Clear Channel: Radio Nowhere

Bruce Springsteen's new album, Magic, may just be a little too progressive for our friends at Clear Channel Communications. According to FOX, and order has been sent down by Clear Channel corporate not to play The Boss on their "Classic Rock" stations--because he's too old. Yep, that's right--too old--to be played on a "Classic Rock" station?!

Are any radio stations in the High Country censoring The Boss too?

Here's the full article about The Boss & Clear Channel from FOX:

Bruce Springsteen should be very happy. He has the No. 1 album, a possible Grammy for Best Album of the Year for "Magic," an album full of singles and a sold-out concert tour.

Alas, there’s a hitch: Radio will not play "Magic." In fact, sources tell me that Clear Channel has sent an edict to its classic rock stations not to play tracks from "Magic." But it’s OK to play old Springsteen tracks such as "Dancing in the Dark," "Born to Run" and "Born in the USA."

Just no new songs by Springsteen, even though it’s likely many radio listeners already own the album and would like to hear it mixed in with the junk offered on radio.

Why? One theory, says a longtime rock insider, "is that the audience knows those songs. Of course, they’ll never know these songs if no one plays them."

"Magic," by the way, has sold more than 500,000 copies since its release on Oct. 2 and likely will hit the million mark. That’s not a small achievement these days, and one that should be embraced by Clear Channel.

But what a situation: The No. 1 album is not being played on any radio stations, according to Radio & Records, which monitors such things. Nothing. The rock songs aren’t on rock radio, and the two standout "mellow" tracks — "Magic" and "Devil’s Arcade" — aren’t even on "lite" stations.

The singles-kinda hits, "Radio Nowhere" and "Living in the Future" — which would have been hits no questions asked in the '70s, '80s and maybe even the '90s, also are absent from Top 40.

What to do? Columbia Records is said to be readying a remixed version of "The Girls in their Summer Clothes," a poppy Beach Boys-type track that has such a catchy hook fans were singing along to it at live shows before they had the album. Bruce insiders are hopeful that with a push from Sony, "Girls" will triumph.

I’m not so sure.

Clear Channel seems to have sent a clear message to other radio outlets that at age 58, Springsteen simply is too old to be played on rock stations. This completely absurd notion is one of many ways Clear Channel has done more to destroy the music business than downloading over the last 10 years. It’s certainly what’s helped create satellite radio, where Springsteen is a staple and even has his own channel on Sirius.

It’s not just Springsteen. There is no sign at major radio stations of new albums by John Fogerty or Annie Lennox, either. The same stations that should be playing Santana’s new singles with Chad Kroeger or Tina Turner are avoiding them, too.

Like Springsteen, these "older" artists have been relegated to something called Triple A format stations — i.e. either college radio or small artsy stations such as WFUV in the Bronx, N.Y., which are immune from the Clear Channel virus of pre-programming and where the number of plays per song is a fraction of what it is on commercial radio.

Could it be that Clear Channel is a little miffed at these lyrics (see below)--which are clearly speaking out against radio consolidation? Do the lyrics raise the hackles of local High Country radio titans? Maybe its because they hit a little too close to the bottom line:

I was tryin' to find my way home
But all I heard was a drone
Bouncing off a satellite
Crushin' the last lone American night
This is radio nowhere, is there anybody alive out there?
This is radio nowhere, is there anybody alive out there?

I was spinnin' 'round a dead dial
Just another lost number in a file
Dancin' down a dark hole
Just searchin' for a world with some soul

This is radio nowhere, is there anybody alive out there?
This is radio nowhere, is there anybody alive out there?
Is there anybody alive out there?

I just want to hear some rhythm
I just want to hear some rhythm
I just want to hear some rhythm
I just want to hear some rhythm

I want a thousand guitars
I want pounding drums
I want a million different voices speaking in tongues

This is radio nowhere, is there anybody alive out there?
This is radio nowhere, is there anybody alive out there?
Is there anybody alive out there?

I was driving through the misty rain
Searchin' for a mystery train
Boppin' through the wild blue
Tryin' to make a connection to you

This is radio nowhere, is there anybody alive out there?
This is radio nowhere, is there anybody alive out there?
Is there anybody alive out there?

