Colorado Public Radio Blog

COLORADO COMMUNITY RADIO FOR THE CONVENTION

2008-08-21T22:44:00.009-06:00

GREETINGS EVERYONE! WELCOME TO COLORADO

Greetings to all of you visiting Colorado for the Democrat's national "love fest". While you are here (hopefully with time to drive around the state a bit), you may want to check out the radio offerings from several community radio stations (the links to Colorado's community radio stations are available on the right side of our home page). The news departments at many of these stations often operate on shoestring budgets, where volunteer energy is essential. During Convention Week, many of Colorado's community stations who are members of Rocky Mountain Community Radio (RMCR); http://rmcradio.org/ are pulling together resources to provide reports from the convention and related events. Participating stations include KRCC, Colorado Springs; KUNC, Greeley; KGNU, Boulder; KRFC, Fort Collins, KSUT, Ignacio (on the Southern Ute Indian reservation); KDNK, Carbondale, KAJX, Aspen, and KSJD, Cortez. Whether or not this will be "award-winning" coverage, just know that pooling the efforts of dozens of people on the ground should provide fresh perspectives and genuine commentary that larger media players are likely to miss.

KUNC, Greeley, 91.5 FM, and KRNC, Steamboat Springs, 88.5 FM; online at http://www.kunc.org/ . KUNC will have three reporters at the Convention, including State Capitol reporter Bente Birkland, providing feature reporting during Morning Edition and All Things Considered (KUNC-producedreports running up to 5 minutes typically air during Morning Edition and All Things Considered at 35 minutes past the hour; longer reports are aired during All Things Considered during the second half-hour). For a complete listing of where you can hear KUNC across eastern Colorado and inthe Colorado mountains, go to: http://www.kunc.org/coverage.html .

KRCC, Colorado Springs, 91.5 FM and online at http://www.krcc.org/ . KRCC reports will include those from Capitol Reporter Bente Birkeland, and KRCC News Director Andrea Chalfin, who is producing feature material about Latino groups attending the Convention; a topic with state-wide and national significance. Other topics will include "Delegate Service Day", and the Nader/Rage Against the Machine "Open the Debates Rally." Reports will air at the bottom of the hour during Morning Edition and All Things Considered, with longer feature material slated for 8:50 a.m., 5:50 p.m. and 6:50 p.m. Breaking stories during the day will be heard immediately following hourly NPR news updates a four minutes past the hour. KRCC will archive everything online at krcc.org, including all reports from RMCR member stations, even if KRCC doesn't play all of those reports on-air. For a complete list of KRCC coverage areas, go to: http://www.krcc.org/about/index_frequencies.html .

KGNU. Boulder/Denver, 88.5 FM and 1390 AM, or online at http://www.kgnu.org/ . Aside from the usual thought-provoking programs such as "Democracy Now", heard weekday mornings from 7:30 until 8:30, see how Boulder and Denver's Community radio voice is covering the convention in a unique way, by running a blog on the convention (as previously reported at http://coloradopublicradio.blogspot.com/2008/07/kgnu-doing-more-with-less.html ) . Other public affairs programs through the week are bound to address what is happening at the Pepsi Center, Invesco Field at Mile High, and on the streets of Denver.

KDNK, Carbondale and the Roaring Fork Valley (Aspen to Glenwood Springs) 88.3 FM or online at http://www.kdnk.org/ . During Morning Edition, Monday Through Friday at 7:30 a.m. KDNK will air a 10 minute summary of convention-related activities, with some of the coverage pulled from the other community stations mentioned. During their 4:30 to 5:00 p.m. time slot, they are tentatively planning public affairs programming as follows:
MONDAY: Following the money trail, or lack thereof.
TUESDAY: Comparing the health plans of McCain and Obama.
WEDNESDAY: Looking at the 08 campaign's energy and environmental policies, and the effects on western Colorado; particularly natural gas and oil shale development nearby.
THURSDAY: how protesters interacted with police and vice versa.
FRIDAY: alternative journalism perspectives, with youth from the Roaring Fork Valley, as well as foreign journalists' perspectives.

KRFC, Fort Collins, 88.9 FM and online at http://www.krfcfm.org/ KRFC will have a half-dozen people on hand at the convention that will be feeding news and feature segments that will be aired throughout the broadcast day.

KAJX, ASPEN, 91.1 AND 91.5 FM, or online at http://www.kajx.org/ . KAJX will have two reporters at the convention. They will file reports and live comment for the KAJX morning news. Packaged stories will focus exclusively on "local" angles, such as local teens attending the event, participation by and impressions of local delegates to the convention, etc. Those stories will be included during KAJX newscasts at 6:04, 7:04, and 8:04 a.m. For a map of their complete coverage area, go to: http://www.kajx.org/listening_map.php

With the variety of programming, and dedication of dozens of volunteer reporters and programmers contributing at each station listed, you are bound to find something to your liking.

Max's Excellent Adventure: Denver Public Radio

2008-08-02T10:38:00.013-06:00

The Lesson Provided by the Colorado Public Radio Board

Colorado Public Radio is announcing new Board Members this week (see previous story), giving us time to stop and examine this beast. It is quite instructive. This exercise has academic overtones . . . but, is this: Geography 101? Statistics 101? Demographics 101? Non-profit Board of Directors 101?

When you weigh the distribution of representation on the CPR Board across areas served, a disproportionate amount of support for CPR comes from "the 303" area code, and a disproportionate amount of CPR's financial support is distributed in much the same way. Old habits die hard.

But there is a bigger story here. How many CPR Board Members come from Western Colorado? From places not fitting CPR's target financial demographic (yes, contrary to lip service they do have one). Do we have anyone serving Colorado Public Radio Board from: Silverton, Meeker, Craig, Cedaredge, or Parachute?

In 1991, after nearly a decade of maneuverings, and manipulations of technical facilities and people, CPR was started in that shotgun wedding between KCFR and KPRN (the orchestration of that would have made Montovani proud) -- much detail was placed on including CPR Board Members from Grand Junction (and then Montrose). Doctors, lawyers, and dentists were among their ranks.

Now that the KPRN take-over fall-out has evaporated (because the Grand Valley now has KAFM for a solid community voice), have the number of Western Slope CPR Board members kept pace? And if the numbers are still respectable, where are the sheepherders, the orchardists, the small town artisans, the wildcat oil and gas rig workers or the coal miners?

When you read the names of CPR Board members, know this: no matter if it is an Anglo, Hispanic, or African-American name, their economic level litmus test for this board has been passed. They are on the economically-successful side of life. They are REQUIRED to shell out thousands of dollars to sit on such a board (to subsidize CPR's operations) . . . and hopefully, to speak for more than the demographic sector from which they were chosen.

Is there a correlation between the make-up of CPR's Board, and on-air programming content? CPR management profusely rejects that idea, and perhaps they are correct, only because the over-all "culture" of CPR is already set in stone and those serving on the Board have been hand picked to fit that model. We saw what happened when former Board member Frances Koncilja tried to shake things up a bit.

CPR's twisted concepts for true public service have also been applied by dozens of other "big" public radio outlets across the land. It is a twisted departure from a time when The Public Broadcasting Act (1967) was created and funded by Congress. In its own way, this tainted culture mirrors what has happened to the nation; a nation which has seen a continued rise in the power and influence of our upper class, at the expense of people below them. In a sense, the people involved with Max's Excellent Adventure are right in step with history that History Professor Newt Gingrich would approve. End of lesson.

As Frank Zappa used to say in his dry, sarcastic tone, "Never mind, shut up, rise and salute the flag."

-First Responder

Colorado Public Radio Board of Directors

2008-08-01T12:00:00.020-06:00

The Rocky Mountain News reports today that Colorado Public Radio has new members and it has reshuffled its officers and directors for its Board.

"Colorado Public Radio named Katherine Archuleta, Laura Perry Barton, Robert Contiguglia, Mary Lou Makepeace, Arnold Salazar and Forrest Cason to its board of directors. Virginia Berkeley was named board chair, Dean Salter was named secretary, and Warren Olsen was named treasurer."

It seems that Colorado Public Radio's own website isn't even (as of 12:00 p.m. on 08/01/2008) up to date yet. How long does it take to run the press release down from the propaganda minister's office to the web guru? I guess longer than it does to email and fax the presser to the fish wrap?

Also, it looks as though CPR has finally taken Francis Koncilja's (former CPR Board Member) advice about adding more diversity to the Board. With names like Archuleta and Salazar on the board, how long before CPR hires some people of color for the news and music departments? White People Love Public Radio!

This just in . . . Someone is updating the CPR website at 12:15 p.m., however, it doesn't look finished. Virgina Berkeley is still listed as both Chair and Treasurer (among many other double-title listings and other typos); that would be quite a coup. I guess Colorado Public Radio DOES breaking news after all -- kinda. So, getting accurate is just optional?

This just in . . . again . . . It's really hard to imagine how the Board Member page on the CPR site can have so many errors; people with different titles, typos, missing web links, bad spacing, omissions, etc., especially when CPR provided the correct information (we assume) to The Rocky. I mean, Colorado Public Radio Blog is a BLOG -- not a news company. We make these mistakes all the time! But, we expect better from the professionals. Don't you?

KGNU Launches Blog to Cover the DNC, Election

2008-08-01T08:23:00.012-06:00

Very much in keeping with its independent, community-centered public radio format, KGNU 88.5-FM in Boulder and 1390-AM in Denver launched a blog. Today, you can see "KGNU’s Joel Edelstein and Maeve Conran discuss the station’s upcoming coverage of the 2008 election, the DNC and the launch of their new blog." Once again, KGNU shows that high-quality public radio can be done on a shoestring budget when public radio stations work harder and smarter.

Also, my guess it that KGNU will balance out coverage of the more conservative branch of public radio, represented by Colorado Public Radio, with a budget or more than $10 million dollars per year. All that money and they STILL cannot produce a blog for their website? Oh that's right, if you want to participate in public radio news with CPR, you have to register with the Public Insight Network. How corporate is that?

I'd venture to guess too, that when KGNU speaks of public participation during the Democratic National Convention in Denver, Colorado that they will more often refer to demonstrators rather than protesters, unlike the staff at Corporate Public Radio. But what's in a word? Public radio listeners are not fussy about vocabulary -- especially when it comes to free speech -- right? Four-syllable, eleven-letter word that is a synonym for fussy? Hmmmm, where is the puzzle master Will Shortz when you need him?

Cacophony Public Radio

2008-07-31T08:37:00.030-06:00

Radio is an intimate medium, say the fundraising tools at Colorado Public Radio around pledge time. They say a lot of stupid, syrypy shit like that about the sound of radio when they want your money. It's a fantastically subjective statement; one with which you may rightly agree or disagree. Of course if you agree with it and fall prey to its persuasive effect, then you'll probably feel guilted into donating to CPR. If you are like me, you just shake it off, turn the dial, and donate -- if you want, when you want -- to whatever public radio station that actually sounds intimate, if that's what you like. Me? I like substance. You? You may have many good reasons to subscribe to Colorado Public Radio, but I'd bet that intimacy surely isn't one of them -- at least not the type of intimacy you get during Morning Edition.

Case in point. If you ever listened to KCFR News during Morning Edition, you have probably heard the cacophony of voices at around :19 minutes past the hour. This is a time, an opportunity for local stations, to break away from NPR news in order to provide local radio content. Or in KCFR's case, to inject message after message, from disparate voice after disparate voice. Listen to this 3 minutes and 10 seconds of audio from 7:19 a.m. to 7:22 a.m. from Colorado Public Radio's Morning Edition for Monday, July 28th. This is what you will hear; 9 intimate voices; with two repeats. Enjoy!

Soraya Sarhaddi Nelson (NPR News Foreign Correspondent, Afghanistan) finishes her report.
Renee Montagne (NPR Morning Edition News Host, NPR West) segues out of Nelson's story.
Bob Lafley (KCFR News Host) reads a news promo for an upcoming KCFR story.
Mike Lamp (KCFR News Host) reads an underwriting spot.
Charley Samson (Host and Executive Producer of Colorado Spotlight on KVOD) reads an underwriting spot.
Anna Panoka (KCFR News Host) introduces and re-brands a documentary for KCFR Showcase that Colorado Public Radio never produced (see 7 and 8 below).
David Dunaway mentions Pete Seeger and Public Radio International in his promotion about the documentary produced by David Dunaway and distributed by PRI, not KCFR (see 6 above and 8 below).
Anna Panoka (KCFR News Host) re-promotes the documentary and mentions that KCFR is now on "crystal clear signal on 90.1-FM" (see 6 and 7 above).
Bob Lafley (KCFR News Host) reads a KCFR weather spot, returning CPR back to NPR.
Deborah Amos (NPR Foreign Correspondent filling in as Morning Edition News Host) introduces a report for David Schaper.
David Schaper (NPR Reporter, Chicago Bureau) reports from Chicago.

Where to begin! First of all, this SOUND BRILLIANCE is brought to you through the miracle of automation and preproduction. NPR prerecords its stories overnight. Then, NPR Hosts inject their bit of magic in between the stories; you know, banter, clever intros and outros, and of course, insipid transitions between stories to tie the really big show together. Then, NPR feeds the show to member stations over satellite and/or the internet.

Days and weeks before the day's Morning Edition broadcast, every one of CPR's on-air hosts record underwriting and promotion spots to sprinkle throughout the KCFR and KVOD broadcasts. Unlike National Public Radio however, CPR cannot seem to learn that a single voice (Frank Tavares, if you didn't know) prerecording almost all of the NPR underwriting spots sounds a lot smoother than 5-7 different people doing it.

If that isn't enough of a chorus, KCFR adds more disparate voices by re-working promotions for other public radio shows to make it sound like KCFR produces more content than it actually does (KCFR Showcase). CPR calls this "re-purposing," which actually means recycling others' work and making it your own. Sounds like stealing to me. Like watching the credits roll in a movie with 10 different producers, directors, distributors and movie studios, it makes your head spin trying to figure out who actually did what to bring you the news. Why don't they just keep it simple; "A Colorado Public Radio Joint," a la Spike Lee?

If that isn't enough, Colorado Public Radio has to make a blatantly false statement about "crystal clear 90.1-FM." Last time I checked, analog radio isn't crystal anything! Sure, KCFR News on 90.1-FM may be a lot clearer than it was on 1340-AM, but please! The digital stream from KCFR is a lot clearer than FM radio, setting aside all the noticeable clicks and pops I hear when streaming their highly compressed, lo-fidelity 32 kbps sound. Maybe this is CPR's oblique reference to HD radio, if so then just say it for chrissakes. By the way, have you noticed that KCFR News on 90.1-FM isn't even broadcast in stereo? Also notice that KCFR stopped saying 1490-AM and the KCFC call letters for Boulder entirely. Guess they don't want you to know that 1490-AM isn't that clear -- crystal, that is. Sounds like an FCC violation to me, but what do I know?

Finally, after nearly 2 minutes of solid soap-selling, KCFR News gives you some actual news content -- a weather forecast that is hours old. Notice how Colorado Public Radio NEVER reads the current weather conditions? They won't do it because they can't do it. Automation is running the show, and it never sounds more obvious than at around :19 minutes past the hour during mornings on Monday through Friday. If radio is really an intimate medium, then the boffins at Colorado Public Radio are geniuses at making it sound completely distant -- like a crowded cacophony of crap. Or, how about just plain PHONY!

Salacious Snob-on-Snob Action

2008-07-31T08:02:00.006-06:00

Brad Weismann, of the Colorado Daily, gives us some salacious snob-on-snob action. Be damned, broadcasting boffins of Colorado Public Radio! How long before CPR turns KVOD into NPR News too?

Happy Anniversary, KUNC!

2008-07-26T14:42:00.011-06:00

July 24, 2008 marked the first anniversary of KUNC's signal improvements, which added a potential 800-thousand listeners in metro Denver to their service area. The changes greatly improved the signal quality of the station in downtown and across the rest of Denver, as well as other sections of metro, particularly on the northern, and eastern side. Better reception is also attainable in sizable portions of Northern Colorado; in Longmont, Broomfield, Arvada, Wheat Ridge, Lakewood, and throughout Boulder.

Along with its blend of music heard weekdays between 9 AM and 3PM, KUNC is the only public radio station along the front range where you will hear several top notch syndicated programs on Saturdays and Sundays, including:

The New Orleans, gumbo-laced delight American Routes, heard Saturdays from 1 until 3:00 PM;
Colorado-produced E-Town, Saturdays at 7:00 PM;
Beale Street Caravan, Saturday evenings at 8:00 PM; and
Bob Edwards Weekend, heard Sundays at 3:00 PM.

These offerings, along with their local news efforts which are inserted into the drive time NPR news programs Morning Edition and All Things Considered -- especially their solid reporting from the Colorado State Capitol -- sets the station apart from other public radio offerings available across metro and the Colorado Front Range.

KUNC Has Done Its Homework

Some public stations do their homework better than others. In Boulder, less than a week following KUNC's signal improvements last July, the station provided a clear signal with a recently-licensed translator at 99.9 FM. This addition became necessary when KUNC's 91.5 FM broadcast antenna was moved from the prairie of northwestern Weld County to Buckhorn Mountain, northwest of Fort Collins; the move which gave KUNC much better coverage for most of metro, but not in Boulder, where KUNC's main signal became much more shaded from KUNC's new Buckhorn location.

Hats off to KUNC Manager Neil Best (a 35 year veteran of public radio management) and a cracker jack engineering department for thinking ahead and securing the 99.9 FM frequency for their Boulder translator, an effort which can take months and even years to navigate through the bureaucratic maze known as the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).

The KUNC proactive approach to covering and even improving its signal in Boulder, Colorado illustrates the way to keep on top of thing technical, unlike the Boulder train wreck that continues to unfold for the KVOD classical music service provided by (see previous articles Colorado Public Radiohere and here on this page).

Trying to locate an FM translator frequency for the crowded Denver metro market is tough. But the area around Boulder, tucked up against the foothills, is shaded enough from Colorado Springs, Colorado and Cheyenne, Wyoming radio signals to sometimes make it possible to install a limited power translator for Boulder on a frequency used by Colorado Springs and/or Cheyenne FM stations). But, it takes planning, and above all else -- caring to make such improvements happen.

In recent weeks, we have also seen KUNC move ahead with efforts to return its service to Grand County, Colorado (see previous article on this page here); an area where public radio signals come at a premium. Again, hats off to a public station interested in serving ALL Colorado residents with a solid signal, including blue-collar places away from the Colorado Front Range places without ski resorts, like: Sterling, Yuma, Wray, Holyoke, Buena Vista, and Salida. Too bad KUNC's delivery system can't reach hamlets like Meeker, Colorado where frustrated public radio listeners continue to put up with on-again-off-again service from CPR, our supposed state-wide radio service.

