Category Archives: radio

A look at broadcast history happening

When I was a kid in the 1950s and early 1960s, AM was the ruling form of radio, and its transmitters were beyond obvious, taking the form of towers hundreds of feet high, sometimes in clusters formed to produce directional … Continue reading

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Building a Relationship Economy

In faith that nothing lasts forever, and that an institution that’s been around since 1636 is more likely to keep something published online for longer than one that was born in 1994 and isn’t quite dead yet (and with full … Continue reading

Posted in intention economy, publishing, radio, tv, VRM | 3 Comments

My podcasts of choice

As a follow-up to what I wrote earlier today, here are my own favorite podcasts, in the order they currently appear in my phone’s podcast apps: Radio Open Source (from itself) Bill Simmons (on The Ringer) Fresh Air (from WHYY … Continue reading

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A half-century of NPR

NPR, which turned 50 yesterday, used to mean National Public Radio. It still does, at least legally; but they quit calling it that in 2010. The reason given was “…most of our audience — more than 27 million listeners to … Continue reading

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On the persistence of KPIG

On Quora, William Moser asked, Would the KPIG radio format of Americana—Folk, Blugrass, Delta to modern Blues, Blues-rock, trad. & modern C&W, country & Southern Rock, jam-bands, singer/songwriters, some jazz, big-band & jazz-singers sell across markets in America? I answered, I’ve … Continue reading

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A toast to the fools standing high on broadcasting’s hill

In Winter, the cap of dark on half the Earth is cocked to the north. So, as the planet spins, places farther north get more night in the winter. In McGrath, Alaska, at close to sixty-three degrees north, most of … Continue reading

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Radio 2.x

On Quora, somebody asks, How can the radio industry stay relevant in the age of streaming music and podcasts? Here’s my answer: It already is, if you consider streaming music and podcasting evolutionary forms of radio. But if you limit the meaning … Continue reading

Posted in audio, radio | 1 Comment

How the once mighty fall

For many decades, one of the landmark radio stations in Washington, DC was WMAL-AM (now re-branded WSPN), at 630 on (what in pre-digital times we called) the dial. As AM listening faded, so did WMAL, which moved its talk format … Continue reading

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Vermont Public Radio rating wins, and the future of streaming & podcasting

Public Radio: What is the best NPR station in the country? That’s a question on Quora I thought needed answering. So I did, with this: Here’s a quantitative answer to your qualitative question: WVPS of Vermont Public Radio. Because, in Nielsen’s Audio Ratings, it … Continue reading

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How long will radio last?

The question on Quora was How long does a radio station last on average? Here is my answer, which also addresses the bigger question of what will happen to radio itself. Radio station licenses will last as long as they have value … Continue reading

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