I just want to feel some rhythm
I just want to feel some rhythm
I just want to feel your rhythm
I just want to feel your rhythm
I just want to feel your rhythm
I just want to feel your rhythm
I just want to feel your rhythm
I just want to feel your rhythm


Copyright © 2007 Bruce Springsteen (ASCAP)

FCC Commissioner Copps

We just had a great chat with FCC Commissioner Copps. The discussion has concluded, but we were delighted when Commissioner Copps responded to our question--not once, but twice.

P.S. LPFM means low-power FM radio, and the question we posed to Mr. Copps refers to this type of non-profit, non-commercial FM radio station--as well as other issues.

Here's our Q&A--also take a moment to visit freepress.net, the host for the discussion--just to see some of the other questions, and the extent to which other Americans are concerned about media consolidation in their own communities:

Media Monopolies and Community Radio

Submitted on October 29, 2007 - 6:56pm.

Mr. Copps: Thanks so much for your media reform efforts, we are deeply appreciative. Your efforts inspire us to continue our own local efforts to establish media accessibility and diversity.

We are in the mountains of North Carolina, in a town called Boone (pop. 14,000--28,000 when Appalachian State University is in session).

Even here, the negative impact of media consolidation is a stark reality: All 6 radio radio stations are owned by the same company, and almost all of the newspapers (5 out of 6) are owned by a single, out of state corporation.

Simply put, we need help. This kind of consolidation is clearly hurting our local community--for example, we never hear independent music on local radio (and there is so much in this community!!), nor do we hear the voices of local artists, environmentalists, authors--in short, any group that is not identified as being profitable enough for big media.

Will the FCC take any action to break up these local monopolies? If not, can we expect more movement on the LPFM front? What is big media doing to try to block the community radio/LPFM effort? How will the FCC respond to big media's effort to squelch local voices again?

Thank you so much for your efforts--keep up the faith, and we will too.

Democracy Now of the NC High Country: www.dnhc.blogspot.com

»

As a one-time Tar Heel

Submitted by Commissioner Copps on October 29, 2007 - 8:10pm.

As a one-time Tar Heel (although once Heel, always a Heel) I hear your plea for community radio. That's why I noted earlier the need for a real commitment to LPFM here at the FCC. We could take a few fairly easy steps and I think add 400 or 500 stations real quickly.

»

The FCC has done just about

Submitted by Commissioner Copps on October 29, 2007 - 7:05pm.

The FCC has done just about nothing to encourage LPFM after the first application window was opewned in 2000. LPFM is more important than ever in an age when so few companies are controlling so much media. We need to find ways--and there are several--to help LPFM. First we must make a genuine commitment that we want to help. I do.

Weekend Video Salon: Bill Moyers

Here's Bill Moyers at the 2007 National Conference for Media Reform. Enjoy!

Monday: Live Chat With FCC Commissioner Copps

Here in the High Country, you can listen to Rush, Hannity, Dobson, and Boortz on the radio. The first three are all solidly on the right. Boortz is a "libertarian." Are we somehow to believe that these shows present the full range of competing viewpoints which are so essential to a functioning democracy? All of the radio stations in the Boone/Blowing Rock/Banner Elk/Newland/and Jefferson are owned by the same company.

Similarly, you can read the Watauga Democrat, Blowing Rocket, Mountain Times (Watauga & Ashe Counties), Avery Journal, and All About Women--all of which are owned by the same company.

Are you seeing a pattern here? Local media consolidation has resulted in watered-down journalism, and less inclusion of diverse points of view. Voices and issues that need to be heard are shut out--not because they are unimportant to the community--but because they are not profitable enough. Because they are not profitable enough, they are assumed to be irrevelant.

If you are concerned about the state of local media in the High Country, and about the FCC's new effort to allow still more media consolidation, you can discuss your concerns LIVE with FCC Commissioner Michael Copps during an on-line chat this coming Monday at 7:00 p.m. Take a moment to check it out. Here are the details, from freepress.net:

What: Live Chat with Commissioner Copps
Date: Monday, Oct. 29
Time: 7:00 p.m. ET / 4:00 p.m. PT
Location: www.freepress.net/action

Privatization Solves EVERYTHING

For years those in power have repeated over and over again that the root of all of our societal problems stems from big government. And the only way to save ourselves is to sell off everything--in a word, PRIVATIZE! The free market will solve everything.