Congratulations KUNC! You are not only an achieving public asset -- from your relatively modest home in Greeley -- you are also a model for Colorado and regional public radio service. In the shaky financial times seen in the public radio world since 1981, such operations need skill and luck to thrive, expand, and continue. You possess the skill; here's hoping for all public radio listeners within your reach that you have continued luck as well.

Author Craig Childs on KAFM

2008-07-25T08:23:00.018-06:00

CORRECTION: Craig Childs will appear at KAFM, not KVNF as previously reported. Please find a link to the event here. Many thanks to Ryan for correcting our error. Colorado Public Radio Blog regrets the error.

Craig Childs will be at the Western Slope's KAFM Radio Room on Wednesday, July 30th, at 7:00 p.m. to speak about his river trip to Tibet and the January article he published about it in Men's Journal. A $5 donation is suggested for these events and seats are on a first come, first served basis. To reserve your seats by phone to any of these events, call: 970-241-8801 ext. 3.

Here is a list of Childs' interviews with commentaries for NPR. And, here is a list of Craig's books from Amazon.Com.

Craig Childs has also appeared severally on Colorado Matters, KCFR News' daily interview show heard on Colorado Public Radio.

Switch off KVOD, Switch on Internet Radio?

2008-07-25T07:11:00.014-06:00

Colorado Public Radio encourages listeners in Boulder, Colorado -- where KVOD on 88.1-FM is "spotty," according to CPR's Sean Nethery -- to switch to HD radio. Failing that, there is Internet radio. In this article from the Boulder Daily Camera, a "peeved listener" by the name of Carla Selby, finds that there are 127 classical music stations for her to listen over the Internet. And, she says that she won’t be listening to her old favorite anymore; that she "feels betrayed, and that [she] probably will never forgive them [Colorado Public Radio]."

It make you wonder. With 127 different classical music choices on internet radio, will Carla find yet another reason -- besides irritation and disappointment with CPR's decision -- to tune out KVOD? Why spend money on an HD radio -- especially when it won't work in Boulder anyway -- if for the same price or less, you can get an Internet radio and use the broadband connection you already have at home? And, what if Carla finds better classical music content on the Internet besides? What coy or evasive answer does Sean Nethery of Colorado Public Radio have prepared for that?

KUNC Moves Back in Grand County & Winter Park

2008-07-24T18:16:00.003-06:00

Sky Hi Daily News reports that by September 2008, KUNC will be back on the air in Grand County and Winter Park with a translator located at Grand Ranch's Sol Vista and on the radio dial at 91.7-FM. KUNC raised $43,000 for the new tower.

KVOD Kvetching Continues . . .

2008-07-24T08:07:00.013-06:00

Longtime KVOD listener and Boulder, Colorado resident, Carole Bayer, has this to say about Colorado Public Radio and HD radio. I guess the next round of advice from CPR to Carol will be that she NEEDS to buy a computer and get broadband access? Well, she had a good run -- 33 years of listening!

Carol also managed to get her complaint letter in The Denver Post, with yet another complainant.

Classically Speaking: Southern Colorado 2, Northern Colorado 0

2008-07-23T23:05:00.013-06:00

Checking public radio sports, in the Classical Music League, in the third inning, it's Colorado Springs 2, Fort Collins, Loveland, Windsor, Greeley NOTHING.

It's Only a Game, Right?

If Colorado Public Radio (CPR) were operating under the spirit and intent of the Public Broadcasting Act of 1967, the score would be 2 to 1.

That's because listeners in Colorado Springs have KCME at 88.7-FM, A Voice for the Arts, and Colorado Public Radio (CPR) at 94.7-FM BOTH programming classical music, while people in Larimer and Weld Counties in Colorado have NO CLASSICAL MUSIC OPTION on their radio dials.

Game Analysis

The score is 2 to zip, because the public radio system has been GAMED -- beaten up for nearly 30 years. Public Broadcasting's funding arm, The Corporation for Public Broadcasting, was threatened with zeroed-out funding by the Reagan team, and ever since 1981, many in the public radio system have played things way too safe -- with some players playing with a sinister twist (quick, check that ball for foreign substances).

When CPR pulled the plug on Classical KVOD at 90.1-FM recently, and replaced it with KCFR News, CPR lost its connection with Summit County (see previous article), and it ALSO wiped out classical music listenership in Larimer and Weld Counties in Colorado. Now, public radio listeners there are treated to drive time news from KUNC at 91.5-FM AND KCFR at 90.1-FM which is almost identical -- save for local drop-ins from each station -- times at which KUNC has shined in recent months. Since KUNC is more localized than CPR could ever hope to be for this region, the only motivation for CPR to remove classical music and replace it with news is because they know it brings in more money, and it could weaken KUNC's base of support by just offering the same NPR news shows.

The intent of the Public Broadcasting Act of 1967 is completely ignored in this instance. It was created and funded so that non-commercial radio and TV could take chances; bring new programming and ideas to the airwaves, and serve UNSERVED audiences. Colorado Public Radio's recent removal of KVOD from 90.1-FM takes CPR in the opposite direction from that reason to exist in the first place! All that we may see from this reckless behavior is the support base for CPR growing a bit (at the expense of KUNC) while overall the PUBLIC loses content! Is that what Colorado Public radio means by news initiative?

Game Recap

Meanwhile, back in Summit County, the residents have scored big time with recent actions by the Summit County Translator Board. That's because they recently took the new KCFR-FM signal from 90.1 (previously KVOD) off their system, and replaced it with KCME music. In their own important way, the County -- NOT Colorado Public Radio -- is fulfilling the original intent of the Public Broadcasting Act, by reinstating classical music for its residents. WAY TO GO!

That's it from the public radio ballparks for now. There's still some hope for a rally.

Train Story Train WRECK!

2008-07-23T08:16:00.036-06:00

You gotta love the irony! Or is it coincidence? I get those two words mixed up, since Alanis Morisette confused everyone with her song Ironic in 1996. Let's just call it a situational irony, or perhaps (my personal favorite) a viciously-funny coincidence.

Anyway . . . on Tuesday, July 22nd, during NPR's All Things Considered, Colorado Public Radio's KCFR News gave its statewide listeners a real Two for Tuesday. However in this case, the "two for" was a back-to-back, double-shot of an interview with KCFR's Mike Lamp and Cal Marsella; the General Manager of Denver's Regional Transportation District, referred to as RTD-Denver. You can hear the on-air train wreck here (until next Tuesday, July 29th), from the 2-hour stream that Colorado Public Radio rips from its on-air broadcast.

At around 45 minutes past the hour (hard to tell because the stream's timing is screwed up), KCFR News Host Anna Panoka introduces the RTD story, just after NPR finishes its regular segment. Then Mike Lamp interviews Cal Marsella for around 7 minutes and 30 seconds, at which point KCFR runs a series of: (a) call-letter promos mixed with weather, (b) an underwriting spot, followed by (c) more promos, and (d) a testimonial from a paying underwriting client. Then after all of that jerking off, KCFR runs the entire interview -- AGAIN!

Since the story ran so long -- the second time -- KCFR News cut into its regular programming at the end of the story: (a) a promo for Talk of the Nation, and finally (b) a cut into NPR's top of the hour news. In the meantime, Colorado Public Radio missed their FCC-mandated station identification, just BEFORE the top of the hour, because they were so busy crashing into NPR news headlines, which had already started just past 5:00 p.m. You see, NPR news headlines are broadcast LIVE -- unlike all of KCFR's programming, which is entirely AUTOMATED.

Of course, we all like automation, for what WOULD we do without all of our machines? But when it comes to radio -- an intimate medium, as described by CPR during its heavily-produced fundraising segments during drive time-- most people don't actually see the wizard behind the curtain. Technical difficulties, like CPR's yesterday, raise the curtain -- and the issue -- in great relief, and in obvious ways that repetitious (and dated) Denver-area weather spots heard in Grand Junction, Colorado and Pueblo, Colorado do not.

A wise man once told me that the best tool to gauge the current weather was "with an open window." As an extension of that, I might suggest that the best tool to gauge on-air radio content is "with an open set of ears." But when an automated station is on the air, it is essentially on autopilot. Ears? Hello? What did you say? Please stand by . . .

Speaking of pop singers (with bad ears), there is a fantastic Pete Townshend song which is particularly à propos to describe Colorado Public Radio's functional (and structural) dilemma. The song is entitled "Crashing by Design."

Nothing must pass this line
Unless it is well defined
You just have to be resigned
You're crashing by design

I couldn't have said it better myself. Thanks to DenverDXer of DenverRadio.Net for bringing this story to CPRB. You can find the original post here, in the Comments & Rumors section.

CPRB Bonus Audio File: Listen to the 1 minute and 12 second technical difficulty here. It doesn't sound bad, but remember -- this technical glitch happened after 7+ minutes of a just-repeated news story, which plowed through a station identification, on live radio, during drive time -- at 5:00 p.m! Does anyone at the station listen to the actual content? If not, then why do they expect us to listen -- and subscribe? By the way, what time do CPR employees leave the station anyway? Maybe someone should drive down to Centennial, Colorado -- with an open set of eyes -- to check. Let us know what you find out.

Colorado Public Redundancy

2008-07-21T08:30:00.015-06:00

Here is another complaint from The Daily Camera regarding Colorado Public Radio's move of KVOD to 88.1-FM in Denver. Roger Cichorz, a KVOD listener, asks some important questions regarding the downgrade of KVOD. CPR celebrated -- and to some degree, warned about -- the move "back to FM." But if 1490-AM is still on the air (it is), carrying NPR news in northern Colorado including Boulder, and if 90.1-FM covers both Denver and Boulder, then there seems to be an overage of KCFR news coverage while there are enormous gaps KVOD classical music coverage. As a matter of fact, you can now get NPR news from Centennial-based, Colorado Public Radio on three different and over-lapping stations in the north metro area: 1340-AM, 1490-AM and on 90.1-FM. Sounds like Colorado Public Redundancy to me.

In the immortal words of CPR President Max Wycisk, more public radio IS better for everyone -- especially when part of CPR's mission is to blast KUNC listeners with KCFR's competing content from National Public Radio throughout northern Colorado. It sounds to me like CPR knows exactly what it is doing -- LITERALLY!

Changes at KCSU are Finalized for the Better

2008-07-20T14:44:00.009-06:00

Beginning August 1, 2008, KCSU-FM at Colorado State University in Fort Collins, Colorado will be part of a finalized agreement which places KCSU, The Collegian Newspaper, and other Student Media groups under a newly-formed 501c3 non-profit organization. The student-controlled KCSU will continue to operate separately from the university with a student-dominated governing board, which will also include community members and faculty.

While the new Governing Board will provide guidance, the license of KCSU will remain with the Colorado State Board of Agriculture, which serves as the Colorado State University System Governing Board (the CSU System also includes the Colorado State University in Pueblo, and Fort Lewis College in Durango. Along with Fort Collins, the other campuses in the system have student-operated FM radio stations as well; KTSC, Pueblo, and KDUR, Durango).

During the process which formed the new Student Media Governing Board at CSU, the issue of a possible license transfer of KCSU arose with some trepidation. By keeping the KCSU license during this time of transition, The Colorado State Board of Agriculture avoids a potential legal quagmire that a license transfer could bring. That's because the Federal Communications Commission requires a public comment period for any proposed change in the licensee for radio stations, a process which often brings people and interest groups out of the woodwork.

In KCSU's case, the stakes at such a public comment period would be very high. With enough of an investment by the University, the spotty signal of the station can be improved to serve the Fort Collins-Loveland-Greeley market; an area which recently lost the signal of KVOD classical music from Colorado Public Radio (CPR). With CPR's mission at stake, to supposedly bring back classical music to the Larimer-Weld County market, observers see KCSU as a potential target for CPR acquisition because of what could be a relatively cheap price tag for such a station. The alternative for CPR is pretty steep. KYEN-FM, Severence is up for sale at a starting price of $10 Million.

The new agreement for student media at CSU reduces speculative activity over KCSU, but CONTINUED DILIGENCE will be wise. It was fifteen years ago that CPR head Max Wysick reportedly held a closed door meeting with then CSU President Albert Yates, unbeknownst to the KCSU Manager at the time. Fortunately for CSU and the communities of Fort Collins, Colorado and possibly Durango, Colorado (CPR already has its game going in Pueblo, Colorado), nothing concrete came from those discussions.

The new not-for-profit Student Media Governing Board stems from discussions on the CSU campus in recent months, which brought together students, University officials, and community members who recommended such a governing board.

NPR Board Election Results

2008-07-18T15:10:00.018-06:00

National Public Radio released the results of its Board of Directors Election on July 9th, and Colorado Public Radio Blog received the results on Friday, July 18th. As CPRB Readers know, Max Wycisk, President of Colorado Public Radio threw his hat in the ring during this round, but his own peers (or as NPR refers to them, authorized representatives), who make up voting constituents from public radio rejected him (1 station, 1 vote). As you can see from the results below, Member Station diversity is spread geographically. This year; however, was not Max Wycisk's year to represent the Rocky Mountain Region. Perhaps because he COMPLETELY LACKS DIVERSE EXPERIENCE.

The current NPR Board of Directors consists of 16 members: 10 of whom are General Managers, Presidents, CEOs, etc., of NPR Member Stations; The Chair of the NPR Foundation; and 5 prominent members of the public. Staggered elections for new Board Members are held every year, and Board Members serve 3-year terms. This board-member distribution and ratio goes back several years, to a time when Member Stations bailed out NPR during a financial crisis in 1983, and subsequently demanded a stronger say in the strategic guidance of the network. In short, NPR Board Membership is about power -- about the leadership and management of the network in general, and about the network's relationship to Member Stations, specifically.

From some of our previous posts, it is the opinion of Colorado Public Radio Blog authors that Max Wycisk lacks the ability to represent Member Stations nationally on the NPR Board, BECAUSE his past history shows that he lacks the fundamental skills necessary to deal openly and ethically -- to deal publicly -- with NPR and non-NPR radio stations within the State of Colorado. For their own reasons, it appears that Member Station Authorized Representatives -- the Member Stations -- agree.

While CPR membership on the NPR Board potentially gives Colorado a higher profile at National Public Radio and in public radio affairs, it's better for our state to have creative, open-minded representatives in place to guide public radio during flattening times -- irrespective of region, state, or station affiliation. Public radio in America needs true creative visionaries to guide this medium into the future if it is to survive -- if it is to thrive. We think people like Max Wycisk represent public radio's past -- a past to which public radio should rightly look back, but also to a past which public radio can ill afford to move back.

JJJ

*****

NPR Board Election Results
July 9, 2008

To: AREPs
From: Joyce Slocum, NPR Secretary
Michelle Shanahan, NPR Assistant Secretary
Re: NPR Board Election Results

We are pleased to report the results of the balloting for the election of four Member Directors to the NPR Board of Directors, as well as the confirmation of three Public Directors, and the ratification of one Non-Board Distribution/Interconnection Committee Member.

The following candidates were elected as Member Directors of NPR, with terms beginning in November 2008:

Steve Bass, KOPB-FM, Portland, OR
Jon McTaggart, KSJN-FM, Minneapolis, MN
Marita Rivero, WGBH-FM, Boston, MA
Roger Sarrow, WAFE-FM, Charlotte, NC

In addition, voters confirmed the Board’s election of the following Public Directors:

John Herrmann
Lyle Logan
Howard Stevenson

On a separate ballot, PRSS representatives ratified the Board’s election of Loris Ann Taylor as a Non-Board D/I Committee Member.

Thank you to all of the candidates who sought to serve in the Member Director positions. NPR is honored to have had such a strong slate of candidates willing to serve as Member Directors. Thank you also to all of the Authorized Representatives who exercised their membership rights by voting in this election.

KVOD Lives Up to Its Name

2008-07-18T14:39:00.013-06:00

Colorado Public Radio's upgrade of KCFR to 90.1-FM in Denver and downgrade of KVOD to its lesser signal at 88.1-FM has KVOD living up to its name -- or rather, living down to its call letters. The Voice of Denver is now truly, the classical voice of Denver, as well as all of the smaller, automated CPR-driven satellite stations across the state. As one of two complaint letters to The Denver Post suggests, shouldn't Colorado Public Radio simply change its name to Denver Public Radio? Sounds logical to me. But my guess is that, like many other CPR decisions, this one follows its own logic.

In the meantime, KVOD management will probably hunker down to weather all the criticism. Since most classical music listeners are older, perhaps CPR is hoping the geezers will eventually tire of shaking their fists and complaining. And maybe -- just maybe -- the rich ones will continue to mail CPR checks out of habit. After all, some of the old farts are senile too, right?

My, My, Sirota: Part 2

2008-07-18T14:30:00.005-06:00

I guess David Sirota is good enough for The Denver Post opinion page. So, that surely makes him persona non grata at Colorado Public Radio. Stinky liberal hippies! Sirota, NOT CPR. CPR is completely full of sh . . . sorry, conventional wisdom!

Chipotle!

2008-07-18T07:38:00.018-06:00

A couple of years ago, a certain Colorado Public Radio news host read underwriting support spots for Chipotle, and had a tendency to over-pronounce the company's name. Cheeeee-POTE-le! It sounded more like a cheer at a bullfight than an underwriting spot. The company called to complain, and the spots were re-recorded. Well, that news host is gone now, and I haven't heard any burrito spots on CPR lately. Does Chipotle even support Colorado Public Radio? Regardless, Chipotle has been in the news a lot lately. So at CPRB, we were wondering why Chipotle has not been on KCFR News very much? Just so you know, Chipotle is headquartered in Colorado -- downtown Denver, to be exact.

A search of the Colorado Matters' site nets only 4 stories about Chipotle, since 2002, for KCFR News. One story from 2002 (repeated in 2003) is about free-range pork. A Colorado Matters story from 2004, reported about how a Chipotle fan (fanatic) created an independent website called Chipotle Lovers -- so, not a story about Chipotle (the company), per se. And, Colorado Public Radio ran two Chipotle stories, one week apart, in April of 2008 about the Slipstream's Garmin/Chipotle cycling team, competing in this year's Tour de France.

