, at best.

As you can see here on the ACLU’s page against this amendment, even Secretary of State Colin Powell, former Chairman of the Joint Chief’s of Staff, agrees with me on this one:

“The First Amendment exists to insure that freedom of speech and expression applies not just to that with which we agree or disagree, but also that which we find outrageous,” he said. “I would not amend that great shield of democracy to hammer a few miscreants. The flag will be flying proudly long after they have slunk away.”

Cuba jails dissidents over flag desecration. Is this what we have sunk to in the name of “patriotism”?

Email, fax, or write your members in Congress here.

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Radio Follow-up

So today was the big vote on relaxing media ownership rules at the FCC. As you can see from this link, the FCC voted party lines, with the Republican majority approving the relaxation of how much any media company can own in a given market. Here’s the highlights from an AP article:

The FCC said a single company can now own TV stations that reach 45 percent of U.S. households instead of 35 percent. The major networks wanted the cap eliminated, while smaller broadcasters said a higher cap would allow the networks to gobble up stations and take away local control of programming.

The FCC largely ended a ban on joint ownership of a newspaper and a broadcast station in the same city. The provision lifts all “cross-ownership” restrictions in markets with nine or more TV stations. Smaller markets would face some limits and cross-ownership would be banned in markets with three or fewer TV stations.

The agency also eased rules governing local TV ownership so one company can own two television stations in more markets and three stations in the largest cities such as New York and Los Angeles.

The FCC kept a ban on mergers among the four major TV networks: ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox.

“The more you dig into this order the worse things get,” said Michael Copps, one of the commission’s Democrats. He said the changes empowers “a new media elite” to control news and entertainment.

Fellow Democrat Jonathan Adelstein said the changes are “likely to damage the media landscape for decades to come.”

The Democrats said the new rules mean a single company can own in one city up to three TV stations, eight radio stations, the cable TV system, cable TV stations and the only daily newspaper.

Slashdot has been covering this for the last week or so, with a great article that covers many links, including a fantastic piece at the Washington Post: More on Media Consolidation/Deregulation; a follow-up piece covering the history of copyright: Media Monopoly: Thomas Edison to Hillary Rosen , and today’s followup with over 700 user comments.

In addition, last Thurdsay Kuro5hin posted a great editorial on the Consolidation of American Radio. It’s a great look of how this started to happen – in the 70’s, and even the role computers and advertising played.

It’s another sad chapter in the history of American copyright. Our forefathers specifically granted rights in our Constitution – but never this broad in scope. Not only did they believe in copyright, but they believed in passing that same information into the public domain – not this version of locking everyone out. Now we are surrounded by the loosening of rules regarding the media, so they can continue to tell us what to think in even more ways. Great. Because I like having a lack of choice in how I’m told to think I get my news.

Thankfully, there is the Internet. I’ll leave you with this:

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