Making it all work
March 2, 2010 - 15:12
Well, this has been fun, hasn't it?
No, it hasn't.
Let me carve out the exception to any negativity that follows: we have the best. listenership. in the world. Period. I'm celebrating (hmmm, wrong word?) a quarter-century in this business, and I've seen a lot. In no other circumstance has this level of loyalty and encouragement washed over me or a team I've worked with from an audience. In Hawaii, I had too small a profile. In reporting traffic, I was one of so many voices, with circumscribed role. At KQED, the disconnect between the station's public profile and the behind-the-scenes dysfunctional horrors made audience feedback tough to credit.
LIVE FROM THE LEFT COAST and its predecessor on Green960, The Angie Coiro Show, are unique amongst all those gigs. You folks tuned in, united, and became part of the team. Look at our liveblogs from these last troubled weeks. When someone tunes in for a promised interview and finds it difficult or impossible to hear, understandably they'll go somewhere else. You haven't done that. You've switched hats from consumer to audio tech consultant, assistant producer, whatever we've needed on the fly. And together via email and phone, we've struggled through the necessary tweaks and stopgaps.
You are wonderful. One after another you've assured our team that it's because you believe in what we're doing and that we do it very well (when you can hear us). Thank you. That reassurance helps carry us into this next phase.
Gordon's post (just below this) goes into some detail on the technical side of where we are and what we need. From the programming side, let me add this: I have found the tech issues have bled over to compromise the content quality. It's hard to keep your mind on the interview - do that intensive listening, the lifeblood of good radio - when you're distracted by whether audience, guests, and host can all hear and understand.
Unacceptable. UNACCEPTABLE. None of us came onboard here with the goal of doing bad radio.
What's next?
Long view first: we will come back to you via email and this blog to let you know when we
a.) have fresh product online for you to listen to; and/or
b.) set time and date to resume regular live shows.
Between now and then, here's the help we need from you:
a.) Please keep up your monthly membership if at all possible. Every dime counts. If you're not in a place to comfortably commit to a small monthly amount, consider a one-time donation.
b.) Scour your brain for potential investors and sponsors. Email us the name, contact info, and if appropriate an introduction. We'll take it from there.
c.) Follow us on Twitter: @Angie_Coiro
d.) If you're in the broadcast biz and know a source for used or free equipment (phone hybrids especially), let us know that, too.
I am not discouraged. Painful though it is, I'd rather be sitting out the game while we develop our strengths, than hitting the mic and bollocksing up effort after effort. Along with Gordon, Ellen, Patrick, Susan, our devoted core listenership and our most welcome new interns, I'm using the time to make things work in the long term.
Hang in there. We'll stay in touch.
March 8, 2010 - 10:46
#2
Good news!!!
Melody, good to hear you got a job.
That is just nice to see in this sea of crud. I shocked myself yesterday when I realized NONE, not one of my close friends have a job. I and they are all unemployed. This is absolutely crazy!!!!
Your news though puts some light on the horizon.
March 8, 2010 - 19:32
#3
happy first day on job
hey, thanks pythos !! yeah, it is good news. i feel like i can finally get things moving forward. constant, constant checking that job ads on craigslist got me this job and my gardening experience, .......and charm, of course !!!! the people at this job are so nice. i feel at home already. it will be great to not have to squeeeeeze every penny out of every dollar, but i still will be a frugal gal. next on my list, finding a new HOME. ok. thanks, as always, for this venue. i hope soon we will be BLOGGING !!!!!!!! : ) mel
March 25, 2010 - 14:00
#4
i know it's SLOOOOOW, but wow......
hey !! anyone out there?? now i sound like pythos!!!! : ) anyway, i'm flying into the bay area tonight to dog-watch and do some gardening (for $ !!) and thought............would anyone want to meet for a beer, now that i can actually pay for one???? : ) if not, me and the doggie Bodhi will have a margarita and watch cable t.v. sounds fun, yes??????????? ok. mel
April 6, 2010 - 05:59
#5
I'm a little slow....
Hi Melody. I don't know if you are still in the Bay Area, but if you are, on Sunday evenings, I get off work in Brisbane (just south of San Francisco) around 7 pm, and then I drive 50 miles south to San Jose. If you are anywhere on the peninsula, I might detour a bit and join you for coffee, since I take medications that do not mix well with alcohol, but coffee or tea is fine.
And Angie, I'm glad to know you are OK. You would be most welcome to join us (that is, if we can all agree on a place and time...)