Colorado Public Radio's story from April 4, 2008 was an interview with Colorado Matters' Host Ryan Warner and "Joe Lindsay, a freelance writer who covers the sport." CPR's second story on April 11, 2008 wasn't really a story at all, so much as a news bit, which (as an aside) Colorado Public Radio has started calling a news feature, and then cross-listing on the Colorado Matter website even though the news features aren't even played during the 30-minute-long Colorado Matters show. In addition, the news bit was provided to Colorado Public Radio by Nancy Greenleese, who for years has been a freelancer/stringer (sometimes for National Public Radio), and who now works for KUNC-FM, public radio for Northern Colorado including Greeley, Fort Collins, Boulder, Denver and the mountains -- not CPR!

As many people in America (most of them white) know, the Tour de France is happening right now, and God knows, white people love public radio! So, why can't Colorado Public Radio, Colorado Matters, KCFR News, KCFR Presents -- WHATEVER -- seem to get a story on the air, about:

The Tour de France,
Team Garmin/Chipotle,
Drugs (antibiotics and hormones) in food,
Drugs (performance enhancing) in sports,
Tie-in of enhancing drugs in food AND sports, or
Sports-team sponsorship, in general?

National Public Radio had a Colorado Tour-connected story on the air during Morning Edition today. How many "hooks" does a journalist need, for crying out loud? And when they actually do get a story on the air, why can't they get a guest on the show who is connected with the race, the team, or the goddamn companies! Am I missing something here? Does Colorado Public Radio actually think one of these celebrities, team or company representatives is going to call the station to register for the Public Insight Network in order to participate in this story -- that is already IN the news -- one that is happening right freakin' now! Are you kidding me? Get on the goddamn phone and call these people!

The degree of incompetence in the way Colorado Public Radio covers the news is astounding. Actually, they way it covers sports --regardless of type -- is positively impotent! If a lily-white organization like CPR cannot seem to cover cycling -- a sport that is CLEARLY in their wheelhouse -- then how can we expect them to cover any other team sports? White people like hockey too -- I'm just saying. A search of cycle or cycling will net 3 dozen stories on the Colorado Matters website. Hockey, on the other hand? ZERO! By the way, wheelhouse? That's a baseball reference, just so the band geeks at CPR know.

Finally, Chipotle (along with many other supermarkets, vendors and suppliers, and restaurants in America) is weathering the fresh tomatoes crisis now. Additionally, NPR reported during a newscast today, that jalapeños and avacados might now be affected. Really? Is it time to give someone at Chipotle a call? Do they even use chiles and avocados burritos and tacos? Hmmmm, I don't know. Better ask a Spanish-speaking, brown person. Do any of them work at CPR? By the looks of it, NOT! However, a potential salmonella outbreak still doesn't seem like a big enough peg (journo-speak) -- even for Colorado Public Radio journalists, one of which is Eric Whitney a full time Health Reporter! Ah, but what the hell do I know, I'm just a blogger with a little public insight -- it's called common freakin' sense.

Hey, KCFR News-- drop me an email message. I will put you in touch with a Public Relations executive at Chipotle. My guess is that he's probably not in your 2700-2800 Public Insight Network Rolodex. Wankers!

KGNU: Doing More with Less

2008-07-17T18:51:00.005-06:00

Seems like KGNU has found a different way to cover the DNC. It's not a huge presence, but has an eclectic feel, much like the station. I guess blog-like sites can be a good way to cover the news. Who'd have thought?

Damn Right It's Flat Out There!

2008-07-17T17:43:00.008-06:00

Many of you have heard about the erosion of the middle class in this country; the rich get richer and the ranks of the poor and working poor continue to grow. It's that way in the public radio universe, too.Yes, Jimmy James Jr., The Public Radio World Is Flat!

CPR – Colorado Potemkin Radio

Take news content as an example; where today public stations have to play smart with the limited number of people they have on staff who produce relevant news and information. The exception to this numbers game in Colorado is found at Colorado Public Radio (CPR), which has more than a dozen people working for its news department. Smaller stations throughout the state would do very well covering their worlds with just a handful of such people. How CPR management allocates its talent is another story.

NPR – The CNN of Radio

The public radio news system as a whole is wanting -- wanting new blood, new ideas, new paradigms for a whole new generation of un-served and under-served listeners.Like the nation's distribution of wealth, there is a top-heavy layer of bureaucracy at National Public Radio, (NPR) filled with sometimes self-important Senior News Producers, Editors, and Hosts, who are VERY comfortable. After them, the talent gap drops off the table or it isn't widely seen or heard. Aside from basic egomania and established people clamoring at the top, there are several reasons why public radio news has become so anemic. One of the reasons lies squarely at the doorstep of a public radio icon.

If you draw a line from the 1970's to today, you will see a steady decline in the number of mid-level producers at public radio stations. Over the years, they have been the people who worked tirelessly to produce local and regional news, interviews, and feature material -- some of which may make its way onto an NPR news program (although not nearly as often as 20 or 30 years ago). The decline in the number of people churning out such material started in 1983, when (then) NPR News Director Robert Siegel dramatically shifted the emphasis, with NPR's limited budget, toward the BBC for international news, while building up a roster of NPR staff who served as regional reporters, based in various U.S. cities across the land.

The NPR Acquisitions Unit – Cultivating Local Flavor and Regional Creativity

While this may have seemed to be a solid strategy, left in the dust was something known as the NPR Acquisitions Unit, which contained hard-working editors who worked tirelessly with mid-level producers from hundreds of public stations across the country. The results were mixed, but the less polished (and less expensive) reports gave shows like All Things Considered a unique flavor, capturing life from region to region. Compared to now, more reporters participated then -- some of them with a regional sound to their voices. They filed reports on topics from the serious to the sublime. NPR news programs contained a smörgåsbord of Americana, along with hard news events and issues. When the NPR Acquisitions Unit was watered down, in favor of building a more professional sound, something very basic and essential was gone; and fewer and fewer people embraced work as mid-level producers.

The other big shift which brought about the flattening of the public radio universe came in 1981, when the Reagan Administration's Budget Director David Stockman vowed to zero-out funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB). This enormous shockwave felt throughout the system still resonates today. Every time you listen to something on public radio that rings of predictability and playing-it-safe, you can trace that tendency back to the shockwave. When David Stockman spoke his poison, too many public radio managers panicked. And they leaned heavily on self-appointed radio research gurus who preached playing it safe with focus group research as more than just a guiding tool. Risk-taking is forbidden in their culture. It is a mindset that, if Garrison Keillor were to attempt to start A Prairie Home Companion today, wouldn't get to first base.

Avant-garde Radio Theater

On a note other than news, 1981 also signaled the end of something else: good radio theater and widely distributed satire for radio. It was the year that the last two significant radio theater productions aired: the radio versions of Star Wars, and the unparalleled Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (which dwarfs the TV and movie versions of same). Both shows were in the pipeline before David Stockman spoke, and nothing has come from that side of good public radio since.

It's time for a rekindling. But even that may not be enough to win back the college-aged generation walking amongst us; already glued to their I-pods and who consider public ALL radio irrelevant – not just public radio. The public radio system as a whole has only itself to blame for so much complacency; and whether or not we can un-flatten this mess is anyone's guess.

An Essay by First Responder

Colorado Public Radio Translator Woes Continue

2008-07-16T22:34:00.014-06:00

Summit Public Radio replaces KVOD-FM from Denver with KCME-FM from Colorado Springs: Summit Public Radio, serving population centers throughout Summit County in Colorado's central highlands -- including the ski resort of Breckenridge and the town of Frisco -- has replaced Colorado Public Radio content the Summit County translator (read: radio signal repeater system) with KCME 88.7-FM, public radio of Colorado Springs, CO.

This move is consistent with providing classical music to Summit County residents, a role somewhat filled by KVOD-FM when it used to broadcast a strong signal from 90.1 FM in Denver. The new KVOD signal at 88.1-FM in Denver is too weak to relay a signal to the Summit County system, thus prompting this change.

When the Summit system was in its infancy in the 1980's, technical staff from the county confirmed that it was possible to receive public radio signals (from atop Summit County peaks) from Colorado Springs, Denver, Greeley, in Colorado and even from Laramie, Wyoming for re-broadcasting on FM translators across Summit County. The only signal that is shut out of this equation is KVOD at 88.1FM, with only 1,200 watts of authorized power.

With Empire Builders at play, there has to be something looming . . .

Will CPR find a way to once again offer its particular blend of classical music from KVOD-FM to Summit County? While the new 88.1-FM signal is inconsistent and unreliable, delivery of KVOD via alternative technology, such as an ISDN telephone line or a microwave link could be possible (and pricy). But, who's counting when you're on the Colorado Public Radio mission?

If CPR makes a play to take back Summit County's 89.3FM translator from KCME, will enough time have elapsed for the Summit County faithful to fully ascertain the classical music offerings from KCME to decide which service they prefer? This also raises the question about metro Denver's classical music devotees and what would happen if THEY had the same ability to hear a strong signal from KCME. Stay tuned . . .

Among their other offerings, Summit Public Radio also carries KUVO Jazz 89 in Denver, KUNC-FM in Greeley, and KBCO from Boulder. To see a complete run-down of stations carried by the system, and other information, go to Summit Public Rado, which we link to on the Colorado Public Radio Blog site.

Note: This isn't the first time that Colorado Public Radio has failed to do its homework while attempting to serve a community with an FM translator. Their inconsistent service provided for the isolated community of Meeker, Colorado is a case in point. The downtime for CPR's translator there is deplorable -- so much so that Meeker should not even appear on CPR's Station Map (not an actual coverage map, by the way).

Placing a translator there in 1991 was risky at best due to terrain problems and the distance between Meeker and the "parent" signal from CPR's satellite station in Grand Junction, Colorado. If Meeker's 2,500 residents had a ski resort or other glitterati attractions nearby, CPR would have this place on a much higher pedestal, like most public radio listeners across Colorado who enjoy a far-more dependable signal -- day in, day out. As a result of CPR's inaction and indifference, the good folks of Meeker-- a town that does not have a radio station of its own -- are left with consistent radio signals coming from two translators; one of them is a religious station; the other a tired commercial country music station out of Craig, Colorado.

So much for MISSION, eh Max? And, Summit Public Radio . . . it's time to change your logo!

KRCC-FM Does Debates

2008-07-16T16:28:00.026-06:00

KRCC-FM in Colorado Spring doesn't seem shy about covering actual politics. Here is a report from Bente Birkeland about Bob Schaffer and Mark Udall's first debate. Maybe Colorado Public Radio will cover events like this; someday, you know . . . when politics becomes big statewide, or even nationwide -- in Colorado.

Fortunately (or not) it's music week on Colorado Public Radio. Have you heard all of the on-air the promos? Good GOD! It's Promopalooza! After listening, I am thoroughly convinced that (a) KCFR is the news channel, (b) KVOD is the music channel, and (c) CPR is the PROMOTIONS CHANNEL. Talk about a branding train wreck. The acronym nonsense is pure gobbledygook! Tasteless alphabet soup!

I just love current events, especially when those events are theme-related -- like music week. Sounds to me like the wizards at KCFR News are taking their lead from NPR's creative department -- you know, multi-part series about news categories -- theme-based news about: books, the environment, China, India, fictional characters, more books, and more China.

I especially like NPR's endless ways to chat about books. Book Lists for Summer, books for reading on the plane, your 3-books -- all centered around the same THEME! As if books alone wasn't already a theme. I call that theme-based news squared. If it's about 3-books, maybe it's actually cubed -- not sure. Math books?

I have a theme idea for KCFR News. How about an entire week dedicated entirely to GENUINE politics-- not idiotic themes like:

What are you doing for the Democratic National Convention?
What are you doing for the Democratic National Convention if you in the 18-25 year-old demographic?
Will you rent out your home for the Democratic National Convention?
Where will your bark beetles be staying for the Democratic National Convention?
Tales of hope and gratitude about the Democratic National Convention.

Until then, I will be getting my political news from KUNC-FM, KRCC-FM and KGNU-AM. These public radio operations are a lot smaller, but from these stations I can hear:

Jody Hope Strohoff of The Colorado Stateman,
Bente Birkeland from Denver (and the Capitol when the legislature is in session), and
Democracy Now.

This just in . . .

Colorado Public Radio DOES do politics! Well, sorta. KCFR New Host Mike Lamp read the fundraising totals and money in the bank for the Schaffer-Udall race in Colorado 2 and the Musgrave-Markey race in Colorado 4, during the top-of-the-hours news break on Morning Edition. Wow, I have goosebumps. Political talk like that gets me hot -- NOT! Most of us can read the paper and most of us have access to Associated Press and the Internet. Lame.

The Switch and Bait!

2008-07-16T08:11:00.012-06:00

Boulder-area 88.1-FM KVOD listener reports (and complains) about his HD radio coverage in the north metro Denver area. Just so you know, HD dropouts are VERY common at the edge of the analog coverage area, which is why HD radio gamers -- like iBiquity Corporation, NPR and NPR Member Stations -- are asking that the FCC boost the signal of HD radio broadcasters. Right now, the limit is 1% of the analog signal. HD radio supporters want 10%.

Colorado Public Radio, KCFR on 90.1-FM, broadcasts at a maximum of 44,000 watts (actually 34,000 watts because of their radio frequency "hot spots" at the base of Lookout Mountain, where their antenna is located). So, their maximum HD radio power is 1% of that; 340 to 400 watts. So, if your HD radio cannot "lock on" to a clear signal, it just drops out completely. Stephen Vahl of Superior, Colorado has done his homework, and has written a pretty succinct letter to the editor of the Boulder Daily Camera explaining what all listeners can expect of KVOD just north of Denver. I wonder what other listeners are hearing -- or not?

The potential drawback to allowing HD radio broadcasters to increase power output to 10% of analog strength is FM (analog) interference to stations adjacent to HD radio channels. For Colorado Public Radio, this would mean increase to KVOD on 90.1-FM HD2 could interfere with stations on the dial to its immediate left and right -- in short, other non-commercial broadcasters in and around Denver.

So, how many classical KVOD listeners are going to heed his advice " . . . not to run out and buy an HD Radio thinking that will fix things," and " . . . to encourage them to stop donations to Colorado Public Radio until this situation improves."? Makes you wonder why didn't Colorado Public Radio executives just come clean with listeners in the first place? Instead, they hoped to persuade you with wiggly advice like this.

To be fair, CPR doesn't guarantee that HD is a solution -- just suggests that it may be a option. And for your local public radio station, that amount of broadcast clarity is about all classical radio listeners can expect. Gotcha!

The Public Radio World is Flat

2008-07-15T08:23:00.025-06:00

Thomas Friedman, The New York Times’ resident imbecile (sorry, Pulitzer Price Award Winning imbecile) wrote an idiotic tome some years back entitled The World Is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-First Century, which (to my dismay) met with critical acclaim. As he made the rounds on all the popular public broadcasting outlets, I listened in horror as this charlatan spoke about fuzzy concepts he called "flatiners." Matt Tiabbi, of Rolling Stone Magazine (among others), and author of Spanking the Donkey: Dispatches from the Dumb Season, soundly panned Friedman's book in this review at New York Press, and vindicated my point of view that TF (aka THAT Fu*ker) has fallen as far over the edge as the cover of his collection of recent, worldly musings would suggest.

In today's online version of Current, the public broadcasting trade magazine, Dana Davis Rehm, Senior Vice President of Strategy and Partnerships for National Public Radio gives her pep talk about how NPR and Member Stations will stem the tide of its own media and membership flattening (a Friedman-esque mixed metaphor). Audience numbers have leveled -- have been flattening for some time. Subscriber contributions are down -- have been leveling for some time. Read her prescriptions, and decide for yourself what you think about her solutions and your own local public radio stations. Can you guess what will happen next?

The fact is that NPR and many public radio stations have been privy to this information -- declining audience -- for some time. They saw the trends more than 5 years ago, but most member stations did very little about it -- except buy and observe the data. But, short of another major nation-wide or world-wide disaster, NPR's audience will continue to shrink, as it (quite literally) dies off. Recent cuts and draw-downs at large, financially sound public radio stations and networks are real. Minnesota Public Radio predicts staff cuts, and WBEZ in Chicago recently dropped 2 local shows it produces. And yesterday, NPR announced that it was dropping the Bryant Park Project, a $2-million show (experiment) aimed specifically at a younger audience demographic.

And what is the strategic plan for NPR and its member stations? Rely upon you -- the subscriber. Once again, NPR and Member Stations will continue to balance the books on the backs of individuals, at a time when individuals have fewer dollars to spend. They know that you will feel guilty enough to do the right thing. So, just do it!

Simultaneously, strong member stations and networks will start to "partner" with weaker ones. That means Member Station consolidation; mergers and acquisitions. Non-profit language is so chicken shit. This isn't a "partnership." It is survival of the fittest. The "more public radio is better for everyone" maxim was as horse shit when I first heard it years ago as it is today. More is always better for everyone, so long as the pie is getting bigger. The pie is shrinking. The world is flat. Oh yeah, and guys like Tom Friedman are freakin' geniuses!

Here's a thought, why doesn't someone go on just one public broadcasting outlet -- radio, television, NPR, member station -- I don't care, and tell people, EXPERTS like Tom Friedman, Mara Liasson, Juan Williams, and Cokie Roberts, that they are completely full of shit? Sorry, full of talking points? Full of conventional wisdom? That would be some interesting public radio CONTENT! I bet that would get some listener-subscribers ringing the pledge lines!

Thank YOU!

2008-07-14T18:04:00.026-06:00

Thank you to all the Colorado Public Radio Blog readers this past month. Since June 15, 2008, we have had nearly 1000 visits and and more than 2000 page views! Thanks especially to all of the Colorado Public Radio staff members who view the blog site from the CPR headquarters in Centennial, Colorado. Just so you know, CPRB gets between 6-12 visitors from this location alone -- everyday! All you CPR minions? Don't let management catch you reading these critiques, however. For if you do, your loyalties may be called into question.

Gratuitous Blog Promo (aka Bromo): If CPR Staff Members would like to subscribe to Colorado Public Radio Blog to support the site, please check with your human resources department to see if your company participates in work-place giving, or just drop me line, Jimmy James Jr. at GMail dot Com, and THANKS!

My, My Sirota!

2008-07-14T17:03:00.014-06:00

Many of you who know anything about politics know who David Sirota is. If not, here is a link to his website/blog. What some of you may not know, is that after living and working in Washington DC for some time, he (and his family) eventually moved to Montana and then to Colorado. He has lived in Denver since mid 2007. Sirota was a regular on Air America Radio's Al Franken Show for some time too; doing a regular bit called My, My Sirota.

