On This Week’s Show: Clear Channel and the Decline of Commercial Radio

I’m excited to have as this week’s guest Alec Foege author of the book Right of the Dial: The Rise of Clear Channel and the Decline of Commercial Radio, now out in paperback. We’ll talk about how a little regional Texas broadcast company grew into the nation’s biggest radio owner, changing the fundamentals of the radio business in the process.

Tune in live this Thursday, June 4, at 9 PM Central to WNUR 89.3 FM in Chicago, or online live at WNUR.org. If you miss the live broadcast catch mediageek on one of the affiliate stations listed on the right sidebar, or download the podcast, posted by midnight Sunday, June 7.

On This Week’s Show: Clear Channel and the Decline of Commercial Radio

I’m excited to have as this week’s guest Alec Foege author of the book Right of the Dial: The Rise of Clear Channel and the Decline of Commercial Radio, now out in paperback. We’ll talk about how a little regional Texas broadcast company grew into the nation’s biggest radio owner, changing the fundamentals of the radio business in the process.

Tune in live this Thursday, June 4, at 9 PM Central to WNUR 89.3 FM in Chicago, or online live at WNUR.org. If you miss the live broadcast catch mediageek on one of the affiliate stations listed on the right sidebar, or download the podcast, posted by midnight Sunday, June 7.

mediageek 22 January 2009: Retro Technology in a Down Economy

RetroThing.com is a website and blog dedicated to interesting and fun retro and vintage gadgets, electronics, toys and technology that might have been forgotten, but still have their uses. Co-editor of the site, Bohus Blahut, joins us to talk about the appeal of vintage tech, and how useful and fun stuff may be waiting for you in the back of your closet.

Podcast/Download:

mediageek 22 January 2009 broadcast quality mp3

Listen Now:
[mp3]http://www.mediageek.net/sound/2009/mg20090122.mp3[/mp3]

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mediageek 16 October 2008: Chicago Media Action

This week Mitchell Szczepanczyk from Chicago Media Action joins us to talk about some of their top media reform issues right now. In particular, we get into the digital TV transition, and the folks who will be left behind, along with CMA’s challenges to Chicago TV broadcasters’ FCC licenses over the poor quality of their local election coverage.

Podcast/Download:

mediageek 16 October 2008 broadcast quality mp3

Listen Now:

[mp3]http://www.mediageek.net/sound/2008/mg20081016.mp3[/mp3]

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mediageek 9 Oct. 2008 part 2 – more with Shawn Campbell of Chicago Independent Radio Project

My new timeslot on WNUR is an hour long, giving me twice the airtime of the original mediageek radioshow. What I’ve decided to do is treat the first half-hour as a self-contained program matching the format that the program has had up to now, distributing this to the show’s affiliate stations around the continent.

With the second half-hour I’m taking a looser approach, often focusing on issues that are more local in nature for the Evanston-Chicago area. If the week’s guest is able to stick around we’ll try to take calls.

This week guest Shawn Campbell of the Chicago Independent Radio Project was live in the studio, so we talked a little bit more of the project’s history with regard to the former community-radio format of Loyola University’s WLUW, and took one phone call.

Podcast/Download:

mediageek 9 October 2008 part 2 broadcast quality mp3

Listen Now:

[mp3]http://www.mediageek.net/sound/2008/mg20081009-pt2.mp3[/mp3]

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mediageek 9 October 2008: Chicago Independent Radio Project

There is a group of motivated radio lovers in Chicago who think that the city needs a real community radio station, independent of a college, university or other organization that might change its mind about who can be on the radio. Shawn Campbell is the president of the Chicago Independent Radio Project, and she joins me this week to talk about why Chicago needs community radio, and how they hope to squeeze a new noncommercial station onto the dial.

Podcast/Download:

mediageek 9 October 2008 broadcast quality mp3

Listen Now:

[mp3]http://www.mediageek.net/sound/2008/mg20081009.mp3[/mp3]

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mediageek 25 September 2008: A New Beginning

This show marks the debut of mediageek on its new home station, WNUR 89.3 FM in Evanston, IL, broadcasting to the north side of Chicago and the North Shore suburbs. My pal John Anderson guests to help re-inaugurate the program as we review the raison d’ete of mediageek, and new producer Andrew Gothelf shares his own brief experience interning in a commercial radio newsroom that quickly disappeared.

Podcast/Download:

mediageek 25 September 2008 broadcast quality mp3

Listen Now:

[mp3]http://www.mediageek.net/sound/2008/mg20080925.mp3[/mp3]

Podcast: Play in new window | Download