Two South Sound radio stations will take occasion to honor longtime KGY morning host, Dick Pust, this week. On-air, KMAS 1030 Shelton will have Pust in the studio during the 9 o’clock hour for an interview with Dale Hubbard.
Mixx 96.1 KXXO will host a community event – open to the public – in the meeting room at KXXO, January 20 at 5:30 pm.
Dick Pust served the community for 51 years at KGY radio. Management there kicked him to the curb, without providing him an opportunity to say goodbye on-air, or to allow the public to thank him for the many years of entertainment his programming providing to the South Sound region. Kudos to these two stations for these efforts.
Gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson said of television: “The TV business is uglier than most things. It is normally perceived as some kind of cruel and shallow money trench through the heart of the journalism industry, a long plastic hallway where thieves and pimps run free and good men die like dogs, for no good reason.”
The same can certainly be said of certain radio stations.
Lately, my car radio pre-sets have been assigned to:
680 KBRD – ancient jazz & Big Band tunes.
880 KIXI – Nice to hear the old tunes, but when they play some of the newer cover versions, I tune out.
1030 KMAS – Oldies on the AM band and local DJs. Cool!
1180 KLAY – News-Talk. Lakewood/Tacoma.
1240 KGY – Adult Contemporary and local DJs
90.9 KVTI – Classical music & NPR programs
96.1 KXXO – Adult Contemporary and local DJs
96.9 KGY FM – Contemporary Hits, Recurrents and local DJs
97.3 KIRO – News-Talk [KIRO FM licensed to Tacoma, who'da thunk?]
Not your grandson’s radio choices!
Let’s talk about brands we trust. In the ever-changing broadcast business, there isn’t a whole lot of either quality radio or consistency. Formats change when ratings slide or a new program director walks into town. A rare gem is KXXO Mixx 96.1 FM. KXXO in Olympia is what we might refer to as a “stick in the mud”. That is not necessarily a bad thing. KXXO has maintained it’s adult contemporary-soft rock format and most of the same staff for well over 20 years. The morning team of RP McMurphy and Ann D’Angelo, Freeway Hero team Rick Johnson/Jack Archer, and Dave Mann in the afternoon, names we have become used to, music for our crowd on the way to and from work each day.
Listeners know what they are getting when they punch up KXXO on their car radio presets. KXXO is a station you can listen to all day at work, just like they say on the air. Truth in advertising.
Personally, I prefer KXXO over the closest competitor, KWRM FM. It comes down to how a station makes you feel, just as most things you buy or brands you trust. You become comfortable with what feels right to you, like old sneakers or worn bath towels. The same goes with radio stations. With many radio stations, just when you start getting comfortable with it, they switch up DJs or change format altogether.
I will continue to reach for my preferred brands of groceries at the store and keep KXXO as one of the presets on my car radio. I can depend on what I will get when I tune in to KXXO. Not that I am resistant to all change. But I can’t part with those old towels and sneakers either.
Upon first review, KGY FM’s new format seems to go too far into the Hot Hits, for my taste. Hip hop is not my bag, and this seems to be part of the KGY playlist. The Cool Classics, I enjoy. [THE SOUND: Cool Classics and Hot Hits] Overall, the good music mix and the fact that all dayparts seem to be “live & local” makes KGY FM a station that I now have as a preset on the car radio. The Sounds runs CBS News at the top of the hour, another advantage to keep me listening. If there is a major news event, I appreciate that the local air personality is there to flip to the network for immediate coverage. Good music, deejays in the studio and hourly news… [a formula so divergent from the direction most radio stations are taking]. I appreciate having a local station that stays with what works!
Olympia has another FM that I have preset a radio button to: 96.1 KXXO. The station plays a mix of Adult Contemporary and Oldies. KXXO [Mixx 96 FM] also maintains a local presence with deejays in the studio around the clock. KXXO bought the Freeway Hero franchise years ago and this is another plus for listeners commuting to work in morning or PM drive times.
