HAHA


On that note I used to listen to KTXT and i enjoy watermelon and fried chicken...

This post has been edited by The Fanatic: Dec 18 2008, 09:42 AM

yeah, he has a huge e-penis

SaveKTXT, do you have any stats on the number of listeners that KTXT actually had for the past 5 years?

Well, I actually worked at the radio station, and I can confirm that even though the hipster douche bag assessment is not 100% accurate, the type of person who would work and listen to the station seemed to lean towards the "flavor of the month" type of anti-establishment anti-conformity type.
As for me, I actually didn't like a lot of the music we played, but I had always wanted to be on the radio, so thats my reason for working there, I actually didn't listen to it in my car at all except for when I was driving into Lubbock(I would use the signal strength on the radio station to mark my final approach towards Lubbock)

I would have loved nothing more than to play 2 hours of straight classic rock, but the station administration was very strict towards the volunteer DJs, so much so that even if I had brought in a 2 hour set to be approved they would have outright denied me without even listening to my ideas. I could only choose one song an hour that was "my choice" and even then it was limited to the list of songs in the system. They were extremely elitist in what could get played and I felt it alienated some of the DJs who weren't on board with the indy scene shit.

Don't fucking tell me what "art" is, thats a bullshit excuse to rationalize playing unpopular music to a non-existent audience.

How many KTXT fans and staff do you actually know? Because I know quite a few of them, and I can promise you that a diverse group of people listen to the radio station. Not all of us (I am a listener and, yes, a dj) sit in coffee shops all day long drinking over-priced drinks. And, I'm not sure who made this comment earlier, not all of us wear clothing that's too tight and black-framed glasses. (In fact, my glasses have a metal frame...) So, yes, there are some who may fit the generalizations you and others have made, but there are many others who do not. And besides, this should not be the focus of what's going on. The main topic should be the station getting shut down and the manner in which it occurred. The conversations should revolve around people's opinions concerning the station being put back on air (which I'm doing my part to help make happen), suggestions, criticism/critique of current methods, etc. Simply blasting people involved with the station and the music that is played is not constructive in either way. Suggestions for changes in music format is one thing, but negative comments with no suggestions is another.

Also... to the guy who posted and said he hasn't heard Built to Spill or E-40. I've played both. I actually made sure and got Built to Spill on air every week during my own shift, and requested it during others. (Oh yeah, it was also my first show as a college student at Jake's). Good taste.

The point is that there are good ways to run a business and there are bad ways. Obviously, we have all learned that even the running of a college radio station is a business venture. You don't have to play Britney Spears, Garth Brooks, and Jonas Brothers (don't know who the hell they are but keep hearing their name) to generate profit. You need to play stuff like Mudvayne, Tool, Pat Green, Metallica, Slipknot, etc. You could even venture off a bit and play The Black Keys, The Postal Service, Death Cab for Cutie, Modest Mouse... other music that people may not have heard before, but would enjoy. The pre-game show idea is great. Broadcasting live from the football games would be cool too, but I know you would probably not be able to do that because another radio station plays the game already. Also, put up a damn website where people can learn about the DJ's, listen to the a live stream of the station, daily poll questions, send in suggestions, view information on the top 10 requested songs. THIS IS A BUSINESS, not a club. That's what the radio station did wrong. I think to get your radio station back, you guys need to make a business plan detailing what you did wrong, how you plan to fix it, how you plan to generate profit, advertising schemes, etc. That would be really impressive to the university.

See I think Student Media has only recently decided that "it was a business" and didn't quite inform the staff about this change from club to business. To me, I don't think it is a business and shouldn't be viewed as that -- it is an educational program, but then I am not footing the bill. Sure there is business element involved with the station, but traditionally it is only in the sense of getting the students educated on that part of broadcasting (selling ads, etc...). I don't think KTXT on its inception was ever considered to be a money making prospect and only until VERY recently they decided it should be. It's a shame that there was just no dialogue about this with the staff and all of this "preparing plans to fix it/coming up with new advertising schemes" have to occur post-mortem rather than giving the staff time to brainstorm/implement them while it was still on the air. Should have some of it occured on their own, absolutely; but with this abruptness that they pulled the plug, they didn't allow staff ANY chance to make changes. I'm sure if they knew how dire the situation at any time last year they wouldn't have been so passive about raising funds/getting ads.

As for the website, they did have one to listen to the live stream/send in suggestions and were actually in the process of revamping it (Student Media, ironically, paid for a years worth of hosting in November -- kind of funny since they were also discussing pulling the plug then) to make it better.

And as for creating a new model, I know they are actively doing that. They've come up with a tiered donation system that I think is a very good idea (stemming from donating $88.10 annually) as well as proposing new measures to implement. Stuff is definitely being done, but again, it's a shame it has to happen while the station is off the air.

yeah, it is a shame, but when i read the article i wasn't surprised they pulled the plug. I remember reading articles and hearing that it was on the chopping block for awhile now. There were signs.

