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| Saturday, September 25, 2004 |
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On the other wing... 
| | It has seemed very strange to me, since moving to Santa Barbara, that such a generally leftish community would have its AM talk radio listening, like approximately 100% of the rest of the country, restricted to a choir of right wing voices. |
| | Oddly, there has never been a local NPR affiliate here. All we have for NPR-type public affairs on FM are the four-watt translator of KCLU from Thousand Oaks and the 50-watt KSBX, which simulcasts KCBX from San Luis Obispo. (And hey: bravo to both for making the effort.) UCSB's student station, KCSB, is a fairly lefty outfit (as Sean Hannity will tell you) and a fun station; but it's mosty about music. There are two classical stations, which is nice. KDB is a local landmark. KQSC simulcasts KUSC from Los Angeles. |
| | I'd love to see KQSC become a local NPR public affairs station, since I think the community could easily sacrifice one of its two classical stations for a good cause that would certainly net KUSC (or its parent, the University of Southern California) a lot more money. It would also help the recently saved KDB in the ratings. But in the absence of any local advocacy for the idea, that's not likely to happen. |
| | But tonight, on my way home from Costco, I was punching SCAN when the car radio stopped at 1340 AM. I forget what used to be there; but now it's Air America, the liberal talk network. |
| | Not that I'll listen much, since the network as relentlessly one-sided as the stuff for which it serves as an intentional alternative. But it's nice to know the local political majority is finally being served with something compatible from the genre. |
| | Rick also hopes (as do I) that the mostly-liberal Alex Bennett will get back on the local airwaves, presumably as a companion to the Air America line-up. I remember listening to Alex way back when he was on WMCA in New York, back in the 60s. That was when 'MCA was making the transition from Top 40 pioneer to Talk Radio pioneer. More recently Alex was a morning talk mainstay at KITS/105.3 in San Francisco, before getting bumped for Howard Stern, who's still in that slot. |
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