Anyway, I was listening to Sirota talk about his new book The Uprising on WAMU's The Diane Rehm Show last week, and wondered two things? First, why has David Sirota NEVER been on Colorado Public Radio. Second, why doesn't Colorado Public Radio carry The Diane Rehm Show? I mean, what is HD Radio for if you cannot broadcast more shows using the increased bandwidth?

I get the feeling -- from listening to KCFR (AM or FM) do political reporting -- that they are AFRAID to do politics. I mean, how many stories have any of you heard that actually have to do with a political race -- an actual contest, political strategy or political analysis? I am not talking about inane horse race chat, mind you. But really! Colorado Public Radio doesn't actually suck the life out of real politics -- like most main stream media source do -- it just plain SUCKS at covering ACTUAL politics!

My guess is that CPR is just scared shitless of covering something that (someone who) is considered to be controversial. I mean, Sirota is a well-known (whisper when you say it: liberal, progressive) politico. But, Colorado Public Radio can't risk tarnishing its corporate sensibilities, especially during tough economic times, by speaking with someone of his ilk. So, stay away from CPR stinky, liberal hippies! They'll stick with Colorado's mainstream, quote whores, like Katy Atkinson (4 appearances on Colorado Matters) and Eric Sonderman (3 appearances on Colorado Matters). Insiders like them are much safer, especially as they parrot exactly what everyone expects -- talking points for whatever issue or from whomever's campaign that is paying their salary. Katy wanna cracker?

Job Opening at KUNC-FM

2008-07-14T08:06:00.005-06:00

KUNC-FM 91.5 in Greeley, CO has an opening for a Reporter/Producer here. The position is also listed on the Current website here.

NPR Board of Directors Meeting

2008-07-14T07:15:00.021-06:00

The NPR Board of Directors met in both open and closed sessions on July 10th and 11th, according to the NPR website. Find a link to their agenda here. As you know from earlier posts on Colorado Public Radio Blog and Denver Westword, Max Wycisk of Colorado Public Radio, threw in his hat into the race. No word, as yet, if he made it to the show. My guess is that he made it, since he spent much of last year working on CPR's Board of Directors and Governance process, and that is probably just what NPR is looking for in a corporate tool. If so, he will be part of a group presiding over an important evolution in public radio. However, my prediction is that his inclusion will result in two major developments: the devolution (power shift) and de-evolution (degeneration) of public radio.

Of course, anyone who leads public radio member stations during this time -- National Public Radio member stations, that is -- will blame any of their problems on media fragmentation, the economy -- BOTH. So, talking the lead at this time is really not a bad gig. If the new NPR Board succeeds (whatever that means), they'll credit their skills. If they fail, they will blame the media market, economic landscape, et al. Very nice. It's good to be The King! or Bureaucrat, if you prefer.

This just in . . .

According to the New York Times, the NPR Board dumped the Bryant Park Project. The Gray Lady, nicely hangs this one around recently-departed NPR executives Jay Kernis and Ken Stern:

In addition to the on-air changes, two top NPR executives who helped develop the program have left the organization. Jay Kernis, the senior vice president of programming, went to CNN, and Ken Stern, NPR’s chief executive, departed in March after the board decided not to renew his contract."

Aspen Ideas Festival for 2008

2008-07-12T14:38:00.020-06:00

The Aspen Ideas Festiva l for 2008 ended last week. Among the guests this year were Former President Bill Clinton, PBS television Host Charlie Rose, Harvard Professor of Political Science and Philosophy, Michael Sandel, and dozens of other well-know thinkers and personalities.

Listen to Colorado Public Radio Host Dan Drayer's 5-minute news feature from June 30th, the first day of the event, or go to Minnesota Public Radio to hear some extended audio pieces, like this one from President Clinton.

Too bad Colorado public radio stations cannot seem to cover this event a bit more broadly and deeply, or at the very least, try to coordinate interviews with some of the guests while they are here in the state. Minnesota Public Radio seems to have resources enough to cover this festival. Hear MPR's many other AIF broadcasts here. So, why not Colorado Public Radio? Are they busy covering a sweet corn festival in Brainard, Minnesota? You betcha!

KGNU Opening - Denver Fundraising Coordinator

2008-07-12T14:24:00.012-06:00

KGNU, FM in Boulder and AM in Denver, is seeking an experienced Fundrasing Coordinator for Denver. Just so you know, KGNU is primarily run by volunteers and takes it lead from the Pacifica and community radio end of the public radio spectrum. In short, NOT National Public Radio. My guess is that interested parties who don't know the difference need not apply.

What is an AM Station Worth These Days?

2008-07-11T10:37:00.011-06:00

Westword's Michael Roberts wonders what do to with the pre-sets on his radio tuner here? What I am wondering is what the hell is 1340-AM, former home to KCFR, worth to a buyer -- especially with the US economy in the crapper? I am guessing that the price will be cheap -- but not free. By the way, -CFR in KCFR used to stand for Colorado Free Radio, and it's free to you, unless you subscribe.

Rather than worry about what to do with my presets, I am thinking about how cool it would be to have internet radio in my car. Can you imagine listening to thousands of stations from all over the world -- unlimited by terrestrial AM or FM? Besides, AM news radio was so much more interesting when it was on TV. In case you forgot how much fun AM radio could be, you can watch NewsRadio episodes on Hulu.Com. My guess is that Colorado Public Radio isn't nearly as lost as the NewsRadio crowd, but certainly not as fun either.

KUNC's Grand Project

2008-07-11T09:54:00.006-06:00

Sky-Hi Daily News reports on KUNC's antenna project in Grand County, CO. KUNC hopes to get some listeners back, after KUNC moved its front range antenna farther south and west to bring 91.5-FM into the Denver metro area.

Westword Weighs in with the Latest 'Word

2008-07-10T23:37:00.017-06:00

Michael Roberts of Denver Westwor d gives us the latest about the Colorado Public Radio frequency changes (and, he give Colorado Public Radio Blog a plug in the process -- THANKS!). So, how come it feels like I have heard this one before -- the death of KVOD? Oh wait, I CAN'T actually hear this one, because 1200 watts of isn't powerful enough to reach my home? Well, never mind.

By the way, you can tune in to KUNC at 91.5-FM and listen online at KUNC.org for some classical music in Northern Colorado, or tune in to or KUSC-FM in Los Angeles, online at KUSC.org, if state or region is unimportant to your classical music listening. After all, so long as you are online, why should I be limited to just KVOD on 88.1-FM RADIO, right? Use the internets, like CPR says.

By the way, -VOD stands for Voice of Denver. So, too bad much of Denver cannot actually hear KVOD on 88.1-FM. Nice job, McWycisk! Gene Amole would be proud. Hey Wycisk, we have heard that you had only met Gene ONCE in your 35 years in public radio -- with much of that time spent broadcasting classical music. Is that true? If so, how is it that you and CPR are the heir to his legacy? Just because you own the call letters? C'mon Max, tell us a story! Isn't that what your classical music hosts on KVOD do? Tell stories? So, enlighten us -- please!

A Show about Nothing

2008-07-10T09:39:00.030-06:00

The following is a Blog Promo. Or as we refer to it here at CPRB -- a bromo. Public Insight Network is moving to 90.1-FM! How will this affect you? Sign up for Public Insight Network to let Colorado Public Radio know! Tune in to Colorado Matters on KCFR at 10 am and 7 pm to find out what you think about the PIN changing to 90.1-FM. As a bonus, read what Colorado Public Radio's Vice President of Programming, Sean Nethery, says about PIN to Michael Roberts of Denver Westword.

Seriously, when you see the list of Colorado stories garnered by the Public Insight Network, you have to wonder, does is really take a public radio station to pay for a database service to assemble 2700 or 2800 people (according to Vice President Nethery) for stories about the Democratic National Convention, bark beetles, going green, education, fuel prices, the Iraq War, and (my favorite) stories of hope and gratitude?

It seems to me that the primary motivation for the Public Insight Network is to give some CPR bureaucrat something to manage, Colorado Matters Producer and Host Dan Meyers, and to cull smartypants listeners and issue boosters into subscribing to the station. Let's hope that the PIN price tag for CPR is worth it, because it doesn't take a journalist to know that all of these topics could be conceived of and solicited without using the Public Insight Network -- from the sounds of CPR's constant on-air and website promotions -- A SHOW ABOUT NOTHING!

The Sound of Silence (and Static)

2008-07-10T07:43:00.022-06:00

Yesterday was the day for Colorado Public Radio to move KCFR back to 90.1-FM. Except for the 30-40 or so seconds of DEAD AIR just after 10:00 a.m., it sounds like it went OK. My guess is that one of the engineers fat fingered one of the buttons or ham handed one of the cables. Please, stand by . . .

I heard Monika Vischer and David Rutherford on 90.1-FM KVOD with the countdown for the move to 88.1-FM. The 88 keys on the piano metaphor was pretty clever, but that creative device pretty much got lost when (a) KVOD ran its last station ID on 90.1-FM, then (b) ran a promo and some fill music, and then (c) when KCFR failed to fire at the top of the hour! Houston, we have a problem. Launch is at T + 10 seconds, and counting . . .

Immediately after the switch-over, I quickly tuned to 88.1-FM on my 1-year-old clock radio and heard, well . . . BUPKIS! Actually, that is not entirely true. I actually heard static! So much for 1200 watts of KVOD power. If KOA-AM is the Blowtorch of the West, then the new-and-unimproved KVOD is a candle in the wind. Not in a gay way, though. Not that there is anything wrong with that, except for a certain CPR host who refuses to read CPR underwriting credits for the Gill Foundation because of, well . . . THAT!

As for the 88 keys on the keyboard banter, CPR is counting all of the white keys and the black keys! How precious is that? It's almost like they are making good on their diversity effort (kinda like the ongoing news initiative). Speaking of diversity and the piano, when I heard them playing the keys to simulate the countdown, I immediately thought of the classic Ebony and Ivory sketch from Saturday Night Live.

Also, watch a snippet of Seinfeld's The Outing here.

What Broadcasters DON'T Want THE PUBLIC to Know about July 15th

2008-07-08T19:53:00.014-06:00

Between now and next Tuesday, July 15th, you have the opportunity to make your voice heard, regarding the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC's) plan to expand the FM dial (worry about expanded receivers and such later). It's not just a question of if the FCC should allow expansion, but how expansion is delegated.

Here is the FCC file number for your comments: FCC: MB Docket 07-294 ....., and the FCC website.

Consider this amazing fact: you will not hear about this proposal over the existing airwaves; existing broadcasters have conveniently left this potentially ground-breaking action alone; no public service announcements here!

This is what is happening: The FCC is pondering a 20 channel expansion once TV channels 5 and 6 convert to digital broadcasting and vacate the channels 5 and 6 FM frequencies (68 to 88 FM). An expansion of the FM band could(with appropriate and plentiful public input) enable more community groups to start radio stations across the country.

Along Colorado's Front Range, expansion could have a direct positive bearing on an existing problem for public radio listeners. Even a slight expansion of the dial -- say down to 87.7 FM (where most current FM receivers are currently able to pick-up Channel 6 audio) will enable KVOD at 88.1 to move down to 87.9 or 87.7, enabling Colorado Public Radio to file for a substantial power gain.

Currently KVOD is limited to a power increase of only a few hundred watts, which will not enable it to reach much beyond listeners residing in the "303" area code. The 88.1 signal from Denver is also blocked in Fort Collins-Loveland-Greeley by KLHV, Fort Collins at 88.3 FM. Re-locating down the dial, just slightly, will make everyone happy. This is a classic example to site in your comments to the FCC.

Please make your voice heard BEFORE July 15, 2008! As for expanding FM tuners, in order to pick up new frequencies from the proposed expansion, one solution would be for Congress to require FM radio manufacturers to include the new FM frequencies on new FM tuners; much the way Congress passed a requirement in the 1960's, requiring TV manufacturers to include UHF channels on new TV tuners. Whatever it takes!

The important item right now requires your participation, and you comments regarding what you would like to see happen. Don't let this opportunity slip away! The airwaves are public -- we own them!

KVOD 88.1-FM Coverage Area on July 9th

2008-07-06T10:39:00.018-06:00

Here is the coverage area for Colorado Public Radio's new-and-unimproved KVOD 88.1-FM (formerly K-Love's KFDN-FM Christian radio simulcast in Denver). Until CPR engineers get FCC approval to boost the signal, this map shows the BEST CASE SCENARIO for listening to KVOD in the Denver metro area. You may want to test the boundaries of the coverage area and try out an HD radio in your car and in your home BEFORE you commit to buying not one but two new HD radios at $100 apiece--minimum--because you may be more than a bit disappointed with the promise of HD radio coverage in and around Denver, despite the (wiggly) language used by CPR managers to cover their asses.

From the Colorado Public Radio website:

"HD Radio: Both KVOD and KCFR are also available on HD Radio, a new technology that allows Colorado Public Radio to offer two distinct channels on one frequency with consistently high sound quality. In addition to its new location at 88.1 FM, KVOD classical music will also be available on HD Radios at 90.1 FM HD-2. KCFR news and information will also be at 90.1 FM HD-1. If you receive 90.1 FM clearly, without interference, HD Radio may offer a good solution in your home or car. Learn more about HD Radio [emphasis added].

So, during these tough economic times, how much money do you have to spend on new radios for your home and auto? Also, with gas prices hovering at or above $4/gallon, how many of you who are spending less time commuting in your cars; opting instead for public transit, actually have portable HD radios? None of you? Well, you can buy one of those too. The Visteon-brand Jump Radio costs $170 on the Shop NPR website. And if HD radio just never pans out, you can always tell your kids (who have never heard of public radio) that you bought a 21st century version of the Betamax; something else they have never heard of!

Colorado Public Radio Blog is told that the reason that KVOD at 88.1-FM cannot raise power beyond 1200 watts from Mount Morrison is because K-LOVE has a station at KLHV 88.3-FM in Fort Collins that is powered at 150 watts. KGNU is at 88.5-FM in Boulder, and it presently powered at 4000 watts. If Colorado Public Radio raised power for its new KVOD at 88.1-FM, it might interfere with one, the other, or both.

CPRB has also learned that 88.1-FM might be able to raise power slightly; from 1200 watts to a few hundred watts more, but to raise it further would require Rocky Mountain PBS, Channel 6 TV in Denver, to power down (or off) its analog signal, giving KVOD more room on the left side of the FM dial. However, that may still not help KVOD's analog signal reach farther north because the frequencies immediately adjacent to KVOD on the right side of the dial are both up north; located in much of the area that Colorado Public Radio loses by moving KVOD from 90.1-FM in the first place.

By the way, why doesn't Colorado Public Radio provide detailed frequency coverage information to its listeners -- the PUBLIC? My guess is that the average public radio listener is curious and intelligent enough to understand this stuff, right? So much for news and information!

Coverage Map courtesy of Radio-Locator.

A Loss of Classical Music on the Radio Can Turn into a Win-Win Situation for Everyone

2008-07-05T16:56:00.018-06:00

July 9th is the day when classical music will go away for most KVOD classical music listeners in Northers Colorado. On the 9th, KVOD switches to 88.1 FM, which will only serve classical music listeners who reside within the 303 area code. Colorado Public Radio (CPR) press releases regarding their pending change for CPR's 90.1 FM station in Denver suggests that classical music listeners up north should tune-in to on-line broadcasts of KVOD, or continue listening to 90.1 FM with an HD receiver to continue hearing classical music that will now appear on one of Colorado Public Radio's HD channels.

Several options exist for Colorado Public Radio to continue bringing classical music to Larimer-Weld Counties when KVOD goes to 88.1 in Denver:

For CPR, the most expensive ventures would involve the purchase of a commercial or non-commercial FM radio station serving the Fort Collins, Loveland, Greeley area.
But there is a simpler way for CPR to continue serving loyal listeners. By placing KVOD classical music programming on the KCFR/90.1 FM HD-2 channel, half of the problem is solved.
The other half of the equation, from a PUBLIC relations standpoint, utilizes an example from another major market public radio station 2,000 miles away.

Several years ago, WAMU at American University in Washington DC ended its very popular, long-running bluegrass format, in favor of news/talk programming. Bluegrass was delegated only to Sunday evenings. The switchboard at the station was lit up constantly for months with complaints from disgruntled bluegrass fanatics.

Today, WAMU Bluegrass Country is back, 24/7, heard over WAMU's HD-2 Channel, while their main FM service continues airing its' News/Talk format. Last September, WAMU paid a little less than ONE HUNDRED DOLLARS-per-unit to buy 1,000 HD Receivers, which the station gave to the first 1,000 donors who donated $100 or more during WAMU's Sunday evening Bluegrass program. The offer extended over two fund drives for the station. WAMU went the extra mile; they set a very wise precedent. It raises a fundamental (yet essential) question for CPR brass:

In today's volatile radio world (where daily, weekly, and monthly, THOUSANDS of people are choosing satellite radio, I-pods, and other listening choices over conventional radio), can CPR afford to stand back and watch the erosion in support accelerate because they did not show true, good faith with their classical audience in Northern Colorado?

WAMU's break-even policy on the matter (no money gained by giving donors an HD receiver for cost, after receiving a minimal $100 donation) will pay great dividends down the road in terms of public relations and audience growth. For CPR, the numbers are simple. The Fort Collins-Loveland-Greeley triangle is expected to have more than 700,000 residents by the year 2030, thus posing another essential question:

Can CPR afford NOT to take some positive action?

Westword's Best of 2008 -- Michael Roberts

2008-07-03T14:41:00.009-06:00

Once again, Michael Roberts has the Latest 'Word regarding Colorado Public Radio. The Rocky Mountain News and The Denver Post entertainment columnists and and media critics could sure could learn a lot from him. Well, once the two Denver dailies finally merge, maybe they can provid some competition for a hard-working Weekly like Westword. And who said that size (and number) matters!

As for Sean Nethery, Colorado Public Radio's Vice President of Programming, and current (and previous) Spinmeister, Roberts' article shows how coy and evasive he really is. Roberts has his facts, but Nethery has THE facts. Karl Rove (aka Turd Blossom) would be proud!

CPR Cans Community Outreach Coordinator

2008-07-03T07:32:00.068-06:00

It appears as though one of the last tasks for Erica Stull, Colorado Public Radio's erstwhile Vice President of Community Outreach, was to produce the press release (see the blog post below) for the KCFR move back to 90.1-FM and the KVOD move to 88.1-FM on July 9, 2008. She is still listed on the CPR website, however.

