[Kzyxtalk] Non-Problems at our station

[Joel Waldman]

Thanks, Tim.

What I wanna' know is how come Johnny never calls?

Jania thinks it's because HE doesn't like ME!

Joley


On Feb 12, 2014, at 4:54 PM, Tim Bray wrote:

> While I have my share of complaints and wishes for change, I am kind  
> of hoping this discussion is about more than just "problems."  It's  
> easy to focus on problems, harder perhaps to identify and think  
> about what's going well.
>
> Non-problems:
> 1.  The financial picture looks better than it has since 2008.  The  
> massive debt and uncertain cash flows threatened the station's  
> viability for several years; I remember Rich telling me about a  
> certain critical piece of equipment that was beyond its expected  
> lifespan, but if it failed, they had no money to replace it, and no  
> ability to borrow - so KZYX could have gone silent.  That was a huge  
> strain on those who understood what it meant.  Now there is only  
> $25K owed to (I think) NPR, with a fixed monthly payment, and no  
> bank or other debt.
>
> 2.  Backup power generator at Philo.  Every year we used to go  
> silent when the power went out; now the generator comes on and  
> there's hardly a blip.  This was a big deal to me, as it always  
> seemed like the power went out most often on Sunday mornings...
>
> 3.  New digital main board in Philo studio, replacing the functional  
> but obsolete analog board.  This has a lot of technical advantages  
> and eliminates a few more pieces of equipment, lessening the failure  
> risks, as well as allowing vastly more options for programming.
>
> 4.  No more ISDN line connections to remote studios, costing  
> hundreds of dollars a month (and sometimes more, when programmers  
> forgot to hang up after going off air).   The new Bridge-It  
> connection not only makes the process of handing off to the remote  
> studios much easier and more reliable, it also makes other kinds of  
> remote live broadcasts possible - such as Town Hall or other  
> meetings - things they could never do before.
>
> 5.  Vastly improved Website, allowing direct programmer input,  
> direct entry for PSAs, and making it easier to find information.   
> John Coate did this himself; the previous Website cost $15,000 and  
> never really worked.
>
> 6.  Greatly expanded programming.  KZYX now broadcasts 24/7 (in 2004  
> when I started programming, we went off air around midnight, and one  
> of my duties was to restart the transmitter just before 7:00 AM).   
> There are many more hours of news and public-affairs programs than  
> there were just a few years ago.  There have been many changes to  
> programming, and every single one of them upset somebody, but it  
> seems to me that we now have a much better selection than we did 6  
> years ago.
>
> There is a lot of room for improvement, nobody argues otherwise,  
> least of all me!  I just think we should consider how much has been  
> accomplished under extremely difficult circumstances over the past  
> few years, even as we consider the things we still find wanting.   
> Management has an extremely difficult job to do, with zero chance of  
> pleasing everybody in this diverse and opinionated County.
>
> Sincerely,
> Tim Bray
> -- 
> Oak & Thorn
> Facebook: Oak and Thorn
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