I can remember listening to "Rick Dees and the Weekly Top 40" every Sunday. I can't remember how old I was, but I'm pretty sure I was between seven and nine when I first started to pay attention to music on the radio that I liked. Before that, I would listen to whatever my mom would have on (because she always had the radio on in the car or in the kitchen) but I would never really decide for myself. I don't really remember how I started to make it a ritual, but I would always make sure Rick Dees was on and I would listen to it until it went off, which was around one in the afternoon. I think it used to come on Kiss 95.1 but I honestly don't remember what the station was. I listened to this radio show because it played all of my favorite songs, which were of course top 40 hits, and Rick Dees didn't really talk that much. He focused on the music and I was always really anxious to see who would be number one.
2. How might radio be used to improve social and political discussions in the United States?
To begin with, I think that a really good example of how political discussion is improved in the United States is NPR. NPR delivers news via radio to listeners and this is typically political in topic. I know that when I listen to NPR, it provides me with a sense of comfort because I know what's going on and I feel confident talking about what I heard with other people because I'm informed. I think this happens with other radio stations as well. When I listen to Christian radio stations, there are plenty of segments where there is information given, or sermons preached, that gives listeners information that act as a tool when discussing the topics with others. Just about any topic can be discussed on the radio in a respectful way that doesn't violate any regulations, and because of this, radio can be used as a valuable tool for getting information to listeners so that they may be educated enough to carry on discussions with other people.
3. If you could own and manage a commercial radio station, what format would you choose, and why?
If I had my own commercial radio station, I would try my best to blend the news/talk format with an adult contemporary format. I would try to offer a few news segments that offered a liberal view of the news (and that's simply my being very honest and blunt because I'm very liberal and I wouldn't want to portray my station as a conservative station), a morning show that was fun and upbeat and then I would also play adult contemporary music throughout the day. I would do this because it's a blend of things that I really like. I love the news and I enjoy AC music and I feel that a blend of these things would provide listeners with the opportunity to become informed by the same station that keeps them entertained. It would be nice to have a station that parents could turn to without having to worry if the next segment was appropriate for their kids to listen to, so I would make sure that any topic or song that may seem too controversial was played during school hours. Some may call that a form of censorship, but I would consider that a courtesy to listeners.
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