The Community Outreach Position was a relatively new one for Colorado Public Radio; presumably created to soften CPR's corporatate exterior, repair strained relationships with CPR's critics, and solidify the radio network's partnerships with Colorado community organizations. In short, it was Stull's job to do what the rest of Colorado Public Radio's management and leadership failed to do for the past 35 years--go public.

However, that was no small task for a newbie, like Stull, among entrenched introverts, because the sum character of Colorado Public Radio management is entirely antithetical to the words public and outreach. In other words, CPR's management takes its behavioral cues from Max Wycisk; an insular leader who'd rather diddle with focus-group data than to meet actual members of the Colorado communities he so diligently serves.

The poet Edna St. Vincent Millay famously said, "I love humanity, but I hate people." That simple, succinct phrase describes the persona of Max Wycisk (and by extension, CPR) in a nutshell. In fact, it should be the official motto for the limousine liberals who rule Colorado Public Radio like an arcane little duchy. It seems, however, that the established nobility at Colorado's public radio empire secretly eschewed both Stull and her recent work. In corporate speak, "CPR is moving in a different direction . . . " That new direction for CPR is actually an old and tiresome one; however, as tiresome as the idiotic phrase itself. But that is the way Colorado Public Radio likes it; stolid, staid, and stupefyingly simpleminded.

Case in point; several years ago, well before Colorado Public Radio landed (by sheer accident) The Colorado Symphony Orchestra (CSO) broadcasts, CPR had a policy of "not running Public Service Announcements. PSAs," staff, listeners, and callers to the station were told, "are what commercial broadcasters run as an FCC requirement because the airwaves are owned by the public. Colorado Public Radio does not run PSAs because EVERYTHING Colorado Public Radio does IS (by definition) a public service." Maxims (or rather, Wycisk Max-ims) like this one are continuously parroted by CPR management as if these policies are definitional truisms, rather than simply convenient (and mailable) station practices. Soon after CPR penned its agreement with The CSO though, Colorado Public Radio suddenly started running promotional announcements for The Symphony and for several other classical music organizations (and events) throughout Colorado. In short, CPR moved in a new direction. How convenient!

About 1-2 years ago, Colorado Public Radio (Board and Management) decided that CPR needed to increase its public profile, which is why they created a new Vice-Presidential position for just that purpose. *CPR actually created two new Vice-Presidential positions at approximately the same time: Vice President of Community Outreach and Vice President of Human Resources. After several months of searching, Colorado Public Radio finally hired Ms. Erica Stull (a former employee of Colorado Public Radio, but most recently employed by Adelphia Communications), as CPR's first Community Outreach VP. Perhaps coincidentally (or not), Stull had formerly been a colleague of Ron Cooper, the Vice Chairman of the Colorado Public Radio Board of Directors, and (according to his biography posted on the CPR website) "the former President and Chief Operating Officer of Adelphia Communications."

Colorado Public Radio Blog authors have no information about what community-outreach projects or programs CPR initiated or engaged in (presumably through Erica Stull) over the past two years. Besides the endless on-air and website mentions of the Public Insight Network, a service that Colorado Public Radio subscribes to (and pays for) from Minnesota Public Radio, it's very difficult to determine on the air, on their website, or in the community what CPR's outreach plan actually entailed. One former Colorado Public Radio Board Member observed as late as the fall of 2007, that Stull had neither strategic plans nor new ideas for CPR's outreach efforts. As for KCFR's Public Insight Network, Colorado Matters Host and Producer, Dan Meyers, presides over that news initiative. Thus, PIN was not Stull's bailiwick.

So what is CPR President Max Wycisk's future plan for community outreach, sans Erica Stull? Your guess is as good as anyone's. But if past history, performance, and practice are any guides, a good guess is that Colorado Public Radio will create yet another tautological Max-im to explain away actual outreach. When asked, "Why doesn't Colorado Public Radio do community outreach?" the answer will likely go something like this: "EVERYTHING we do is community outreach." As for Erica Stull? No soup for you!

NOTE: Please see the post above entitled Westword's Best of 2008 -- Michael Roberts to see who is back at the helm of Colorado Public Radio's transparent propaganda machine. It sure didn't take very long for KCFR's resident nincompoop to re-seat his ample ass into Erica Stull's still warm community-outreach chair. Here's a question I have for Herr Nethery: Why isn't Kelley Griffin, the KCFR News Director, handling news-realted inquiries?

Colorado Public Radio can send its press-release replies in care of CPRB Managment. We'll have one of our many Vice Presidents read and respond to it here. Thank YOU!

Meet the Presser, with Max Wycisk

2008-07-02T07:23:00.029-06:00

The Wycisk of Oz meets the press; if you can call it that. Read Colorado Public Radio's press release to the Denver Business Journal here. As you can see from the article, and I am using that term loosely here:

EMF is selling the 90.1 FM signal to Public Radio Capital, a nonprofit that helps public-radio stations with expansion projects. In turn, Public Radio Capital will lease the signal to CPR.

See Public Radio Capital's client list here. If Colorado Public Radio bought (with Public Radio Capital financing), rather than leased the 1340-AM in 2001, then it appears that the current deal could be different than CPR's previous acquisition. I guess that is the difference between a press release and a news article. Press releases are all the news the is fit to print, from the client's perspective. So much for public radio NEWS!

Here is the entire press release on eMedia World from Colorado Public Radio's Vice President of Press Releases, Erica Stull. Actually, she is the Vice President of Community Outreach. There was one? Here is the presser on Conde Nasts' Portfolio.com, and here it is on Business Wire. Feel free to compare the press releases (some of which appear to be more complete than the one above from the DBJ) when The Denver Post and The Rocky Mountain News columnists/critics/stenographers run their little tidbits in the fish wrap later this week and next.

I guess this shows that CPR can create content--and buzz--when it wants. Perhaps they need Ms. Stull in the news department producing shows? After all, Sean Nethery, Colorado Public Radio's Vice President of Programming has years of experience in marketing and communications--not in journalism. Seems like a perfect fit to me; propaganda meets public radio programming. Kismet!

July 3rd update: What did I tell you? Here is Joanne Ostrow's meager morsel on the The Denver Post website, and here is her tiny tidbit from The Denver Post blog. She is not fast, but she certainly is frugal by recycling the same piece twice!

Back to the Future

2008-06-30T08:34:00.011-06:00

Colorado Public Radio creeps forward by looking backward. In August of 2008, KCFR expands Colorado Matters (its one-and-only, locally-produced, 30-minute-long, public affairs show) back to 1 hour, with live and taped coverage from Democratic National Convention. Let's hope that once the convention is over that the KCFR news staff (which will probably number near 20 people by that time) can manage to fill an entire hour without having to rely upon theme-related news like multi-part, bark beetle stories.

Hey, here's an idea--how about doing political stories--like maybe, candidate races? Just a thought. Or is that too controversial for public radio?

You Know, "A Show about Talking"

2008-06-30T08:13:00.021-06:00

Colorado Public Radio does content! Or, at least it will do content. Several months from now, KCFR News will start a call-in, talk show with a host and producer to be named later. Radio producers, board operators, and telephone call screeners had better start polishing up their resumes if they'd like a shot at any new openings at KCFR-FM, because CPR management already has the talent picked, despite their nearly complete lack of it. Care to guess who the new public radio talk-jock might be? Just so you know, it isn't Mike Rosen or Peter Boyles. Stay tuned!

Westword's Michael Roberts with The Latest 'Word

2008-06-27T17:37:00.003-06:00

Thanks to Michael Roberts of The Westword for picking up this story from Colorado Public Radio Blog. Read his blog entry on The Latest 'Word here.

I Create Nothing . . . I Own

2008-06-27T09:53:00.084-06:00

A wise friend told me once, "There are people of substance, and there are people of process. People of substance create. People of process control." Max Wycisk is a person of process, who controls objects--including people--by moving the pieces around on a big board. Clearly, he is not a significant person of substance.

As you can see from his brief resume below (a resume, I might add, that seems slightly longer than the entire history of Colorado Public Radio to which he has been a seminal and significant part), Wycisk has spent his entire public radio career (so far as one can tell) at one radio station; one radio network.

Of course, Max Wycisk presided over his organization (for 25 years) during its transition from university-licensed KCFR-FM at the University of Denver, to Colorado Public Radio (CPR) and back into KCFR-FM (on July 9, 2008), and he has done a lot during that time. Over the course of his tenure, Colorado Public Radio's state-wide network has become the biggest repeater of National Public Radio news in the entire state; reaching (according to CPR statement from Arbitron) 330,000 listeners per week. The substance of Max Wycisk--his particular genius--is creating radio stations. But, during the last 25 of his particular genius, what else has he created?

With large federal subsidies, he created the Classical Public Radio Network (see the post below). Next week, the Classical Public Radio Network experiment folds (for the most part). More recently, Max Wycisk created Colorado Matters; a 30-minute, 5-times per week (not including repeats) local news program produced by between 8 and 13 people. *Just a few years ago, Colorado Matters produced 1 hour of content, 5-times per week (not including repeats) with only 4 staffers. Most recently, Max Wycisk presided over Colorado Public Radio's conversion to HD Radio; conversions heavily subsidized (once again) by federal tax dollars channeled to CPR through the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB). Finally, next week, CPR moves its news channel, KCFR, from 1340-AM back to its former home on 90.1-FM through an $8.2 million bond-financing deal arranged by Public Radio Capital, an organization which shares office space in Centennial, Colorado with--you guessed it--Colorado Public Radio.

Assuming that Colorado Public Radio can sell the (a) 1340-AM frequency, (b) the land it acquired at Ruby Hill in Denver, Colorado (the former home of KVOD), and (c) the AM antenna and equipment, it stands to reason that Colorado Public Radio will be able to retire some debt from the original purchase of 1340-AM (in 2001) or even offset the current, multi-million dollar deal. With all of this extra radio air space, it also stands to reason that Colorado Public radio could broadcast more diverse radio content on the side channels of its HD Radio-equipped Denver FM stations; KCFR on 90.1-FM and KVOD on 88.1-FM. However, CPR probably will not broadcast more diverse and interesting radio content, precisely because it cannot acquire or create more diverse and interesting radio content.

Why can't Colorado Public Radio seem to acquire or create programming? Follow the money. CPR pays a lot of subscriber dollars (in the form of NPR and other dues) to acquire National Public Radio (NPR), American Public Media (APM) and Public Radio International (PRI) content; which is why CPR broadcasts endless repeat hours of Morning Edition, All Things Considered, the BBC World Service, etc. The price of these programs to CPR is based upon the population of the Denver-Boulder metro market.

Since CPR has not appreciably grown the Denver-Boulder public radio market (Denver and Colorado listenship and subscribership have simply increased as a function of people moving to Denver and Colorado from outside the state since the late 1980s), Colorado Public Radio has no more public radio programming to push from Denver to its series of stations and translators (its repeaters) throughout Colorado. Because CPR chose to acquire frequencies and build stations instead of creating distinctive, distributable content, it has no additional financial resources now to create local radio shows for the airwaves it so tightly programs--except, perhaps for KCFR (Sometimes) Presents with Dan Drayer (former Host and Executive Producer of Colorado Matters), and KCFR Showcase, a re-purposing of content from other public radio sources which Colorado Public Radio claims as its own by re-branding it KCFR. In short, it's about programming a radio format from a national distributor, not about programming local radio shows for a discrete audience--the same complaint listeners regularly make about commercial radio content from entities like Clear Channel! It's generic and automated.

So, what does Max Wycisk do when there is everything to do? He decides to run for the NPR Board of Directors, of course! As you can see from the bullet points from the questionnaire posted to the site if Western States Public Radio, an organization to which (it seems) Colorado Public Radio is a nominal member, Max Wycisk has big ideas:

*****
If elected to the NPR Board, on what Board Committee – or in connection with what issue – do you believe you have the most to offer NPR?

The primary issues I see for the NPR Board will need to be dealt with by the Board as a whole. These issues center on the need for clearer and more productive working relationships with NPR member stations. Examples:

Improving the NPR governance and management process, with the goal of creating greater internal accountability at NPR and greater external accountability to NPR member stations.
Marshaling the public radio system's capacity to support common activities such as news-gathering.
Working to develop more effective ways of using new media to maximize the strengths of public radio's local/national structure.

*****
As is evident from his answers above, Max Wycisk is the perfect bureaucrat--a consummate man of process. I suspect that he will not be merely satisfied with NPR Board Membership, but rather, that he is actually running for NPR Board President. Since Colorado Public Radio spent a great of amount of time and effort dealing with its own Nonprofit Board Governance and Station Management last year (which came to light during embarrassing public airing of its own internal processes), Wycisk suggests that more efficient, complete and accountable processes are the perfect remedies for healing a rift among NPR Management, the NPR Board and NPR Member stations.

Let's be clear about what is happening with media in America--all types of media, not just non-commercial radio. Media is fragmenting. Fewer viewers are tuning in to broadcast television; most especially broadcast news. Fewer listeners are tuning in to broadcast radio; AM, FM, commercial, and non-commercial radio. At best, HD Radio is idling at the starting line despite its boosters' constant jawboning of it while simultaneously challenging the XM-Sirius satellite radio merger. Non-commercial television and radio have always had significantly smaller audiences than commercial broadcasters--which is one major reason why non-commercial broadcasters still receive federal and state subsidies. Of course there are notable exceptions. National Public Radio's Morning Edition and All Things Considered are #2 and #3, behind the Rush Limbaugh Show. And in some media markets, local public radios stations even compete in the Top 5 or Top 10 (Seattle, Washington and Boston, Massachusetts come to mind).

Today, consumers have a wider variety of news and entertainment sources from which to choose--and many of them are available on demand-including a significant amount of NPR content. This new media landscape has created many dilemmas for the traditional National Public Radio/Member Station relationship. However, process-related solutions will not lead to the next evolutionary step in public radio network-affiliate relations. Creativity will. Onerous processes will simply consume more scarce resources during tough economic times. Process-believing bureaucrats like Max Wycisk love to talk about accountability, internal and external, but when the it comes to evaluating performance (otherwise known as laying blame), process-bureaucrats will just simply reshuffle or entirely remake the organizational chart to shift accountability elsewhere. Or better yet, they just move on to some other project, leaving former responsibilities forgotten or past duties undone.

As for marshaling the public radio system's capacity to support common activities such as news-gathering, one wonders what Max Wycisk is doing now with his existing "statewide network" capacity. As mentioned above, Colorado Public Radio has no shortage of airspace. See their coverage map here. What discrete content does CPR broadcast to the local markets its satellite stations occupy throughout Colorado? None! All content is pushed to outlying areas of the state from the Colorado Public Radio mother ship located in Centennial, Colorado.

Colorado Public Radio cannot even manage to broadcast localized weather to the four corners of its coverage area. Does Colorado Public Radio do sports reporting? No. Does Colorado Public Radio do traffic reporting? No. Does Colorado Public Radio do local news? Yes--so long as local is defined as Colorado, and so far as reading stories from the Associated Press newswire counts as local news. A search of the word "beetle" on the Colorado Matters website nets 23 hits. A search for "carbon" nets 21 hits. But to be fair, there is some overlap. Who'd have guessed that Colorado Matters could combine carbon footprint with pine beetle! Now there's local news you can use! But, I digress. Does Colorado Public Radio gather news? Yes. As mentioned above, their ratio of news staff to actual content is astounding--astoundingly embarrassing. How is Max Wycisk qualified to marshal all of this capacity as an NPR Board Member when he cannot seem to manage it meaningfully and measurably at the local and statewide level? Accountability indeed!

When it comes to working to develop more effective ways of using new media to maximize the strengths of public radio's local/national structure, Max Wycisk has an ace in the hole, however. His name is Jim Paluzzi; Colorado Public Radio's Vice President of New Media and Technology. He is very well known among the NPR and Member Station elite as a unique and valuable talent. So, Wycisk hopes to use Paluzzi--superimposing true creativity--upon the structures and processes of the National Public Radio and Member Station hierarchy. For Colorado Public Radio, this means that they may finally have to start playing nicely and fairly with other public radio entities. Since CPR is cash-strapped during recessive economic times, in a media market with no affordable non-commercial radio frequencies left to acquire (including existing public radio stations that it can bribe behind closed doors), it cannot continue to build stations--to own people and pieces and to manipulate them on the public radio terrain. Of course historically, Max Wycisk hates cooperating with other people--including people at other public radio organizations--unless he is left with no other choice. Has a new day dawned? Has Wycisk seen the light? Hardly.

Question: How many Vice Presidents does it take Colorado Public Radio to run a statewide public radio network?
Answer: Seven.

That said, want to wager that one of Wycisk's first goals as a Member of the NPR Board will be to pressure NPR Management (its Member Station Liaisons) to rework the due's structure to favor major-market stations and statewide networks like Denver-based Colorado Public Radio? Bet on it! After all, Wycisk can't afford to compete with stations like 91.5-FM KUNC in Denver so long as they continue to poach public radio listeners in Denver, Boulder, Greeley and Fort Collins while paying the small market rate for NPR, APM and PRI programming.

Membership within the Western States Public Radio consortium presumably lends Wycisk credibility (with voting members) just like control of a statewide public radio network gives him leverage and power with NPR. Can you say NPR News Rocky Mountain? In order to affect NPR policy on behalf of Colorado Public Radio, et al., Max Wycisk needs national prominence--the podium and the bullhorn. And yes, the other members stations he presumes to represent as a member of the NPR Board can expect the benefit of his policy- and procedure-heavy largesses, so long as they are willing to cooperate with a non-profit President who sees collective decision-making as antithetical to the good governance of public radio. In public radio, non-profit language, it's called "partnering." How sweet--as saccharin! For Wycisk; however, this is really about mergers, acquisitions, and hostile take-overs, Buddy Boy. Blue Horseshoe loves Anacott Steel.

In order to maximize the strengths of public radio's local/national structure, Wycisk will return to an idea he dabbled with and then discarded several years ago--the novel idea of sharing. How quaint for Wycisk! You can read about the resuscitated plan on Current.Org here. Isn't it fitting that when NPR started bypassing member stations by distributing digitally (directly via its own website) that Wycisk finally decided to cooperate with public broadcasting individuals and entities he'd have sooner acquired than speak? How magnanimous! Why should other member stations in Colorado trust him? Member stations of Western States Public Radio? They shouldn't! This battle is about power; pure and simple. And right now Max Wycisk needs to change the balance of power of Member Stations vis-à-vis NPR and other larger, national content providers for the sake of Colorado Public Radio. And yes, hangers-on are certainly welcome.