But we keep seeing example after example of the failure of privatization. Need we mention our friends at Blackwater USA? Halliburton?

When it comes to having a functional democracy, the biggest failure of privatization is clear--the privatization of the public airwaves. Tune around the airwaves in the High Country, and what you get is plain-vanilla corporate TV and radio. You see and hear what sells the best--not what will challenge you, educate you, or inspire you. Even WASU-FM, the broadcast arm of Appalachian State University (and therefore a state-funded operation), is getting into the world of corporate-sponsorship. Gotta make sure we start 'em young, right?

So, what does the privatization record look like?

The magic bullet goes by many names — privatization, public-private partnerships, competitive outsourcing, creative financing solutions — but the basic idea is to allow the power of competition, set free in an unregulated market, to provide the public with the best services at the lowest cost.

...

"The public has been schooled to think that government is the problem, not the solution," Elliott Sclar, professor of economics at Columbia University, told us. In his 2000 book on privatization, You Don't Always Get What You Pay For: The Economics of Privatization (Cornell University), he writes, "American folk wisdom holds that, by and large, public service is uncaring, unbending, bureaucratic, and expensive, whereas competitively supplied private services such as FedEx are efficient and responsive."

...

But this country has a lot of experience with privatization, and the record isn't good.

One hundred years ago private companies did a lot of what we now call government work. "Contracting out was the way American cities carried out their governmental business ever since they grew beyond their small village beginnings," writes Moshe Adler, a Columbia professor of economics, in his 1999 paper The Origins of Governmental Production: Cleaning the Streets of New York by Contract During the 19th Century. At one time private companies provided firefighting, trash collection, and water supplies, to name just a few essential services.

But according to Adler, "By the end of the 19th century contracting out was a mature system that was already as good as it could possibly be. And it was precisely then that governmental production came to America. The realization that every possible improvement to contracting out had been tried led city after city to declare its failure."

For example, the 1906 earthquake and subsequent fires in San Francisco were what prodded the city to municipalize water service after the company charged with the task, Spring Valley Water, failed to deliver while the fires raged.

In Philadelphia as well as San Francisco, the business of firefighting was once very lucrative — for both the firefighting companies and the arsonists who were paid to set fires for the former to fight. And corruption was rampant. "Large amounts of public contracting out historically created lots of opportunities for fraud and nepotism," Jacobs said.

So public agencies stepped in to provide basic services as cheaply and uniformly as possible. Towns and cities took on the tasks of security with police and firefighting, education with schools and libraries, and sanitation with trash collection and wastewater treatment. Nationally, the federal government improved roads and transit, enacted Social Security benefits, and established a National Park System, among many other things.

And then, about 30 years ago, the pendulum started to swing the other way. Driven by University of Chicago economist Milton Friedman, enacted in a massive policy shift by Ronald Reagan, proliferated by Grover Norquist and the neocon agenda, and fully appreciated by corporations and private companies, privatization came back.

...

To field-test the primacy of privatization, the Reagan administration sponsored a transportation experiment in the early '80s: Miami's Metro-Dade Transit Agency got to compete against Greyhound. The two providers were each given five comparable transit routes to manage over three years, and 80 new buses were bought with a $7.5 million grant from the federal government.

After 18 months 30 of the Greyhound buses were so badly damaged that they had to be permanently pulled from service. Passenger complaints on the Greyhound line were up 100 percent, and ridership was down 31 percent over the course of a year.

Why? There was no incentive in Greyhound's contract to maintain the equipment or retain riders. The company's only goal was to deliver the cheapest service possible.

The Miami transit contract could have contained clauses calling for regular inspections or guaranteed ridership, but that would have significantly increased the cost of the work — perhaps to the point where it would have been competitive with what the city provided.

That's an important lesson in privatization politics: when you add the cost of adequately protecting the public's interest and monitoring contract compliance, the private sector doesn't look so efficient.

...

Full article here.

Weekend Video Salon

Here's Amy Goodman speaking at the National Conference for Media Reform 2007. Enjoy!

