I wonder if there is more to the story, for a liberal public radio station, to take a black liberal virtue signaling host off the air.
Was there massive insubordination, or other brazen violation of the work rules? Was he just a bad employee?
I have heard that in the radio business, that DJ’s are not free to play whatever they want. There are playlists approved by management, and that’s what goes out over the air. So maybe he violated a cardinal rule of the radio business.
Rush talks about that often; he lost several jobs in his DJ days by playing the wrong stuff. You know it’s all gamed out by statistical MBA types looking for the biggest audience...
“The Last DJ” - Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
Well you can’t turn him into a company man
You can’t turn him into a whore
And the boys upstairs just don’t understand anymore
Well the top brass don’t like him talking so much
And he won’t play what they say to play
And he don’t want to change what don’t need to change
And there goes the last DJ
Who plays what he wants to play
And says what he wants to say
Hey, hey, hey
And there goes your freedom of choice
There goes the last human voice
There goes the last DJ
Well some folks say they’re gonna hang him so high
Because you just can’t do what he did
There’s some things you just can’t put in the minds of those kids
As we celebrate mediocrity all the boys upstairs want to see
How much you’ll pay for what you used to get for free
And there goes the last DJ
Who plays what he wants to play
And says what he wants to say
Hey, hey, hey
And there goes your freedom of choice
There goes the last human voice
And there goes the last DJ
[Instrumental break]
Well he got him a station down in Mexico
And sometimes it will kinda come in
And I’ll bust a move and remember how it was back then
There goes the last DJ
Who plays what he wants to play
And says what he wants to say
Hey, hey, hey
And there goes your freedom of choice
There goes the last human voice
And there goes the last DJ
You’re right that public radio is liberal but if listeners want classical music they should be able to get it.
There are plenty of urban rock stations he could work for.
Yes.Big radio companies mandate what gets played. Some give a bit of freedom to
DJs...smaller companies.Not much though.
I have been part of a college radio
station in MA for almost 40 years.We can
play what we want as long as it keeps to
a show’s format and no swears etc. But
we are all of 130 watts (though online
too) and don’t have to please advertisers,
being non commercial.
Public radio like Minn Public Radio is
more powerful and more strict.They must
appeal to listeners/”members” AND to the
various companies/corporations who give
them tax-writeoff donations. “Sponsor”
messages (this program paid for in part
by a donation from Land’s End) are made.
Not a commercial but still a plug
for big money donors.
And those donors may not want to
rock the boat...even if politically
correct, perhaps.
“I wonder if there is more to the story”
Not really.
Most Classical stations depend on listeners to fund over 50% of their budgets.
Start force feeding them shit they don’t want to hear, and you’re out.
Additionally, politics of all flavors are out. The limited pool of contributors is a very politically diverse crowd.
Simple.