Knowing Max Wycisk's history and habits and after reading the answers to the NPR Board questionnaire, it seems to me that he is vying for a position equivalent to that of The Commissioner of Major League Baseball; a perfect position for a passive-aggressive, authoritarian personality type like him--head of a nice, tight, white, elitist oligopoly. But, I think Max needs a more descriptive or regal title before his appointment/coronation. How about Commissar of NPR Affiliates, or maybe Member Station Viceroy? That is what $200K in pay and benefits and loads of conventional wisdom gets you--the 20th century brillance of Max Wycisk. He is the Bill Gates of Public Radio. So, how fitting that Gates retired from Microsoft today? Maybe Wycisk should follow his lead. But alas, Colorado Public Radio has no fat endowment to manage. A subject, perhaps, for another day.

Classical Public Radio Network Signs Off

2008-06-25T16:08:00.019-06:00

The Classical Public Radio Network, an LLP between Colorado Public Radio and KUSC-FM goes off the air in Denver (and for many of it's client stations) next week. But, you won't find that information on the CPR or KUSC websites.

Referred to as CPRN, it is a 24-hour classical music service underwritten by The Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) and marketed by National Public Radio (NPR) for distribution to public radio member stations across the US that never really caught on. In short, it was a more than 10-year failure for the LLP, except that it won some recent awards--quite ironically--listed on the Colorado Public Radio website!

I guess it is nice to know that your trusted source for news and information and for classical music prints (and presumably, broadcasts) the positive news about its operation. After all, by publicly admitting the abject failure of the development and distribution of CPRN's original classical music content, CPR and KUSC would have to admit having wasted hundreds of thousands of tax payer dollars to produce a music service redundancy. After all, Minnesota Public Radio's (MPR) competing service, called Classical 24 (C-24) is still in business.

In two weeks (or so), Denver listeners will find CPRN's latest classical music iteration called KVOD on 88.1 FM, after Colorado Public Radio moves KCFR 1340-AM back to 90.1 FM. But, KVOD-FM listeners in Northern and Eastern Colorado are out of luck because 88.1-FM will barely reach outside the Denver metro area.

Denver-area listeners needn't worry; however, as they will still hear familiar voices on KVOD-FM, since all but one of their classical music announcers were given jobs with the dissolution of CPRN. And, the former head of CPRN-Denver, a woman by the name of Karla Walker, will be heading up the new-and-improved KVOD--the same leader who presided over the demise of the Classical Public Radio Network. Nice work!

Max Wycisk for the NPR Board of Directors

2008-06-25T15:16:00.013-06:00

I guess Max Wycisk is doing such a bang-up job at Colorado Public Radio, that he has decided that he has a bit of free time on his hands. Now, he's running for the National Public Radio Board of Directors, which he served on 18 years ago. Read his questions and answer for the NPR position below. They are posted to the Western States Public Radio website.

I wonder why Colorado Public Radio didn't run a press release related to this campaign. Do the CPR employees even know? I doubt it. You'd think news like this would bring honor and prestige to (as the constant CPR promos say) "your community-supported source for in-depth news and classical music." Or perhaps this is just part of Wycisk's suspiciously secretive nature and painfully introverted character. Seems contrary to public radio to me. Good luck, McWycisk!

*****

Candidate: Max Wycisk – KCFR-AM (Denver, CO)

Please detail your qualifications for the NPR Board.

35 years of public radio experience: as a volunteer announcer; as a Program Director; and as a General Manager.
Extensive non-profit governance experience: I have served on several non-profit boards, including the NPR Board (1984-1990), and have worked under a non-profit board for the past 25 years.
Prior to working in a community licensee structure, I worked in a university licensee structure for 10 years and understand the strengths and weaknesses of both structures.

If elected to the NPR Board, on what Board Committee – or in connection with what issue – do you believe you have the most to offer NPR?

The primary issues I see for the NPR Board will need to be dealt with by the Board as a whole. These issues center on the need for clearer and more productive working relationships with NPR member stations. Examples:

Improving the NPR governance and management process, with the goal of creating greater internal accountability at NPR and greater external accountability to NPR member stations.
Marshaling the public radio system's capacity to support common activities such as news-gathering.
Working to develop more effective ways of using new media to maximize the strengths of public radio's local/national structure.

What is your overall assessment of the NPR board? Is it responsive to stations? Is it sufficiently high profile?

Over the past several years the agendas of NPR and stations have slowly drifted apart. I see real potential at the present time to bring station and NPR agendas into alignment, and feel that the NPR Board is poised to take on this task in an active, meaningful, and productive way. The NPR Board has an opportunity to empower station managers by planning the Annual Meeting on behalf of the membership. The Annual Meeting should be a business meeting with real outcomes, a meeting at which directions are determined and decisions are made. At the Annual Meeting NPR management should report to member stations about its implementation of decisions affirmed at the previous year's meeting, and field questions from the membership.

NPR does not currently have a conflict of interest policy and procedure for Board members. What sort of policy should be established in order to handle conflict of interest situations when a board member has a primary duty as an employee or officer of a competing station, network or distributor?

I have not seen conflict of interest surface as a problem over the years. Working as we do in a co-op model, station managers' individual organizational interests often dovetail directly with the interests of NPR. The NPR Board's job will be to make sure that the interests of NPR are aligned with the needs and interests of member stations. (Note: Article 5.4 of the NPR by-laws does address conflict of interest in a general way.)

Since the institution of the A-Reps meeting format, NPR has not achieved a quorum for its Annual Meeting. Do you view this as a problem? Do you have any recommendations for engaging more stations in the citizenship of the annual meeting?

The Annual Meeting problem has to do with the fact that it has devolved into a one-way presentation rather than being a forum for discussion and debate. The Annual Meeting conversation should be a genuine two-way process, initiated as much by stations as by NPR management. Here are two specific thoughts to help remedy this situation:

Planning for the Annual Meeting should be led by the Board, in partnership with management.
Lowering the quorum from one-half of the membership to one-third of the membership would make it easier for the membership to endorse specific actions at the Annual Meeting. In the present situation the lack of a quorum results in paralysis and frustration.

If we can institute both of these approaches, I have every confidence that member stations will want to attend the Annual Meeting, knowing that each of us will have the opportunity to play a meaningful role in determining our collective future.

What suggestions might you have to add diverse experience and opinions to the board and management deliberative process? Would the reimplementation of working advisory committees with station staff members and others for specific topics and issues serve as a way to expand knowledge and increase awareness of station’s needs, feelings and reactions?

As I see it, the NPR Board does not lack for diverse experience, expertise, and opinion; nor does it lack knowledge of station needs. What we have not been able to do effectively these past few years—particularly as the media environment changes around us—is develop mechanisms (beyond the production of exemplary news programming) through which NPR can effectively support station needs.

As an NPR Board member, how would you distinguish between the types of business you believe the Board should conduct in Executive Session versus the business that should be conducted in Open Session?

Our guidelines for open sessions and executive sessions are clear. Executive session should be reserved for items of a proprietary nature, and for personnel issues. All other items should be addressed in open session. Having said this, it is difficult to understand why the NPR Board would ever want to treat its member stations as anything other than members of the inner circle—a circle that should always be privy to information that might not be appropriate for external release.

Email Message to CPRB Regarding KCSU-FM

2008-06-18T15:06:00.012-06:00

CPRB Readers: Here is an email message from Mario Caballero of KCSU-FM. Many thanks to Mr. Mario Caballero for clearing up the confusion. We will keep you posted as more information becomes available regarding this story. -CPRB Management

*****

Mr. James,

The plan currently going forward is for the Board of Governors of the Colorado State University System to enter into a time brokerage agreement with the soon-to-be new 501(c)3 non-profit, educational corporation, tentatively named the Rocky Mountain Student Media Corporation. CSU students working in the Student Media department will continue to program KCSU-FM as they have since 1995. The BOG will retain the license. All of this has yet to be finalized as the University and the not-yet-formed corporation have not signed any documents. The BOG approved the concept of the new arrangement just recently, June 3, 2008. As you can imagine, it takes a bit of time to work out all the details. But it appears that everything is on track for a new agreement to be in place by August 1, 2008.

We have not heard of any attempt by Colorado Public Radio to acquire KCSU during this process.

We are trying to provide information as it becomes available for the public. But right now nothing is final. Everything is in a draft form while the University and the new company prepare a new agreement that will allow students to continue to work in a learning environment while serving the community.

Please feel free to contact me if you need more information.

Thank you for your interest.

Mario

Mario Caballero
Broadcast Operations Manager
Associate Director
Department of Student Media
Colorado State University
970.491.6643

*****

Clarification Sent to The Collegian

2008-06-18T13:07:00.009-06:00

CPRB Readers: Please find a clarification below, which CPRB Management posted to The Collegian website. As you can see, there is plenty of blame to go around. We regret the errors. -CPRB Management

*****

CSU Collegian:

Here is what I think happened regarding the misinformation related to your story:

The original Collegian story regarding the KCSU "transfer" was imprecise, and has since been removed from The Collegian’s website.
Colorado Public Radio Blog wrote a story based on the imprecise information from The Collegian.
Westword referenced Colorado Public Radio Blog.
Larry Steward, interim president of RMSMC posted the following information to the Westword Blog and to Colorado Public Radio Blog: "Just a note of clarification regarding KCSU-FM. Under the terms of the Operating Agreement with the soon to be incorporated Rocky Mountain Student Media Corporation, a 501(c)3 non-profit, Colorado State University will retain the KCSU license and enter into a brokerage agreement with the new organization. This agreement will be filed with the FCC in compliance with rules and regulations."
The Collegian removed the original story from The Collegian’s website, not clarifying the ambiguous reference to the word “transfer”.
The Collegian contacted Colorado Public Radio about CPRB because they thought that the Colorado Public Radio Blog is part of Colorado Public Radio. The Colorado Public Radio Blog front page clearly states the following disclaimer: “ColoradoPublicRadio.Blogspot.Com is not affiliated with Colorado Public Radio, Public Radio of Colorado, Inc., member stations, affiliates, or partners."

CPRB will correct the post.

Jimmy James Jr.
Colorado Public Radio Blog

*****

Correction to a Previous Post

2008-06-18T13:03:00.015-06:00

The CSU Collegian story from May 18, 2008 (no longer available on their website), making vague references to a license transfer (of KCSU-FM), has been taken off The Collegian website. Today's story runs a statement leading one to believe that such a transfer of license is not in the works. Bottom line: still to be answered is whether or not a transfer of license will make it more or less likely that KCSU-FM could be sold to another non-commercial radio entity.

CPRB Management

Deadlines and Opportunites Gallore on behalf of Public Radio

2008-06-15T15:15:00.002-06:00

YOU HAVE UNTIL JULY 15TH to provide comments to the FCC, regarding the proposal to expand the FM radio dial by 20 channels (advanced by Mullaney Engineering). The space would come from the digital conversion of TV channels five and six, and the abandonment of their analogue frequencies just below the existing FM radio dial. There currently exists a situation among public radio stations in Colorado which screams for expansion; even if it only expands the FM dial slightly.

When Colorado Public Radio moves Classical music KVOD from 90.1 to 88.1 next month, Classical Music devotees north of Longmont will be out of luck. The diminished signal of 88.1 can be improved slightly once channel 6 goes away next year, but only slightly because of KGNU at 88.5 (which recently applied to return to more than 3,000 watts after channel 6 audio departs, just left of the KVOD and KGNU signals.

Here is where a little more wiggle room would help everyone concerned. Current FM tuners can usually receive frequencies down to about 87.5 FM (if your tuner receives channel 6 audio you know this is true). If the authorized FM band were expanded by the FCC just down to 87.5 from the current 88.1, a quick fix for KVOD and KGNU would be possible, with KVOD moving to 87.7 and KGNU to 88.3 (so KGNU could move one channel away from KCME, in Colorado Springs at 88.7). All stations involved could then improve their signals substantially.

Since everyone has a different vision, regarding HOW the FM band should expand, your comments to the FCC should include such specifics for the sake of public radio.

IN OTHER FCC MATTERS, YOU WILL ALSO HAVE A CHANCE IN THE COMING WEEKS TO PROVIDE COMMENTS TO THE FCC, REGARDING THE LICENSE TRANSFER OF KCSU, FORT COLLINS. The Colorado State Board of Agriculture, the governing body of Colorado State University, has announced it is relinquishing control of student-operated KCSU (as well as the student newspaper "The Collegian"), and will hand over the reigns of control to a non-profit Board of Directors. The FCC mandates that radio license transfers must undergo a 45 day public comment period.

As written several months ago, prior to the pending KCSU changes, one of Colorado Public Radio's (CPR's) options to continue serving Classical music listeners in Fort Collins-Loveland-Greeley (when KVOD is switched to 88.1 in July) is for CPR to gain control of KCSU. It is one of several options listed in the column on this page titled: "CRAZY EIGHTS: TAKING OFF IN 2008 WITH 88.1 IN PLAY". Now, if CPR has an interest in KCSU, they can participate in the FCC comment period. CPR's comments to the FCC, if any, would be interesting to say the least.

Another, less obtrusive option for CPR is possible in Northern Colorado. That would only require CPR to place KVOD on its' HD-2 signal for KCFR/ 90.1. But in order to ease the pain for listeners without HD capability, CPR could also bite the bullet and give KVOD contributors in Larimer-Weld a discount coupon, good for the purchase of HD receivers for home and autos. If that sounds a bit extravagant, consider the alternative: listener blowback that's about to occur in Fort Collins-Loveland-Greeley when 90.1 is switched to KCFR news. Another way to look at this option is to think of it as a race.... a race in which CPR tries to make loyal listeners comfortable with HD technology, versus letting once loyal supporters walk away, toward the satellite receiver route for their classical fix. In a recent column in Radio World Magazine, one public radio station in the Midwest has one of their staff; among them the station G.M., deliver and set up the HD radio to every member who buys one.

Is CPR willing to go that extra mile? In this case, we are talking about (by the year 2030) a Larimer-Weld population base of 750,000. The costs now could pay great dividends down the road.

HEALTHY PUBLIC RADIO, COLORADO STYLE

2008-04-11T21:26:00.003-06:00

KDNK, CARBONDALE, CO IS CELEBRATING A MILESTONE THIS WEEK. LET'S JOIN IN SALUTING THEM. (www.kdnk.org) THEIR SUCCESS ILLUSTRATES THERE'S MORE THAN ONE WAY TO OPERATE A SUCCESSFUL PUBLIC RADIO STATION IN COLORADO, OR JUST ABOUT ANYWHERE.

KDNK STARTED DURING THE DAYS WHEN A LONG SHADOW WAS CAST UPON PUBLIC BROADCASTING BY THE REAGAN ADMINISTRATION; NOT EXACTLY THE BEST TIME TO START A GRASS ROOTS RADIO STATION FROM SCRATCH. IT WAS A TIME WHEN MANY A PUBLIC RADIO STATION MANAGER AND PROGRAM DIRECTOR HIT THE PANIC BUTTON WITH DISTURBING TALK FROM WASHINGTON; THAT FUNDING FOR THE CORPORATION FOR PUBLIC BROADCASTING (CPB) WOULD CEASE. TOO MANY IN THE PUBLIC RADIO COMMUNITY BLINKED, AND WELCOMED WITH OPEN ARMS AUDIENCE BUILDING EXTREMISTS INTO THEIR INNER CIRCLE. ANYONE WHO HAS BEEN AROUND COLORADO FROM THE 1970'S TO THE PRESENT AND REMEMBERS HOW KCFR SOUNDED IN THE 70'S UNDERSTANDS THIS POINT ALL TOO WELL TODAY. FORTUNATELY, OTHER PUBLIC STATIONS IN COLORADO AND ACROSS THE NATION HAVEN'T BLINKED. THEY CONTINUE WITH THEIR (SOMETIMES) QUIRKY PROGRAMMING; PROGRAMMING THAT COMMERCIAL RADIO WILL NOT APPROACH. THEY CONTINUE TO PROVIDE A VOICE FOR THE DISENFRANCHISED; ESSENTIAL PEOPLE WHO DON'T CARRY ENOUGH ECONOMIC CLOUT IN ANY GIVEN COMMUNITY. THESE TYPE OF STATIONS IN ESSSENCE HAVE CARRIED THE SPIRIT (OF THE PUBLIC BROADCASTING ACT OF 1967) AND HAVEN'T LET UP IN THEIR EFFORTS TO FULFILL THE MISSION PRESCRIBED IN ONE OF THE MOST ESSENTIAL PIECES OF LEGISLATION TO EMERGE FROM THE 1960'S.

The following appears on the Grass Roots Radio site (grc.org), a national organization interested in maintaining grass roots/community radio.

RECOLLECTIONS OF A KDNK FLOUNDERING FATHER

GUEST COMMENTARY
BY JIM GROH

I'm proud to be one of the four or five crazy guys who started KDNK.

After 25 years, I still consider it one of the niftiest things Ive done with my life. And I'm delighted to hear that, despite the digital age, its still hippie radio.

I moved from Chicago to Carbondale in the fall of 1981, the year they paved Main Street. The first night I ate dinner at the Village Smithy, I noticed a collection jar at the cash register. It had a phone number and the message, Help bring public radio to Carbondale. I'd been a fan of alternative radio for years, so I paid my bill, put a buck in the jar, and wrote down the phone number.

I called and got the town locksmith, Lee Swidler. Lee described the dream to serve and unite the community with a radio station, like KOTO in Telluride or KVNF in Paonia. He invited me to the next meeting, where I met the others: Bruce Stolbach, Brenda Jochems, Brian Vancil, Mike Speer, and Bill Phillips.

As a new employee of Audiolab down the street, I was the only one who knew anything about electronics, and only enough to fix stereos. I was immediately voted technical director. I heard the universe speaking, got some books and started teaching myself broadcasting technology.

By the winter of 1981, we had: the dream, a place to meet (Valley Lock and Key), a CPA (Brian), an attorney (Bill), a blank copy of the FCC application, and a copy of Sex and Broadcasting, the irreverent manual on underground radio by Lorenzo Milam.

So line by line, we started filling out the application. How hard could it be, right? Uh-huh. But Brian made the numbers work, Bill kept us legal, and I attacked the technical details. At some point, we had to predict our coverage the geographic area that would pick up the station. For that, we needed to know the location of the tower and the nature of the terrain around it. Uh-oh.

In Kansas it would have been simple. The coverage of a tower in the middle of a prairie is easy to predict. But poor old Carbondale sits in a Y-shaped hole formed by the river valleys. Predicting our
coverage involved a careful study of topo maps along these damned things called radials straight lines drawn 10 miles out from town in eight directions. I'll never forget the late nights in the lock shop,
crawling around on maps on the floor, getting sore knees and going cross-eyed.