Our Company Media Town

Looks like we may have to hold off on that contest to name the new media empire in the High Country--for now (see prior post below).

The FCC may be forced by an upcoming bill to actually listen to public opinion about the wisdom of allowing still more media consolidation--instead of sneakily trying to slip a new set of rules through because they want to "wrap things up."

Localism is a very important issue--it has everything to do with the access that the public is given to the public airwaves, as well as the extent of local ownership (or lack thereof) of the radio, tv, and newspaper outlets in a particular city or town. Significantly, the bill being drafted is bipartisan, something that indicates how vital the issue of media consolidation has become to the American public:

Media-consolidation critic Sen. Byron Dorgan (D-N.D.) is working quickly with other like-minded legislators, likely including Sen. Trent Lott (R-Miss.), on a bill dealing with media-ownership rules the Federal Communications Commission is currently reviewing.

...

The bill's likely goal would be to delay that process until the FCC came up with separate proposals and sought sufficient public comment on issues including the effect of consolidation on broadcast localism...

...

On learning of Martin's plan, Dorgan, who has long pushed the commission to deal with localism as a separate issue, said Wednesday that if that were the case, there would be a "firestorm of protest, and I will be carrying the wood." Apparently, that wood is the "big stick" of legislation.

Full article here.

Behind Closed Doors

We should probably have a contest--that way we could enjoy one last moment of creative freedom before every media outlet is absorbed into the borg. Our contest would be a competition to determine the name of the newly created media empire in the High Country--one that is comprised of MTN, Aisling Broadcasting, High Country Media, and the High Country Press--all operated by a single owner.

You see, it seems that the FCC is trying to allow yet another round of media consolidation, essentially removing one of the last remaining barriers standing in the way of complete monopoly. The FCC wants to make it OK for a company to own both a newspaper and a television or radio station in the same town.

Problem is, the FCC decided in secret to move ahead with this plan--but it seems that they got caught. The FCC Chairman has made some folks pretty upset, too:

Chairman Martin’s secret plans were uncovered during a Commerce Committee hearing yesterday by Sen. Byron Dorgan (D-N.D.), one of the most vocal critics of media consolidation. Sen. Dorgan has co-authored a letter with Sen. Trent Lott (R-Miss.) to the FCC calling for a more transparent and open public review of the media ownership rules.

“We do not believe the Commission has adequately studied the impact of media consolidation,” wrote Sens. Dorgan and Lott. “The FCC should not rush forward and repeat mistakes of the past. The Commission is under considerable scrutiny with this proceeding. We strongly encourage you to slow down and proceed with caution.”

Chairman Martin has a history of working behind closed doors on behalf of big media companies. According to a report by the Government Accountability Office, the FCC consistently leaks vital information on sensitive votes and rules to corporate lobbyists and stakeholders. In contrast, the report found that consumer and public interest groups were left in the dark.

...

The agency commissioned ten ownership studies with no public input or transparency on the studies’ authors, methodology or peer review — then gave the public a paltry 60 days to review eight months of research. A Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request revealed that the research agenda was crafted with a bias towards studies supporting consolidation.

“The chairman has already decided what rule changes he wants to make — he is just going through the motions,” said Dr. Mark Cooper, director of research at Consumer Federation of America. “The FCC hasn’t even received all of the public comment in this proceeding, and Martin is already scheduling a vote.”

...

“When we let a few giant conglomerates control so many outlets, quality journalism turns into junk media, and our democracy suffers,” said Silver. “Media consolidation is a one way street and there’s no turning back.”

Letter from Sens. Dorgan and Lott:
http://www.freepress.net/docs/dorgan_lott_fcc_10.17.07.pdf

Democracy should not have to lose because of Big Media's late realization that they paid way too much for the outlets they purchased during the last round of consolidation. Nor should democracy lose because many of these same Big Media companies are being held to highly unrealistic profit margin expectations by Wall Street or their own management--profit margins which are simply incompatible with quality journalism.

Make no mistake--this latest FCC proposal is all about bailing Big Media out from the burden of these past foolish purchases (made by Big Media!)--by allowing them to exercise monopoly power--and finally make some REAL money. The heck with democracy.

