Tag Archives: NPR



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SeaTac Radio Q&A

2011/01/16 – 12:06 pm

Updates to the Seattle radio station pages at SeaTacRadio.com include more of a chronological history of 810/850 KTBI-KTAC [now KHHO].

We get letters – actually, it’s email, but here are a couple answers to some questions that have come in this week.

Whatever happened to KJZZ Radio Seattle?
I think the writer means KWJZ 98.9, which was the Smooth Jazz station [19 years] until it recently became a modern rock station. Smooth Jazz stations are disappearing like the “beautiful music” stations that preceded them.

The call letters KJZZ were used in Seattle in the early 80s. KJZZ was at 1540 AM. The call letters and jazz format replaced the Bellevue station’s “Rock of the 80s” KZAM. 1540 call letters switched to KLSY in 1983, and later KBLV.

KJZZ call letters are now in use at an FM Jazz/NPR station operated by Maricopa Community College in Mesa/Phoenix, Arizona and also on TV channel 14 in Salt Lake City.

Question: You have Tami Bennett listed as a former DJ at KWJZ, but what were the other Seattle stations she worked at?
Thanks for jogging our memory on this. We have updated the KNDD, KJAQ [formerly KYPT] & KMTT pages at SeaTacRadio.com, as Tami has also worked at those stations.

Use the search box in the menu on the top-right of this blog and SeaTacRadio.com, to find the answer to your question about the people and radio stations in the Seattle-Tacoma/Puget Sound region.

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Audio Internet Radio news Politics radio

NATIONAL POLITICALLY-CORRECT RADIO Fires Juan Williams

2010/10/21 – 9:16 pm

Congratulations to FOX News on choosing to sign Juan Williams as a full-time Fox contributor. The $2 Million contract is a good investment, as FOX will gain audience from this move.
NPR, on the other hand, is about to lose a major share of it’s audience and significant funding due to the incredibly stupid actions of management this week by firing Juan Williams. Williams said what millions of Americans feel, that seeing people dressed in Muslim garb, boarding an airline flight scares the crap out of many people. Muslim terrorists were behind the 9/11 attack and we will NEVER forget.

In his blog [10/21/10] How to protest NPRs firing of Juan Williams, Dan Cirucci gives these tips:
“Click here and tell the NPR Ombudsman exactly what you think about the firing of Juan Williams.
Or try calling NPR Listener Services: (202) 513-3232 (Hours: 10am to 5pm ET, Monday through Friday).
Let NPR know loud and clear: This nonsense MUST stop!
BTW: Congratulations to Fox News for keeping Juan Williams on the air.”

Dan Cirucci is one of the most widely honored public relations professionals in his field.
He is a Lecturer in Corporate Communication at Penn State Abington and a former President of the Philadelphia Public Relations Association.

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NPR sees it’s future online

2010/07/10 – 1:19 pm

As reported online at Yahoo News:

National Public Radio believes it’s moved beyond just radio.

So the nonprofit network’s dropping the “radio” designation in its company name—so 20th century, right? It’s now rechristened itself to fit the aspirations of a 21st century, multi-platform media company. In other words, no “radio,” please–we’re only “NPR.

“NPR chief executive Vivian Schiller told the Washington Post that “NPR is more modern, streamlined.”

Comment: Audio broadcasts whether through the traditional “radio” or online, are still radio. You might call the online broadcasting “streaming” but it is still the same radio product, either music, news, sports or talk shows. Since most people will be listening with devices such as cell phones, iPods, iPads, etc. it remains “radio”. Radio is simply adding a new platform. That is my opinion.

Video online is NOT radio. Radio stations with webcams, remain radio – with a webcam. It is not, all of a sudden TV just because they added a webcam.

NPR has always considered itself “too hip for the room”. Not worth my dime or my time. Besides, their politically bent to the left and I don’t go that way.

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radio

LH Bates Radio Station Is History

2009/09/21 – 11:33 am

I attended LH Bates Vocational-Technical College, now called Bates College, back in the early 70s. The radio broadcast tech program allowed one to practice being a broadcaster on a working radio station and acquire your 1st-Class FCC License in the meantime.

These days, a “1st” is not required. A lot has changed in the radio business. Radio is not exciting, nor fun and is losing listenership to Internet radio, IPODs and other new technology. 91.7 KTOY was the radio station at Bates. My instructors were real radio pros: Chuck Ellsworth (KJR) and Lee Perkins (KJR). The station alumni included Paul Berg, better known as the legendary Pat O’Day.

KTOY was a great launching pad for many radio people. Many are still in the business locally and across the USA. KTOY programmed Top 40 [with R&B on weekends]. The station changed call letters many years later to KBTC. The brain trust at Bates decided to sell the station at one point. It went dark and was later picked up by the UW. KEXP programming was tried under the KXOT call letters and later, CBC, BBC and NPR cast-off programming that KUOW had no room for in their schedule. No real attempt was made to keep 91.7 local to Tacoma. In fact, the KXOT Tacoma producer was laid off in August. The station is ripe for picking by some educational or religious broadcast company. The frequency cannot be used for commercial purposes under current FCC rule.

Will the last radio station to leave Tacoma for Seattle, please turn the lights out?

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