As far as the stereotyping of the listeners/djs goes, it doesn't really matter how diverse they are at this point, but they are VIEWED as the elitist indie sceneters etc... They've been cast as such, and that's just the way it is. Whether or not Dirk was playing indie country or indie pop, it was still Dirk, and everyone knew what to expect.

It's a shame that the students no longer have such a valuable source for learning the radio industry. What Blarqq said is nonsense though. Part of learning to run a station is learning to make a profit and entertain an audience.

From what I know there was a webstream and the "top albums" of the week. How to vote for this, I have no clue.

I will say just like Blue, I am not surprised about the station being shut down. How they shut it down was really bad. I wonder if an expensive component in the transmitter broke and they decided to call it quits then. I don't know.

What needs to change for popularity is the talk shows and the choice of music available to the DJs. I don't think of Rabble as a music elitist, and he didn't have much to choose from. I went to the volunteer meeting one year and decided not to be a DJ because I saw the elitists views from those presenting their station experiences to us.

Naomi, you may not be elistist but the common view of the student body is that all the DJs are. Problem is the most vocal of the DJs I met would call all pop trash. If I didn't know the "flavor of the month" like Rabble said, they would say that I wasn't worthy to hear it. After that crap, I didn't want to be a DJ with the station.

It always seemed that the DJs who were less vocal when I went to the KTXT parties seemed more open to non-indie music.

Even though I thought some of the DJs were tools, the station was overall good. Keep up with the good work, just be open to hearing reasons the station sucked.

Honestly, I have absolutely no idea. I'm certain the numbers are low; however, I think we should keep in mind that popularity isn't necessarily indicative of quality.



Contrary to your request, I must clue you in on one more thing about art. It doesnt need to be popular. College radio is supposed to be different. This is true of all colleges. Mainstream media even issue a completely separate top 10 list for college radio each month. Alternative media is the point. It provides a unique alternative to Clear-channel's obedience.

Different perspectives are important. This is especially true in here. I love Lubbock, but this isn't exactly a cultural utopia. That is why we should save this radio station. Because it's worth saving, and because some things should be more important than money.

We actually do play The Black Keys, The Postal Service, Death Cab for Cutie, and Modest Mouse. I will admit, however, that we don't play the other bands you listed first. But, those bands can be heard on stations such as 101.1 or 94.5, so that is already covered. The purpose of the radio station was to play music you couldn't hear anywhere else, but I admit some of the music we played wasn't my favorite (Example: I really don't like Bjork or Bongos Bass and Bob...). But, if someone requested it, I would usually play regardless of what I personally thought about the band, just because a listener requested it.

As for the website, we do have one. www.ktxt.net. Many of the specialty shows also have MySpace pages, and there were also profiles on some of the djs. And a blog. We also have/had live streaming. The only problem was that many people didn't know about it, so we were trying to get the word out. And we also had a poll question, although I'm not sure how often it was updated. I do agree with your advice on what the station should do to get back on air and I think that's what the head guys at the station are trying to do.

(I know my tenses are all mixed up in my sentences, but it's weird to talk about the station in past tense).

Yes, but it isn't your money. Please show me another venture supported by Tech that sucks up so much money without providing much money back that is there to support the institutional values and goals. In the most recent data that I read on the Save KTXT facebook group, it just cost too much money to operate for the low number of listeners that you catered to. I am willing to bet that Tech would be more keen to "meet in the middle" given commitment by the current and future KTXT staff to underwrite shows and host fundraisers.

And yes, it is an educational experience, but I don't know many other programs that cost so much money to give a select number of students real world experience. Education is subsidized throughout all the students enrolled, but I disagree that the University as a whole should be responsible for funding an elitist attitude that employees a handful of individuals who want radio experience.

Again, I do think this was handled very poorly, and it is a loss of a valuable campus experience for some. It does not sit completely well with me, but I support Tech and after seeing the numbers available, I feel that they had to make a business decision. If the choices are 1) shut down the station or 2) pass the additional cost on to the student, I'm going to choose option two. We're in a recession, and a college experience is a privilege, not a right. Having this experience was a luxury that Tech can't afford right now. The moment that KTXT accepts responsibility to take on some of the funding issues themselves in a real way will be a great sign. I know there are plans now, and I think Tech will listen to them and accept them with conditions, so best of luck to all you.

But I want to reiterate, it is always very easy to say "money isn't everything" when it isn't your cash.

There's a lot of shit flying around, I keep hearing "elitist" being tossed around, and I honestly don't think I would call any of the DJs I know and/or have met or worked with "elitist". Anyone that actually spent any time as part of the station I think would concur.

I just felt like throwing in my 2 cents, considering many people on here seem to think they speak for the entire student body and their view of KTXT as superindie/elitist.

I have to wonder exactly how much most of you actually listened to the station, seeing as a lot of you seem to know next to nothing about how they run or what they were involved in, the kind of music they played (for the record, they played pretty much everything), or anything about the website or the other things put together by KTXT (the numerous shows, parties, etc).

I listened to it off and on, but I graduated 3 years ago. I remember my thoughts on their programming, but I don't remember the DJ's names or what shows were on when or any of that crap.