WXIT 1200 AM: Moral Values

So--pretend you're a little kid getting a late ride to school because you were feeling kinda sick in the morning, but magically--now you're all better! It's about noon, and you're on your way to school--and mom/dad have the radio tuned to RUSH, on WXIT 1200 AM. A real opportunity for some quality family time.

But on this magical day, you get to hear Rush's confession about his past penchant for threatening and intimidating people he interviewed when he was a "journalist," and also learn all about masturbation.

What a special moment it is when your young child turns to you to ask, "What is masturbation?"

Rush must have a heck of a lot of sponsors up here in the High Country. Because as this incident and many others demonstrate, the free market clearly trumps morality. Yet we seem to hear all the time about how important it is to be kind and moral here in the High Country.

We wonder--how many of these same people who preach morality all day long secretly crouch in their cars and living rooms to listen to their true savior, Rush?

And we also wonder--how in the world is WXIT serving the public interest by airing Rush? What do the local sponsors of Rush think of his behavior? Is Rush's kind of talk acceptable to the sponsors--as long as they get a good return on their investment? How moral, indeed.

Listen to Rush's full audio here, and also view the transcript.

WXIT 1200 AM: Focus on the Family

Dr. James Dobson's radio show, "Focus on the Family," is carried locally on WXIT 1200 AM. Dr. Dobson has some interesting views on the proper role of a Christian woman, as Jocelyn Andersen, author of "Woman Submit! Christians & Domestic Violence" (One Way Cafe Press, 2007) discussed recently with mediatransparency.org.

According to the author, Dr. Dobson's teachings place the blame for domestic violence squarely on the victim (via Bill Berkowitz at mediatransparency.org):

According to Andersen, the problem of physical, as well as emotional and spiritual abuse, is being exacerbated by the outdated teachings of several high-profile conservative Christian pastors.

...

In the introduction to her new book "Woman Submit! Christians & Domestic Violence" (One Way Cafe Press, 2007), Andersen points out that "The practice of hiding, ignoring, and even perpetuating the emotional and physical abuse of women is ... rampant within evangelical Christian fellowships and as slow as our legal systems have been in dealing with violence against women by their husbands, the church has been even slower."

...

Andersen, whose account of physical abuse by her husband makes for a harrowing first chapter, says that the problem is exacerbated by misguided advice and use of outdated information in the writing of Dr. James Dobson, founder of Focus on the Family, and Dr. John MacArthur, a pastor-teacher at the Sun Valley, California-based Grace Community Church. "We do see some very big-name evangelical leaders blaming the battered woman for the abuse," Andersen explained. "You know, talking about how she may provoke her husband into doing it; or that her poor, non-communicative husband can't handle maybe what she's trying to communicate to him and he lashes out and hits her -- [that] shifts the blame right off him and to her."

...

She chose to look closely at their work because of the "scope of influence" they wield "within the Christian Community." Both men are "prolific writers with best-selling books," and the both "have large listening audiences for their radio broadcasts," which "have been staples of Moody Christian Radio for years." Millions of people listen to the broadcasts weekly, she said.

"Both Dobson and MacArthur are high-profile evangelical leaders with enough influence and ability to make a positive contribution to the plight of battered women which would result in lives being saved." Instead, "their words are often used to send Christian women back into the danger zone with counsel that encourages them to try and change violent husbands or return to violent homes as soon as the 'heat is off.' The last time I looked, assault was a crime, but Christian women are generally not encouraged to report that crime."

...

Full article here.

Weekend Video: Naomi Klein-Another World Is Possible, PART 4

Weekend Video: Naomi Klein-Another World Is Possible, PART 3

Weekend Video: Naomi Klein-Another World Is Possible, PART 2

Weekend Video: Naomi Klein-Another World Is Possible

Here's a great speech by Naomi Klein. After a brief musical introduction, Amy Goodman of Democracy Now! provides some background information--and then the speech begins. Naomi's speech is a wonderful motivator, and serves as a true reminder of our responsibilities as citizens of a democracy.

Free Market or FIXED Market?

When it comes to making the rules, it helps to have a little help from your friends at the FCC, at least if you are Big Media. With friends like the FCC, it's no wonder that we seem to be stuck with such a homogenized media landscape. After all, the last thing Big Media wants is actual competition.

