Is News/Talk the “Tyranny of the Majority?”

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There’s an interesting post on BuffaloNews.com today by Jeff Simon.  I think his hyperbole is tongue-in-cheek, but he has some intriguing thoughts.  Simon bemoans the whittling away of jazz and blues on Buffalo’s stations: …no one ever understood the inherent flaw in American democracy better than Alexis de Tocqueville, whose 1835 “Democracy in America” tells you most of what you need to know about why excellence always has been a media battleground and always will be. What de Tocqueville summarized in one phrase characterizes the current perils of WBFO-FM in an age of WNED … Continue Reading

KUSC Leading the Way Again

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Business Wire reports that KUSC, that intrepid Los Angeles classical station with the gigantic audience, is joining the iHeartRadio digital platform.  You can listen online at iHeartRadio.com, where you can customize your listening and even make your own radio station.  I’m not exactly sure how it works, because when I searched for KUSC it took me to a generic classical station, so I’ll update when more info is available. KUSC is a forward-thinking station that’s not afraid to play a wide playlist, superserves its audience, and has a good mix of national and local programming, including the Met Opera … Continue Reading

Upping the Pressure on Sacramento

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I’ve been reporting on the changes at Capital Public Radio in Seattle and today came across a thoughtful, well-written article by Cosmo Garvin at Newsreview.com. the real problem is not that there’s going to be less jazz, it’s that there won’t be enough of anything new… no new local shows added to the new lineup, and nothing that isn’t standard fare for the NPR station in Anytown, U.S.A. … CPR general manager Rick Eytcheson assured Bites that, “The changes will allow us to do a lot more news programming.” The station has added reporters and … Continue Reading

Dixie State in Utah Dumps Classical

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Dixie State College in Southern Utah is a school with about 9,500 students and until now, the only classical music radio station in southern Utah. Ashley Putnam reports for the Dixie Sun that KXDS is converting from classical to Top 40 and eventually news and talk because it wants to be more relevant to students.   “We have been looking at areas and how to improve student involvement,” said Bill Christensen, dean of the business and communication departments. “We want to give opportunities for students to get the skills to be successful.” Although the … Continue Reading

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