April 6, 2010 - 18:59
#6
hey LinearBob!!!
no problem..........but i am back in seattle. was staying in oakland for 6 days. it was a good time by me and the doggie, as well as financially profitable, working 4 days during gardening for clients/pals. yeah!! perhaps we could meet next time?? coffee/tea would be totally fine. i am "pencilling-in" a time in august; that's when clients will want to have me work again. i love this inter-state work set-up... : ). and one of my pal's birthday is in august, so....... i'll let ya'll know. how are you handling life without angie on the radio, and being able to do some blogging????? bummer, yes??? thanks for responding. it was kind of a "chance" that someone would take me up on my offer. hee hee... p.s. you do a bit of driving to get home, huh???
April 6, 2010 - 20:53
#7
Thanks! Glad to know you're OK
Melody,
Sorry I missed you when you were here. That's what I meant when I said I am a little slow. I haven't been checking the blogs (like this one) where my friends are nearly as often as I should.
About the long haul driving -- Yes, it is quite a drive. At least the road to the KTSF-TV transmitter is paved all the way to the door, and the building itself is quite sound, so when the weather is ugly outside, it's still relatively pleasant inside. Usually it is a little chilly inside since the building runs around 60 degrees in the winter, but I don't mind wearing a jacket or a coat. An extra layer does not significantly hamper me in what I have to do. Most of the time, I am just looking at how well things are working, and possibly making some slight adjustment or two. Probably the worst part of my job is that getting to the top of the mountain is not trivial if my car is out of commission. But TV and FM transmitters tend to be located where the view is spectacular at night, because the FM and TV signals are "line of sight" and the more your can see from the antenna location, the more people can receive the signal. AM and Shortwave behave much differently, and travel long distances most of the time.
AM transmitters tend to be located in marshy areas because at their frequencies, the electrical conductivity of the ground around the antenna determines the coverage area of the station. Salt marshes are about the best possible location for them, which is why there are AM towers alongside the Bay Bridge, the Dumbarton Bridge, and out in the Bay marshes near Redwood City. But as far as that goes, radio and TV transmitters tend to be near, but not in, populated areas. So public transit is generally not available to any where near most radio or TV transmitters. A few cities like Chicago have their FM and TV transmitters on the tops of their tallest buildings, but those cities are the exception.
Actually, I spend most of my time as part of a start-up company, where I am the keeper of the network. I am also a Linux evangelist, making CD and DVD copies of the various versions of Ubuntu Linux for anyone who wants one. As a company, we are about 80% Linux and 20% Windows.
I have a big hole in my listening world. I was fairly active with Angie's chat group, and as often as not, I would type something and a few minutes later, Angie would use my comment on the air. I guess that is because she and I probably are somewhat in agreement on many subjects. But even if that is not quite the case, I still found Angie's show to be a wonderful change from the many other shows that are distributed across the country. Angie tried to "bring it all home" to the Bay Area, and she tried to have guests on who were not necessarily the same people we would hear on the other shows.
I wound up buying an MP3 player (not an iPod) so I can listen to downloaded audio files when I am not in front of my Linux box. I need to become more physically active, and walking an hour a day appeals to me, so my MP3 player will become a regular companion.
Time to wrap this up and get to work, with Mike Malloy streaming through the DSL line we have here.
Bob
April 15, 2010 - 18:32
#8
LBob !!!!
hey, so i didn't know you, what, checked out transmitters??? those big ones that hang out in the middle of fields, and lonely deserts, and with the ducks in the marshes?? it sounds kind of fun. the variety and the travel. what do you do??? do the people you work for (if you do, or are you self-employed/contracter?) pay for your expenses, and car repair/gas, the occasional ice cream cone??? : ) it would be fun to actually "see" each other. oh yeah, it looks like there is a possibility for me to purchase a computer inexpensively through a business that takes people's old computers in , wipes them clean, refurbishes them, and sells or gives them away to unemployed or low income folks. it's at www.interconnection.com check it out and see if i would be getting a good deal. : ) of course, getting a working computer with the works for about $135 is a good deal, yes?? i know, it was very fun to blog on our site and then have angie read it on the air. felt me feel just a tad "special". i wonder if the birds like having transmitters in their marshes?? perhaps they have favorite types of transmitter shapes, like maybe one type gives them a better perspective. another one, their claws can grasp easier.... i know, silly. later, mr L. melody : )
ummmm....hey !!! long time, i know. VERY sorry to hear about tech problems. but as i blogged to gordon's explanations, i was "glad" to hear that it wasn't just my inability to figure out this livestream thing. i was frustrated but i wanted to support and listen. anyway, there's gotta be a way cuz you gotta be on the air!!!!!!!!!!!!! : ) i do miss listening and blogging. i do have some good news that i hope will spread to your need for some: I GOTTA JOB !!!! finally............ i will be working at a nursery in a seasonal fashion, meaning, job may end at end of summer. but, hell, i need money NOW !!! so, now that i can concentrate on other things, i will try to think of something creative to get you back on the listening waves. take care. love, mel