We also had to make a study of the other stations in the area, their programming, and their locations on the FM dial, so we wouldnt interfere. We also had to submit a list of desired call letters. All the cool ones were taken, but because we had found a home in the Dinkel Building by then, we were approved for KDNK. Get it?

So, by spring of 1982 we'd completed the application in triplicate, and off to the FCC went a 3-inch stack of paperwork.

Be-Careful-What-You-Wish-For Dept.: We were approved! We then used the same information to request a grant from the NTIA-PTFP, the national funding agency for community radio. Success again! We got $38,000! The fundraising picked up steam with events and publicity, and what had been Carbondale Community Access Radio (CCAR) became allied with the Carbondale Council on Arts and Humanities (CCAH). At the Mountain Fair that year, sharp-aiming throwers could soak their favorite town solons at the KDNK dunking booth.

By then, Pat Noel, Brad Hendricks, John Palmer and Wick Moses stepped up to do the construction and the equipment selection.

We began ordering the equipment: a transmitter, an exciter, an equalizer, a monitor amplifier, and an equipment rack to put them all in; an antenna, a tower, the cable, and all the mounting hardware; the audio mixing board, some turntables, microphones, a cassette player, speakers, wires, and connectors for the studio. Over the winter, a flurry of building and wiring. We turned four rooms in the back of the Dinkel Building into a studio, a record library, a transmitter room, and an office.

The volunteers continued to appear: Virginia Squier, the first station manager, Donna Wolfe, the volunteer coordinator, and a host of others: Frank Smotherman, Lucy Blake, Jenny Diaz, Sid Lincicome, Jerry Weinstock, Jerry and Gayla Duckowitz, Jeanne Mulcahy, Richard Flaven, Tim Montgomery, and eventually scores more.

April 7, 1983. We throw the switch. Folks, the very first emanation from your beloved KDNK was a loud, obnoxious hum. Back to the wire cutters, soldering irons and voltmeters. But by then we also had a real radio engineer (Alan Bell of KMTS, I believe) to fix the problem, sign some forms, and make a final blessing on our efforts.

And that takes us to April 15, the date we celebrate this week. I'll leave it to others to talk about the life of KDNK since then. For now, be assured that your founders had all the joys, frustrations, parties, personality conflicts, gnashing of teeth and rending of garments, that you know are part of any well-loved and worthwhile project.

To the small army of people whose names Ive forgotten, and those Ive remembered: I'll see you at the party.

CRAZY EIGHTS UPDATE: Does expanding the FM radio dial fall into the category of “All the news that's fit to print“?

2008-03-20T21:12:00.002-06:00

Watching how newspapers cover more heady technical matters involving radio continues to amuse and puzzle some of us. Weeks after the FCC posted its plan to seek public comment on expanding the FM radio band by 60 channels (see the previous column), Colorado newspapers and those around the country have yet to broach the subject. The standard bearers of journalistic integrity, the New York Times and Wall Street Journal, have done nothing but cloud pending FCC action that, if enacted, will be monumental.

On March 17, those prestigious newspapers from the Big Apple ran a story, poorly describing how the FCC raked in $19 Billion through a fire sale of what was deemed "radio" frequencies located in the analogue television spectrum (soon to be vacated by television stations in their conversion to digital by next February) to telecommunications companies for cell phone and related uses. The reports did not divulge the frequencies sold (in the 700 Megahertz range; most suited for cell phone operations, etc.), leaving the impression that the "radio" frequencies sold in the television spectrum could have included channels five and six, where the FCC is floating the plan to expand the FM radio dial.

The FM expansion plan is still alive and well, even if the New York Times doesn't consider this "news fit to print", thus the Times is doing big business a favor. A lot of the big players in radio love this kind of public negligence. In the FM radio expansion arena they are banking on people like you and me to sit back and passively let things unfold in the way that the Clear Channels, and state-wide public radio networks (without true, LIVE local access for their network stations) would like. Without changes in the way radio station licensees are selected, the fat cats will continue hogging new frequencies at the expense of smaller, community-based operators. If the small guy is to get a fair shake, the FCC will have to roll back the clock to a time before media consolidation and radio station empire building became commonplace in the 1990’s (following the 1994 butchering/ re-writing of the Communications Act of 1934).

We can stop the backslide of the last fourteen years and make sure new radio frequencies are distributed for people; not insensitive, bottom line-only mega corporations or public entities which act like them. It’s easy, if we all get involved. In this amazing political year, consider the following questions that you could be asking anyone running for Federal office:

1) Do you think all of the consolidation of radio stations in recent years has been a good or bad idea for serving the public interest?

2) Do you support the licensing of more locally-owned and operated radio stations?

3) In order to give more local community groups and small business owners a chance at obtaining an FCC FM radio license, would you support an expansion of the FM radio band in which the FCC reviews applicants on their community service merits, rather than placing new frequencies on the auction block for the highest bidder from anywhere?

Some have written in recent days that all of the people running for Federal office are already in the pockets of the Clear Channels of this world, so why bother? Asking the questions listed above in a public forum will help everyone see the issues much clearer than before; and will make it that much harder for anyone in Washington to carry on business as usual.

Please chime in. There are more questions to ask. Don't let other interests keep you from having your say.

WE CAN GET THIS ISSUE ON THE FRONT BURNER. We don’t have to put up with monolithic sources of news, information, and cultural programming on the radio. We can move forward, and away from the mostly stale or distorted offerings coming from too many spots on the radio dial. If you care enough about this to get involved, we can make radio relevant again. We can even make the New York Times sit up and take note of the groundswell.

CRAZY EIGHTS UPDATE - A HUGE DEVELOPMENT

2008-03-09T23:21:00.000-06:00

Those of us looking for new radio venues with more innovation, creativity, chutzpah, and spontaneity are ecstatic with a new directive from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). Last week, the FCC announced it will be seeking public comment on a proposal (identified as MB Docket 07-294) to expand the FM radio band by reallocating FM frequencies currently used by Channels 5 and 6 television; these frequencies will become vacant next February when television converts to digital broadcasting. Under the plan, sixty new FM channels will become available. The alternative to this option, as written in an earlier column on this page, is another idea floating in Congress that would place these frequencies up for auction to the highest bidder (under the guise of helping to retire the national deficit; a drop in the bucket which does not address another kind of DEFICIT heard over much of the public's airwaves).

Let’s hope forces at our national's capitol will opt for a long over-due infusion of new blood into the radio world. It's really no choice at all.

Now, it really is UP TO US. Isn't it time to send your Congressman/Congresswoman and U.S. Senators some friendly and pertinent correspondence?

CRAZY EIGHTS – PART TWO: "RAIDERS OF THE LOST FREQUENCIES (THE SEQUEL)" - OR -----

2008-02-29T14:10:00.005-07:00

POSITIVE DEVELOPMENTS FOR NEW PUBLIC RADIO OUTLETS AND EXISTING ONES LIKE KGNU AND KVOD/ 88.1 ARE ON THE HORIZON, IF WE ACT SOON!

We’re only two months into 2008, and for the “radio-conscious” here’s one issue in this highly-charged political year that’s still “beneath the radar”: another possible round of selling-off some of the public’s airwaves to the highest bidder. It could happen again, much like the fire sale of radio frequencies following the re-write (butchering) of the Telecommunications Act of 1994 (thanks, Uncle Newt).

Rather than have the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) -- the “guardian” of the public’s airwaves -- set fair market prices for frequencies placed on the block in ‘94, Congress pushed to allow telecommunications companies to bid for designated radio frequencies so companies could use them for cell phone and data transmission purposes. (The same mindset setting the table for this corporate feast allowed radio empires to own, in the case of Clear Channel, 12-hundred radio stations). Now, under the guise of doing something to help retire the national debt (a drop in the bucket), talk has been brewing in Congress to “sell the farm“ again. True, the ’94 bidding process helped keep the cost of owning and operating a cell phone relatively low, but can the same type of public benefit be realized in what could unfold next? This time, rather than high-end frequencies needed for optimal cell phone and other high-tech use, FM radio signals could be up for grabs; that portion of the FM spectrum between 82 and 87 megahertz. They are frequencies far less attractive to the telecommunications industry, thus giving us hope that this time the government can act in the public’s interest.

Currently, the biggest hang-up to the idea of selling the 82 to 87 FM frequencies, adjacent to the low-end of the FM radio band, remains the existence of television Channel 6 audio which takes up this portion of the radio spectrum. Most FM radio tuners can receive a portion of this spectrum at the upper end near 88FM. By next February, television broadcasters are supposed to convert from current analogue signals to digital technology; meaning channel 6 audio will vacate the FM band in question. In the case of KRMA, Denver TV - 6, they are planning on moving to Channel 18 in the UHF band.

While 82 to 87 FM is being vacated by Channel 6, radio engineers across the country have no idea what will happen in the new audio playing field, and whether FM radio stations between 88 and 90 FM will be able to make substantial gains in power once channel 6 interference issues are gone. Part of the problem involves FM stations converting to digital signals with wider bandwidth requirements that may need more space between existing stations on the dial. Confused? So is everyone who is somehow involved.

In a much saner time, when the FCC and Congress actually paid attention to how the public good was being served by radio and TV, the idea of a fire sale of frequencies so close to the FM band would be toast – the powers-that-be would favor other options, such as expanding the current FM band from 88, down to 82 FM or somewhere in between. WHY has this idea received little or no traction to this point? Can you say influence from Washington DC lobbyists? With a fire sale, who benefits? Existing radio station conglomerates and networks (both public and private) who don’t want extra competition from an expanded radio dial; and potential users other than broadcasters.

LISTEN UP: KGNU AND CLASSICAL MUSIC DEVOTEES

In my previous CRAZY EIGHTS piece, I listed four options that Colorado Public Radio (CPR) has to continue bringing classical music to Larimer and Weld Counties once KVOD goes to lower-powered 88.1 FM. Here is option #5:

Expand the FM band. Who benefits? Upstart commercial and non-commercial stations, and existing FM stations in the 88 to 90 FM range that could substantially increase their power and outreach, but have been limited up to this point, largely due to Channel 6 interference issues. Among stations caught in this power limitation are CPR with their new 88.1 spot for KVOD, and KGNU, Boulder at 88.5. Expanding the FM band could enable one of these stations to move, for instance, KVOD to 87.7 or lower. Without channel 6 concerns and a greater separation between KVOD and KGNU, both stations could substantially increase power.

It is imperative that everyone interested in a possible expansion of the FM dial to let their opinions be known to people in Congress. It may be that expansion of the FM dial will be needed, just to accommodate expanded bandwidth for existing stations as they convert to digital broadcasting. Let’s hope there will still be some room for new radio voices. This vision will be easier to achieve if you get involved. In a vacuum without public diligence, monopolistic or big business forces could again dictate the terms.

USEFUL BACKGROUND - SOME IMPORTANT HISTORY

As we push for expansion, bringing new ideas, formats, and public openness, remember this: A battle will be nothing new on the radio front. In the 1920’s as radio broadcasting was beginning, educators tried to get the Federal Radio Commission (FRC), predecessor to the FCC, to reserve 20 AM channels for educational non-commercial purposes. Commercial interests wanted nothing to do with that idea and successfully lobbied to shelve the plan. Then in the late 30's and early 40's along came FM, but this time, educational broadcasters had their act together enough to get the FCC to reserve 20 channels between 88 and 91 FM for educational purposes. At the time, commercial radio forces didn't care because they thought then that FM wasn't going to matter. In fact, it wasn’t until the mid 1960’s after signal coverage issues were addressed with the invention of circular polarization for FM radio that it started to become attractive to the industry. The 1960’s also saw the FCC establish a mandate which prohibited owners of AM and FM stations to simulcast the same programming on both stations. FM formats started to grow, and by 1974 FM was the “king” of radio.

Getting the FCC to allow some or all of the old Channel 6 audio frequencies between 82 and 87 FM to become a part of the current FM radio band will require a paradigm shift in the way the FCC has conducted business in recent years. With direction or mis-direction (depending on your point of view), from Congress in recent years we have seen the FCC’s auctioning mentality in full swing, while the public’s choices of radio formats continue to shrink. All hope is not lost in an election year promising change. It’s not impossible to get Congress and the FCC to take the expanded FM band idea seriously.

LOOK AT THAT NEW FM TUNER!

After battles along the Potomac, the biggest obstacle to the expansion would be convincing FM radio receiver manufacturers to add new frequencies to their tuners. To speed up this process, Congress would probably have to step in, the way it did in the 1960’s when two monumental things happened: 1) public policy forced broadcasters of AM/FM operations to stop simulcasting their AM signal over their FM stations; and 2) a Congressional mandate, requiring television manufacturers to include UHF as well as (at the time) more conventional VHF channels on television tuners. The same kind of action for an expanded FM band may be needed to bring new FM frequencies into your home and car.

This is all very speculative, and there may be other scenarios for the 82 to 87 FM frequencies. But it’s not too late to dream, plan, and act for something we’d all like to see. It can start with your letter, or a call to you local Congressional representative’s office. What do we have to lose?

HD Radio: Chickens and Eggs

2008-02-11T07:30:00.000-07:00

Here is an article from The Washington Post about HD Radio. The HD radio boosters at iBiquity keep saying the same thing--it's the auto dealers and satellite radio (XM and Sirius) services fault. Sure it is.

There are really only a few parts to this issue: technology, programming, portability and on-demand content. HD Radio is getting aced out on all of these by competing products and services--no matter how much branding, marketing and advertising stations do. And generally, public radio stations are not inclined to do excessive self promotion. Colorado Public Radio seems to be the exception in Colorado.

Radio stations--commercial and non-commercial--that offer truly alternative programming may succeed in winning over listeners who care less about portability or on-demand content--that is, if they own HD radios for both their car and their home (portable HD radios are not common). But producing compelling programming requires creativity--and cash. Most public radio stations are not flush with either. Even fewer are flush with both. And what does iBiquity recommend? More HD radio promotion by stations? How innovative!

Treading Water: The Annual Fight over Funding for Public Broadcasting has Started

2008-02-04T23:31:00.000-07:00

I know some of you were waiting for this annual event, which has occurred in our nation's capitol for the last 27 years. Every year since 1981 we've seen the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) Tango between Congress and the Executive Branch. It started with Reagan Budget Director David Stockman (who proposed to eliminate all funding for CPB), and it continues today with the latest from the Bush Administration.

The President has submitted his Fiscal Year 2009 budget to Congress, recommending the following for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB):

a $200 million rescission from the $400 million already appropriated by Congress for FY 2009;
a $220 million rescission from the $400 million already appropriated by Congress for FY 2010;
no advance appropriation for FY 2011; and
no additional funding in FY 2009 for public television and radio digital conversion or upgrades to the Public Radio Satellite System (although CPB would be permitted to use a portion of its FY 2009 regular appropriation for these purposes).

If enacted, these cuts would represent a 56% reduction in funding from CPB’s FY 2008 levels, and would be felt in all CPB programs, beginning with the station Community Service Grants. The proposal also comes as CPB was preparing a request for supplemental funding of $483 Million to help pay for digital television conversion for public television stations.

*See a response from the CPB to the President's 2009 Budget here.

Before you get really upset, don't. It's part of the dance we see each year since Congress abandoned the idea of insulation for CPB funding. Insulation was a concept briefly championed by members of Congress following the impeachment of Richard Nixon, who hated public broadcasting and tried in his own manipulative ways to silence the beast while it was still in its infancy (see here).

By the time Ronald Reagan was sworn in, the concept of insulating funds for three to five years beyond the current budget period for CPB was toast. It would have insured that no meddling would take place with CPB decisions and programming content (to keep the CPB system of public television and radio stations insulated from political pressure). The Public Broadcasting system could continue to be bold in programming choices, and continue to serve under-served audiences that commercial radio and television ignores.

What we have instead of insulation is a short circuit each year, as Congress and the President fight over funding levels for CPB. Year to year, hand-to-mouth funding means we continue to have status quo public radio and television. So at least we have drive time public radio news programs and weekend radio favorites. It is better than no funding at all. But it means that ongoing innovation and being able to adapt to new audiences and new public interests is severely compromised.

Ultimately, that is why the Bush team came up with their current proposal. They know that when David Stockman tried to eliminate funding in 1981, public outcry kept it from happening. They also know that the annual budget anxiety keeps Public Broadcasting on a short leash. And it steers too many in the public radio system into what can best be described as the audience building extremist camp, where process and heavily-researched or refined programming usually trumps innovation and substance.

We can argue about news content; whether NPR is too liberal or too complacent, but perhaps the best gauge of the health of the system comes when looking at something other than news programming. Let's look briefly at the arts on public radio for a moment. The last time public radio carried a successful series of theatre programming came in that fateful year of 1981 when the radio production of Star Wars from KUSC, Los Angeles was already produced. It was successfully carried by hundreds of public radio stations.

That marvelous production was complimented that year when many public radio stations across the land also carried the BBC series The Hitch Hikers Guide To The Galaxy, which dwarfs the television production of same. Nothing since 1981 comes close in the number of stations that carried such programming, and nothing approaches the positive public response to such programs. It's no accident that this kind of programming ceased after 1981, due to uncertain funding levels from year to year. Long term planning is out the window. As a result, we have a national system that is treading water--at best.

So, if you are a public radio or television devotee, concerned about losing your news fix, don't worry about the new volley of budgetary insults from the White House. Congress will counter with funding levels more to your liking, and they will pass Continuing Resolution amendments, probably long enough to hold current funding levels until a new occupant is in the oval office. Ultimately, the future of the system rests with the results of this year's election, not with the current whims of a lame duck. But ask yourself, how long can this system continue to hobble along? And will it ever live up to its potential?

New Song; New Logo: Is a Merger in the Works?

2008-02-04T19:05:00.000-07:00

Colorado Public Radio's news and information service, branded--quite haphazardly--as KCFR and KCFR News--broadcasts a 5-times-per-week, 30-minutes-per-day* program called Colorado Matters (from 10:00 to 10:30 a.m., with regular repeats during that week and on weekends, and with repurposing during Morning Edition). Last week, Colorado Matters introduced a new theme song, which sounds about as exciting as the the them song from the movie Broadcast News. Do you remember the scene? Big finish!

This week, CPR, KCFR, KCFR News (you choose) rolled out a new Colorado Matters logo, which doesn't at all match their current and confused website. I am using the word logo quite loosely here. Isn't their picture mostly just fonts?

