I’ve had a great “radio run” the past few days, visiting with several community stations that broadcast my daily “pops of populism” — the 2-minute commentaries that air across the country. Last Friday, I stopped by KPIG, a fun minded station that beams out from Freedom, CA, in the Monterrey/Santa Cruz area. They call their studio “the sty” and refer to their position on the dial as “105-oink-5.” Then it was on to KDUR in the delightful old west of Durango, CO. The station did a a live remote remote broadcast from Maria’s Bookshop, a broadcast that was punctuated buy a loud burst of heckling from Earl, a small and locally-beloved dog that barked incessantly for a minute or so midway through my talk. It must have made radio.
Next, I flew northward for 2 benefits for local stations– one in in Spokane for KYRS (the YRS in the call letters are said to stand for “your station”). The organizers filled the the Lewis & Clark High School auditorium and raised the most money they’ve ever collected in a single event. The other benefit was at the beautiful Panida Theater in downtown Sandpoint, ID (way up in the Idaho panhandle, nearly to Canada). A hearty band of progressives there are determined to create a community station for their area, and it looks good for them to get an FCC license soon. We had a lively event, raised some bucks for the cause and then adjourned to Eichart’s, a classic local pub, where we enjoyed lively discussion and many repetitions of 12-ounce elbow bends.
