Sticker-covered door at college radio station KPSU in 2018. Photo: J. Waits

College Radio Watch: Old Cart Art, Leo Blais Under Lock and Key, and More News

By Jennifer Waits on October 12, 2018 in College Radio, College Radio Survivor

I hope you had a fantastic College Radio Day last Friday. I spent the day at the Grassroots Radio Conference in Portland, Oregon. While mostly community radio stations were in attendance, I shared “Happy College Radio Day” greetings with colleagues from University of California, Santa Cruz station KZSC (see my tour) and Portland State University station KPSU (see my tour). I even snuck in an impromptu visit to KPSU in honor of College Radio Day. Although the studio was quiet, a small group of us snapped photos and shared college radio tales.

Live Podcast Recording from Grassroots Radio Conference

The Radio Survivor show/podcast this week was recorded live at the Grassroots Radio Conference. Although we discussed the future of community radio, the panelists shared a few college radio tidbits. Many in the audience were surprised to hear about National Federation of Community Broadcasters’ staffer Ernesto Aguilar’s metal music show on college radio station KTRU!

In a couple of weeks, we’re doing it again, with a live recording from the College Broadcasters Inc. (CBI) conference in Seattle on Thursday, October 25 at 2:30pm. If you plan to attend, we’d love to have you in the audience!

Aaron Dilloway Makes Radio Art from Old KXLU Carts

Oh, I love this so much! Wave Farm’s (see my tour) current artist-in-residence Aaron Dilloway is crafting some cool sound art from some old college radio station sound effects carts from KXLU (see my tour). Wave Farm reports, “‘Everyone Eats Garbage’ is a radio work informed by a large archive of obsolete sound effects tape carts that were once used by KXLU 88.9-FM in Los Angeles. Dilloway extends the life of these abandoned and outdated radio artifacts by cutting, splicing, looping, and manipulating them into a new and substantial work for broadcast.”

Although we’ve missed Dilloway’s tape loop workshop, one can still tune in to hear his live performance on Saturday, October 13 from 4pm to 6pm Eastern Time.

Leo Blais Signs Under Lock and Key

Last week I visited two radio stations that have Leo Blais signs, but I could not feast my eyes on either of them. In a weird twist, signs at KBOO (see my tour) and KPSU were sequestered in locked offices. I’d seen the KBOO sign previously, but I don’t think I was aware that KPSU had one. I’ve been to other stations that guarded their Leo signs, keeping them in GM and Advisor’s lairs; whereas others leave them out in the open. It just adds to the mystery, if I have to ask 20 questions in order to find a hidden sign.

KWCW and Prison Listeners

Recently I was talking about incarcerated college radio listeners, so it was interesting to read about the audience for Whitman College radio station KWCW. According to Whitman Wire, “As a result of the demographics of Walla Walla, a large majority of KWCW’s listening audience are prisoners from the Walla Walla State Penitentiary.” In the past, the station has aired prisoner-focused shows.