According to the L.A. Times and the GAO, the fix is in:

WASHINGTON -- From giant phone companies to small consumer advocates, the Federal Communications Commission is supposed to treat every group equally. But congressional investigators have found some companies and trade groups have received special treatment.

FCC officials tipped them off to confidential information about when regulators planned to vote on important issues -- a clear violation of agency rules that provided an unfair lobbying advantage, according to a report by the Government Accountability Office released today. Other interested parties -- generally consumer and public-interest groups -- did not get such favorable treatment, the report said.

"It is critical that FCC maintain an environment in which all stakeholders have an equal opportunity to participate in the rulemaking process and that the process is perceived as fair and transparent," the report said. "Situations where some, but not all, stakeholders know what FCC is considering for an upcoming vote undermine the fairness and transparency of the process and constitute a violation of FCC's rules."

With oversight of many aspects of telephone, TV, radio and Internet services, the FCC has a major effect on people's lives. Its decisions also can affect entire sectors of the telecommunications industry. Privileged information, leaked in violation of FCC rules, could give some companies and organizations advantages when trying to sway the commission, the GAO said.

...

The period covered the chairmanships of Michael Powell and current head Kevin J. Martin.

...

"FCC officials told us that, for stakeholders to successfully make their case before FCC, 'timing is everything,' " the report said. "Specifically, if a stakeholder knows that a proposed rule has been scheduled for a vote and may be voted on in three weeks, that stakeholder can schedule a meeting with FCC officials before the rule is voted on."

Those who don't know about an upcoming vote until the agenda is announced are frozen out of lobbying by the one-week prohibition, the GAO said.

...

In addition to the case studies, several businesses or groups said they were tipped off about upcoming votes by FCC staff. "One stakeholder -- representing a large organization that is involved in numerous rulemakings -- told us that FCC staff call them and tell them what items are scheduled for a vote," the report said.

The Reality of an Emerging Market

Local media titans repeat the mantra all the time: "There is no market for progressive talk radio in the High Country."

The titans would do well to take a look at this month's Talkers magazine. According to the Talkers analysis of Arbitron reports, progressive talker Ed Schultz has moved into a tie with (wait for it) Bill O'Reilly--with 3.25 million+ weekly listeners.

Titans, please. Boone is a university town, with plenty of progressive voters (wasn't there some kind of election recently?). Can you say, "EMERGING MARKET"?

Our Own Loose Nukes

Sometimes the mainstream media misses a story altogether...and sometimes they simply cover the wrong angle--to the detriment of us all.

Here is a column written by Robert Stormer, a retired Lieutenant Commander with the U.S. Navy, about that little incident not too long ago when the Air Force flew some nuclear weapons from North Dakota to Louisiana's Barksdale Air Force Base (according to him the "staging area for Middle Eastern operations", in clear violation of seemingly every policy there is:

Last month, six W80-1 nuclear-armed AGM-129 advanced cruise missiles were flown from Minot Air Force Base, N.D., to Barksdale AFB in Louisiana and sat on the tarmac for 10 hours undetected.

Press reports initially cited the Air Force mistake of flying nuclear weapons over the United States in violation of Air Force standing orders and international treaties, while completely missing the more important major issues, such as how six nuclear cruise missiles got loose to begin with.

...

There is a strict chain of custody for all such weapons. Nuclear weapons handling is spelled out in great detail in Air Force regulations, to the credit of that service. Every person who orders the movement of these weapons, handles them, breaks seals or moves any nuclear weapon must sign off for tracking purposes.

...

The United States also does not transport nuclear weapons meant for elimination attached to their launch vehicles under the wings of a combat aircraft. The procedure is to separate the warhead from the missile, encase the warhead and transport it by military cargo aircraft to a repository -- not an operational bomber base that just happens to be the staging area for Middle Eastern operations.

...

This is about how six nuclear advanced cruise missiles got out of their bunkers and onto a combat aircraft without notice of the wing commander, squadron commander, munitions maintenance squadron (MMS), the B-52H's crew chief and command pilot and onto another Air Force base tarmac without notice of that air base's chain of command -- for 10 hours.

...

Does the Bush administration, as some news reports suggest, have plans to attack Iran with nuclear weapons?

His full article is here.