Surprisingly, the new Colorado Matters logo looks just like KUNC's website color scheme. This made me wonder, is there a public radio merger in the works? If so, that may explain why CPR wants 88.1-FM in Denver for $8.2 million. If not, then maybe the "C" in CPR simply stands for confused. Does anyone know a good brand manager? CPR needs guidance.

Here's the way I understand it. KCFR is the news and information service. KVOD is the classical music service (at least for now). And CPR is the promotions service for both KCFR-AM and KVOD-FM. So when you donate to Colorado Public Radio, do you suppose that you can decide which service gets your money?

CPR spends a lot of air time and web space on self-promotion. Have you checked out their website? It's like the Public Insight Network (provided to CPR by Minnesota Public Radio) is it's own show! Have you listened to their on-air appeals? Pumping the PIN and pimping Colorado Matters produces as much on air content as the show Colorado Matters! I guess that is what the organization gets when it elevates a marketing genius to head the news broadcast division of a statewide network which does little more than repeat NPR.

*The show length is shorter if you consider that CPR broadcasts NPR news at the top of the hour.

Happy Birthday KRFC!

2008-02-01T16:39:00.001-07:00

On Friday, March 1st, KFRC will celebrate its 5th Birthday with the KRFC Birthday Bash. The Birthday Bash is a fundraiser for KRFC that will feature a live music performance at the Sunset Event Center in Fort Collins, Colorado. Tickets to the KRFC Birthday Bash are available at FCTix.com, or through the KRFC station at (970) 221-5075. Thank you to Arts Alive Fort Collins for this press release.

Crazy Eights: Taking off in 2008 with 88.1-FM in Play

2008-02-01T11:32:00.000-07:00

Crazy Eights: Commentary by First Responder

Taking off in 2008 with 88.1-FM in Play: An under-utilized Denver radio frequency is gaining much-needed traction, but at what cost?

This is an eye-opening event to start what is bound to be a wild and crazy year in politics and mass media. With declining audience numbers for radio, especially for commercial stations, Colorado Public Radio (CPR) has bought 88.1-FM from a religious broadcaster based on the left coast; which has done nothing with this rare commodity except rebroadcast what Front Range listeners can already hear over KWBI’s main signal at 91.1-FM.

The industry works in mysterious ways. Two years after 88.1-FM began broadcasting, we see what simply sitting on a frequency (repeating another signal’s content, and operating with low overhead) can bring in these times: $8.2 Million dollars, the amount CPR (the only public radio entity in Colorado able to afford such a steep price) is paying for the frequency.

Under the “guidance” of today’s Federal Communications Commission (FCC) that sum of money is acceptable because it is what the market will bear. Under a previous version of the FCC, such financial speculation involving a rare public asset would be disallowed. If we go back to the days of FCC commissioner Nicholas Johnson, the religious broadcaster in this case would have had its license rescinded for lack of providing public service. 88.1-FM would have been placed on the block so any number of non-commercial entities could apply for the license. During the Lyndon Johnson era, community groups had equal access to the process. Today CPR is the only player that could realistically compete for the 88.1 FM frequency. What does this mean in today’s world? This CPR purchase marks only the beginning of what could be a CPR spending spree for radio signals along Colorado’s Front Range. While the 88.1 buy-out has no downside for listeners, the same cannot be said for future acquisitions.

CPR is the only public radio entity in the state with an estimated dollar value in the seven figure range ($12 to 15 Million), and it continues to throw its financial weight around Colorado. With this clout, they carryout an empire-building mission to provide two streams of programming to all of the significant population centers in the state. One of the places where the two-stream approach hasn‘t been realized is in Larimer and Weld Counties, but that could change in the near future with several options for expansion in view.

During the week of January 28th, the Fort Collins Coloradoan ran a story which in essence reported that CPR’s classical music service will be ending when KVOD switches to the 88.1-FM signal expected by April (due to public television’s Channel 6 audio interference issues, 88.1-FM in Denver is authorized to operate with less than 3,000 watts). The switch by KVOD will mark the return of KCFR to 90.1-FM (licensed for 40,000 watts); its original home, with News and Information programming. In a stagnant world, classical music listeners in Fort Collins, Loveland, and Greeley would be out of luck. But the Coloradoan piece did not delve into the possibilities for CPR expansion into Larimer and Weld Counties. Options include:

CPR buys a commercial FM station in the Fort Collins, Windsor, Loveland area. FM stations in this part of the state do not have clear signals throughout Denver metro, but they adequately reach listeners in Larimer and Weld counties. This condition is the primary reason why KTCL (93.3-FM) is now a Denver station, instead of having its broadcast antenna atop Horsetooth Mountain, west of Fort Collins. FM stations here suffer the same problem that lower powered FM stations have in metro Denver which cannot reach Larimer and Weld counties. Two stations with such coverage problems at 101.5-FM and 107.1-FM recently filed for bankruptcy. The same economic forces affect commercial FM stations up north. It’s only a matter of time before one or more of them are ready to sell out. Since 88.1-FM will cover metro Denver with classical music, the commercial FM CPR buys in Larimer-Weld will be a perfect fit. Aside from staff lay-offs, the downside for this option is minimal for audiences, because the programming on Northern Colorado commercial FMs offer nothing that other stations on the FM dial from Denver metro also provide.
CPR President Max Wysick could pay another visit to the CSU President’s Office, as he did 15 years ago, when he had a closed-door meeting with CSU President Albert Yates. KCSU-FM Fort Collins and the other radio stations in the CSU system (KDUR-FM in Durango and KTSC-FM in Pueblo) could have been part of the discussion. Nothing came out of that meeting involving the sale of CSU system radio stations, but as with the situation then, the KCSU signal could be enhanced to cover the Fort Collins-Loveland-Greeley triangle (with the proper investment and political savvy). CSU coffers could be filled with a few million dollars, and the CSU President could justify the sale by calling it a “community service” (especially after hundreds of classical music listeners in town become vocal over the loss of this unique music on the radio). If Wysick were to succeed with this option, he’d be following in the footsteps of Minnesota Public Radio (MPR), which bought university radio stations across the state to help build their state-wide network. The downside for this option is high from a political standpoint. It involves a student-run radio station which started in 1964. The fallout from such a sale would produce very unsettling results, especially as the CSU President’s office deals with issues surrounding the possible sale of the student newspaper, The Collegian, to Gannett. *See this article by Michael Roberts of The Denver Westword.
Max Wysick puts together a package for financially-strapped KUVO, which includes the 88.1-FM frequency and a few million dollars for their 89.3-FM frequency which covers metro, as well as Larimer and Weld Counties. The downside here is immense because it involves a station with a rich history and legacy that was founded after a hard-fought effort spearheaded by key members of Denver’s Hispanic community, including U.S. Senator Ken Salazar. In this case, the sky is the limit on protests coming from all sorts of sectors along the Front Range, not the least of which is the fact that KUVO is one of only a handful of Jazz radio stations remaining in the country.
CPR carries its classical service over 88.1-FM and on an HD channel of 90.1-FM, which reaches Larimer and Weld. As part of this option, CPR agrees to pay a portion of costs for classical music listeners in Larimer and Weld counties to purchase an HD radio for their homes. This is the easiest and least invasive option for continuing classical music radio in Northern Colorado. The downside is the initial cost involved to CPR; a cost that over several years could be recovered in uninterrupted listener support from Fort Collins, Loveland, and Greeley. Those with the ear close to the ground say CPR has already panned the idea of placing classical music on one of their HD channels for 90.1-FM, in favor of adding more news and information programming instead. We’ll see.

Those are some of the possibilities, still to be determined. STAY TUNED!

Community Public Radio: KBUT-FM.

2007-10-14T20:06:00.000-06:00

Did you ever wanted to take a tour of your public radio station? Have you ever wanted to meet the people you hear on the air? Have you ever been offered the opportunity to speak on the air? At KBUT-FM in Crested Butte, Colorado community radio means community participation--not simply community donations.

These are just some of the differences between big-time, professional public radio stations and small-town, community ones. Why don't you call your local, public radio station and ask for a tour, ask to meet the staff, and ask for your time to speak on the air. What will they say? I dunno, ask them!

Coordinated Fundraising: Public Radio and TV.

2007-10-14T19:06:00.001-06:00

Last month, KGNU radio and KBDI television coordinated their fundraising with Amy Goodman, host of Democracy Now and author of STATIC: Government Liars, Media Cheerleaders, and the People Who Fight Back. Does your public radio or television station promote AND support personalities when they come to town. If not, why not? Do you suppose it helps your public radio station stays in touch with organizations from which they receive programming? Denver Westword promoted Goodman's visit here.

"Mamma Kat" of KUVO-FM.

2007-10-14T18:29:00.000-06:00

Recently Mamma Kat of KUVO-FM was mentioned by 9News in Denver, Colorado. You gotta love the diversity of this station. For Blues, R&B and Jazz, Mamma Kat is voice of many hip generations.

Mugged in Malibu.

2007-10-14T18:05:00.000-06:00

Do you have one too many--or ten too many--lame, public radio mugs taking up space in your kitchen? Have you ever thought about giving them away? Well, you can't take a huge tax break by donating you coffee cups to the cause, but the city of Malibu, California has arranged a novel way to recycle your cheap, ceramic mugs with the help of southern California public radio stations. Read about it here.

Denver Westword on Mario Valdes.

2007-09-24T08:40:00.000-06:00

Michael Roberts of Denver Westword reports the passing of longtime KRCC-FM General Manager, Mario Valdes. Read Roberts' article and some reader comments here.

Memorial Service for Mario Valdes of KRCC.

2007-09-19T09:30:00.000-06:00

A memorial service for former KRCC Station Manager, Mario Valdes, will take place this Friday, Sept., 21 at 1:00 p.m. at The Shove Chapel at Colorado College, 1010 North Nevada in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

Mario was the heart and soul of public radio for Southeastern Colorado, providing inspiration to all of us who knew him and had the privilege of working with him. His knowledge of music, the arts, and pollitics (both inside and outside of public radio) were golden. He set up shop in a very interesting radio market for public radio and made it into something quite unique and essential. His achievements live on.

-Pete Simon

Thank You Readers!

2007-09-13T10:42:00.000-06:00

Colorado Public Radio Blog would like thank all its readers for viewing the site, adding comments, and giving us leads about Colorado public radio news, programming, jobs, and other happenings. During the past month, the blog has had over 1000 total visits from more than 600 unique visitors. Again, thanks.

President Bush Speaks to the Nation.

2007-09-13T06:18:00.000-06:00

Tonight at 7:00 p.m. President Bush Speaks to the Nation. You can listen to it live in Denver on KUNC at 91.5-FM and KCFR at 1340-AM.

KUNC ran a live promo this morning that said "after the President's address," they'd carry the "Democratic response." KCFR ran a pre-recorded promo last night that said "Colorado Matters would be carried immediately following the Presidential address." Let's hope KCFR is carries the Democratic response too. My guess is that they would, but you'd think they'd actually tell listeners that BEFORE they'd promote themselves. You'd think, right?

To hear the address on your local public radio station in Colorado, check out the Colorado Public Radio Links area of this blog.

Colorado Public Radio in Denver Westword.

2007-09-12T14:41:00.000-06:00

Frances Koncilja, of Colorado Public Radio Blog, attempts--yet again--to put the public back into Colorado Public Radio. Read some of her latest comments about CPR's problems in Denver Westword News, by Michael Roberts. If you have any questions for Frances, you can email her at Colorado Public Radio Blog.

The link to the Denver Westword article is down, but here is the text, relevant to Koncilja's comments about Colorado Public Radio.

CPR for CPR: When last we heard from attorney Frances Koncilja ("Going Public," June 14), she had resigned from her position on the Colorado Public Radio board to protest what she saw as an attempt by CPR chieftain Max Wycisk and chair Barry Curtiss-Lusher to change organizational by-laws in order to ramrod through a host of dubious proposals. Since then, she's created a Colorado Public Radio Blog, which has quickly developed into the go-to site for news about the state's public radio stations, including CPR. Among other things, she's posted documents that shed more light on her concerns.

The next big day in Koncilja's battle to save CPR from itself is September 19, when the board is expected to meet for the first time since putting many of the plans she criticized on hold. Via e-mail, she writes that her preparations for the session will include contacting local officials who appear on the network to "ask them to inquire of management why there is no diversity on the board and on air." She's also requesting input from "previous board members" plus "current sponsors and underwriters." She adds, "Even though I was not asked to submit anything" for the meeting, "I have."

As she understands, silence isn't always golden.

-Michael Roberts

Eric Whitney on National Public Radio.

2007-09-11T14:29:00.001-06:00

"Fort Carson is one of dozens of Army posts across the country that have recently created a Warrior Transition Unit to help wounded soldiers deal with the mental and physical health issues of their post-deployment." Listen to Eric Whitney's story on Weekend Edition Sunday, by following this link.

Whitney works for KRCC-FM in Colorado Springs, and he moonlights for Colorado Public Radio from time to time, by doing actual top-of-hour reporting during Morning Edition.

Dan Drayer returns to The Company Store.

2007-09-10T13:35:00.000-06:00

Dan Drayer recently returned to Colorado Public Radio to host KCFR/KVOD Presents. I hope this finally means that KCFR Presents will actually present some interesting local content, rather than just re-broadcast its hodge-podge of NPR documentaries. The first part of the three-part series entitled Shakespeare in American Life was perfect for Saturday afternoon nap-taking--unless you were driving around town! I missed parts two and three. Go figure!

Is this hiring and admission that CPR lacks sufficient programming relative to its amount of staff? If so, I wonder what other brilliant show ideas are in the works! Hey, I have an idea. Why doesn't CPR resurrect Midday Mozart. Mike Flanagan is the General Manager at Radio1190, but Charley Samson still works at KVOD. C'mon, let's repurpose!

Good luck to Dan Drayer with KCFR Presents and Charley Samson with KVOD Presents! It is better to have more people of substance at Colorado Public Radio than more people of process.

But I am confused. What is it that KVOD Presents? Classical Public Radio Network? Once again, Colorado Public Radio, your branding initiative confuses me. I guess that's what happens when Herr Goebbels is put in charge of the process.

Read the latest press release about Dan Drayer from Colorado Public Radio, which attempts to clear up any branding confusion. Still confused? Yeah, me too.

I Feel Good!

2007-09-06T21:56:00.000-06:00

Who's the hardest working "reporter" at Colorado Public Radio? It used to be Kirk Siegler of Aspen Public Radio; that is, until he moved to Denver to take a job with KUNC-FM.

Now the hardest working guy at CPR is . . . Eric Whitney of KRCC-FM in Colorado Springs! I can't wait for the the new Health Reporter to start at Colorado Public Radio in FY2009. Then they will have 1 whole reporter on staff.

In the meantime, you can catch Eric Whitney during Morning Edition on 1340-AM in Denver, and on 90.1 FM HD2 if you have an HD radio in your car, in hour pickup, in your house, in your boat, on your motorcycle, on your snowmobile, on your lawn mower, on your scooter, in your tractor--that is, if you haven't already donated all of your vehicles to "support the programming" at Colorado Public Radio.

Did I forget to mention that you can hear CPR are on the web at cpr.org, kcfr.org, kvod.org and podcasting all 30 minutes of Colorado Matters on the NPR website? It's called CPR Everywhere! They're HUGE! Colorado Matters is biggest 30 minutes of news in Colorado. Just ask them!

Here is a link to Eric Whitney's most recent feature on Colorado Public Radio. It is entitled, New Program for Wounded Soliders.

KAFM Gains CPB Qualification.

2007-09-06T10:14:00.000-06:00

Guest Commentary, by Pete Simon

KAFM Gains CPB Qualification

For some of you reading this it may not sound like a big deal, until you delve into the history of grass roots, non-commercial radio in Grand Junction. The story of KAFM is one of battles lost and won through heightened expectations, lean times, perseverance, and amazing technical prowess.

KAFM, 88.1 FM, all 16 watts of it (the 88.1 signal blankets the Grand Valley), has just reached another milestone. It becomes the 16th (lucky number) non-commercial radio station in Colorado to gain certification from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB). This enables the station to receive annual grant monies from CPB for Programming and Operations.

For nearly a decade, community volunteers worked to make KAFM a reality. It rose from the ashes of an orchestrated take over (and the firing of several dozen volunteers) of KPRN by the management of KCFR, Denver when it took over KPRN in 1991 to mark the beginnings of the KCFR/Colorado Public Radio empire.

Left in the dust were people who listened and participated in KPRN--a station started in the mid 1980s--which they assumed was a solid community asset. The original KPRN blended local voices, news, and events with NPR news and musical variety not available anywhere else on the Grand Junction radio dial. KPRN connected people down the street with those around the world; and in an instant it was gone, replaced by nothing but classical music and NPR news shows without the localism. The only news material to emerge from the new KPRN was produced for a so called state-wide audience; local flavor and soul was gutted. Fortunately, the community volunteer spirit at the old KPRN was able to rekindle at KAFM, and its founders deserve some kind of award.

Since KAFM signed on several years ago, someone was kind (and dedicated) enough to locate and provide an entire house for the people-powered station (that's how much the people in town love their local access radio). The ground floor of the building includes a 75-seat performance theatre, enabling KAFM to broadcast live music.

The CPB certification brings expanding possibilities for an entire community once given up for the whims of larger market radio expectations, often convoluted research, and extreme insensitivity.

It's time to celebrate.

Visit the KAFM radio website by clicking here.

KAJX-FM hires PR Pro as News Director.

2007-09-02T15:20:00.000-06:00

According to The Aspen Times, KAJX-FM hired Mitzi Rapkin. Rapkin most recently served as the Director of Community Relations for Aspen, Colorado. The Aspen Daily News reports that Rapkin formerly worked as a reporter at Aspen Public Radio, for National Geographic, and in Washington DC. She is filling the News Director position vacated by Kirk Siegler, who moved to KUNC-FM.

So for those news people who fear losing journalistic credibility after working in as advocates or activists in public relations and corporate communications, I guess there really is a second life--in public radio news and in radio station management.

KUNC-FM and The Colorado Statesman.

2007-09-02T14:47:00.000-06:00

Jody Hope Strogoff, Editor & Publisher of The Colorado Statesman, is a regular political contributor to KUNC-FM, which can be heard throughout north central and northeast Colorado, including the Denver metropolitan area.

Listen here to her most recent conversation with KUNC's Jim Beers regarding the announced resignation of US Attorney General Alberto Gonzalez, an endorsement by US Senator Ken Salazar, and a political position held by Republican US Senate Candidate Bob Schaffer .