The Night Feed

 

TO PRAISE WBCN

Posted in Radio with tags WBCN, radio, My Damn Channel, Boston on 7/18/2009 5:34:21 AM by Rob Barnett



Famous deaths surround us these past few weeks. The nature of heat and fame create imagined personal connections to a legendary news oracle, to a Pop King, or a Pin-up angel. But this time, it's personal.

The death of WBCN is a painful loss felt deeply by everyone of us directly influenced by its greatness. 

Every music fan whose ears and taste were shaped by the artists, songs and albums heard on 104.1 lost a friend.

Don't believe everything you hear from Spinal Tap. Boston IS a college town. If you've ever called this city "home," you owe respect and appreciation for the fun, the spirit and the sounds that BCN put into Boston.

My first college internship was at BCN. I remember the intense electric feeling as my heart beat way too fast on the first night inside that studio. That internship was the first step onto a path chasing dreams. I'll always be grateful.

If you're a fellow mourner, do you accept all the nice nice talk about change being inevitable, or can you imagine a new kind of radio powerful enough to make hearts beat way too fast?

Seth Godin once said that one of the problems with radio in the modern age is that it should no longer be called "radio."

What would we call it?

How could we forge a new model for "radio" with the honesty, passion, brains and balls to a co-create a business too powerfully protected by its fans and artists to be stopped?

Where would you launch such a thing?

Just asking. 


  • user thumbnail

    By FunkingDave on August 31, 2009, at 9:07AM PST Hey, this was a great post. I'm from Southern Boston area (Norfolk County) but living in damn Near-Braska now. I prefer to call it Eastern Colorado or Southern South Dakota because I'm half ashamed to be associated with these K-Mart Kowboys.

    Anyway I was back out East again for my daughters wedding a few weeks ago and I heard about the WBCN break up. I have so many memories from them it's hard to believe they are not going to be here anymore. LOL I still remember my spiffy new 10 transistor am/fm, one speaker radio clad in it's leather case thinkin I was the coolest 10 year old on the face of this earth. Listening to All the young Dudes and Freddy's dead and laughing with the jocks.

    Anyway I re-posted your post because I liked it. If you want I can remove it but if it's ok with you I prefer it stays. Here is a link to the post http://funkingdavesrealm.blogspot.com/2009/08/wbcn-bostons-greatest-radio-station-is.html. Feel free to look around my blog. It's mostly music, complaining, news and art, but you might like it.

    TY for the good post  "Funk"

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My Damn Channel is the brainchild of Founder and CEO, Rob Barnett. He was a production and a programming exec at MTV and VH1 for more than 11 years. Barnett served tours of duty in Rock Radio in Boston, Dallas, and Los Angeles and was President of Programming for CBS Radio. Barnett has produced radio, television, film, and new media with hundreds of diverse communicators including President Bill Clinton, Mick Jagger, Oprah Winfrey, Martin Scorsese, Jimmy Kimmel, Adam Carolla and Johnny Rotten. Rob Barnett is at: Rob@MyDamnChannel.com.

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