Bizarre Call to WETS

Apparently, someone is really threatened by the concept of Democracy Now!'s alternative viewpoints being heard in our area.

As our sister organization, Democracy Now Tri-Cities reports, WETS received a veeeeeerrrrry early morning voicemail from a caller who had these wonderful things to say about Democracy Now! (h/t Democracy Now Tri-Cities).

What more motivation do you need to make a pledge to WETS?

As we all know too well, free speech isn't free.

Appalachian Voices on Earthbeat Radio

You can catch Earthbeat Radio on 19 radio stations in the U.S. But not here.

That's too bad, because Mary Anne Hitt of Appalachian Voices was on the show just last week. Earthbeat Radio aired a speech made by Ms. Hitt at the International Forum on Globalization/Institute For Policy Studies Teach-In, where she discussed the impact of coal mining on the land and the people of Appalachia.

Earthbeat Radio even provided a link to ilovemountains.org, the Appalachian Voices sister site--with their address in Boone and everything!

Wouldn't it be great if a radio station in the High Country carried Earthbeat Radio? There is, after all, a strong interest in sustainable energy up here. Why, even the largest employer in Boone is getting into the act. Biodiesel anyone? Wind? We are in Appalachia, right?

We often wonder why, with ASU's intense interest in sustainable energy, that WASU-FM carries exactly zero programming dedicated to this topic. Would WASU-FM station management say there is no market for a show like Earthbeat Radio? Given all the activity of the various groups above, (and the built-in listener market at ASU itself--faculty, staff, and students) that seems like a pretty weak argument. Would WASU-FM station management say Earthbeat Radio costs too much? That one won't work either--Earthbeat Radio is FREE for the taking.

Why not send the General Manager at WASU-FM a courteous question or two about Earthbeat Radio? His name is Dan "Vallie" Hill. Carrying Earthbeat Radio would be just one more way that ASU can fulfill their oft-stated educational and community service missions.

Here are a few comments from some of the radio stations currently carrying Earthbeat Radio:

"In 2006, Earthbeat became our Friday 'luncheon listen' - it's been a great success."
John Cain, Station Manager
KABF - 100,000 watts
Little Rock, Arkansas

"Since we added Earthbeat to our line-up, it's been a solid performer both in terms of listenership and financial support."
Ron Pinchback, Station Manager
WPFW - 50,000 watts
Washington, DC

Book Review: The Shock Doctrine

Naomi Klein is a true intellectual and a fantastic investigative reporter. We cannot recommend her new book enough. The Shock Doctrine examines much of what is wrong with the privatization agenda being pushed by those in power. Here is some information about the book (you can order it here):

"With a bold and brilliantly conceived thesis, skillfully and cogently threaded through more than 500 pages of trenchant writing, Klein may well have revealed the master narrative of our time."

- William S. Kowinski
San Francisco Chronicle
September 23, 2007

Based on breakthrough historical research and four years of on-the-ground reporting in disaster zones, The Shock Doctrine vividly shows how disaster capitalism – the rapid-fire corporate reengineering of societies still reeling from shock – did not begin with September 11, 2001. The book traces its origins back fifty years, to the University of Chicago under Milton Friedman, which produced many of the leading neo-conservative and neo-liberal thinkers whose influence is still profound in Washington today. New, surprising connections are drawn between economic policy, “shock and awe” warfare and covert CIA-funded experiments in electroshock and sensory deprivation in the 1950s, research that helped write the torture manuals used today in Guantanamo Bay. --naomiklein.org

WXIT 1200 AM

We're a bit late on this one, but we had to say something about it. On his September 26th radio show, Rush Limbaugh called soldiers who express their opposition to the Iraq war "phony soldiers."

Ask the local media titans why they carry shows like Rush, and they will tell you that they carry these shows because they are "WHAT THE PEOPLE WANT."

We wonder: How many members of the 1451st want to tune in to WXIT to hear this sort of invective? How about their families? Is this an example of how a local radio station serves the public good?

Can you imagine listening to Rush call you a "phony" while you have to go out on patrol everyday in a combat zone?

Did you know that Rush never served in the U.S. military?

Take a look at the results of this poll--you'd be amazed at how many active duty soldiers oppose this war.