Clear Channel clears out from KBAC.
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At first I thought I was going to be writing an obituary. Stories like ours usually don't feature happy endings.
As 2006 drew to a close, we never thought that Santa Fe Mayor David Coss would be designating March 16, 2007, as "Radio Free Santa Fe Day." This is in celebration of the fact that after 11 years of being owned by out-of-state companies, including Clear Channel for the past six, Radio Free Santa Fe is in the process of becoming locally owned by the same people who put their heart and soul into running it.
Six months ago we were notified that Educational Media Foundation, which broadcasts religious programming on its 300-plus stations nationwide, had entered into an agreement to purchase KBAC and its sister station, KSFQ, which broadcasts smooth jazz. Rumors of our demise, it turns out, were exaggerated.
Eleven years ago in Denver, I was hired to come to Santa Fe and create a radio station that would reflect the town's unique makeup. The exact instruction I was given by my new bosses was, "Ira, go do what you do." Well, that leaves a lot of room for experimentation and experiment we did, ignoring the so-called rules of commercial radio. Six-hundred song playlist? We didn't look back when we hit 3,000. Play it safe and don't discuss politics? Hah! Serving the community and giving local non-profits a media voice was foremost in our mind. Supporting the advertising efforts of the small businesses that make our city unique and creating intelligent, artistic programming that featured real music, not manufactured "product" became our concern. Nationwide, we were looked at as mavericks but here the station gained acceptance with an audience eager to escape the canned formats piped in from Albuquerque. We followed in the footsteps of the legendary progressive stations that came before us: The Coyote, KLSK, KMYR and our friends down the road at KSFR.
Over the years we were blessed with amazing talent that came to work for us and everyone contributed to our present position in their own way. I have been fortunate to work alongside some of the most talented, wackiest people I've ever met (Lucky, Diane, Jack, Tom, Stephanie, Chris, Brad, John, Terry, Colleen, Claire, Helene, Rocque and, are you reading this, Luther?) and some of the most dedicated, like Teresa Anastasian, now at Santa Fe Properties and Tasha Curtis, always a consummate radio pro. I'm proud that two of our former DJs went on to become program directors: Joann Orner at BLU 102.9 FM, and Sam Ferrara up in Colorado. I wouldn't have wanted to miss a moment of it. Well, I really could have done without those two months in 2003 when Clear Channel thought we'd attract more listeners if we played more classic rock hits.
You can imagine I didn't relish the idea of leaving town, resumé and tape in hand, searching out the next gig. As our employees departed for lucrative offers from advertising agencies and other stations, we found ourselves down to the remaining final four. Like those seven stages of grief, we experienced the full range of emotions as the end drew near, and then inexplicably farther away. But when you can hear echoes down the hallway, you turn to your closest friends and the emptiness, in the building and in our hearts, drew the remaining staffers closer together. Honey Harris, who is on her second tour of duty with us, this time to stay, greeted me with a smile every morning, and April Reese has been on the air seven days a week since last summer. Could there be a way to save this station?
In 2003, when Clear Channel meddled for the first and last time, half of our on-air staff bolted to a new station while Luther Watts and I decided to keep fighting from within. I had a saying that our employees only saw the battles I lost; when I won, nothing changed. For instance, I lose a battle and someone loses their job. I win one and they remain employed. It was my hunch that while Clear Channel needed to sell both stations in order to exit the market, EMF might only require one for their needs. Lisa Clark, sales manager and one of the smartest radio minds I've ever known, tackled the figures and we had a business plan in place by the time Clear Channel's paperwork landed on the FCC's desk. Joining our small ownership group is Dal Dearmin, general manager of KSFR and his brother, Tom. They both recognized the opportunity to help us save this beloved station from the wrecking ball. Skye Rivers, a former employee, started "Friends of KBAC" to organize protests and her constituents were invaluable in convincing EMF that this station was worth saving, especially if they had no use for it. Passionate listeners spoke up and convinced EMF that Radio Free Santa Fe should belong to local management and to the city of Santa Fe, which refuses to let it die.
On March 15, a day before we celebrated our independence from Clear Channel with our generous friends at The Santa Fe Brewery (and also April's birthday), we met with EMF and reached a tentative agreement to purchase KBAC from them after their ownership deal with Clear Channel is approved. KBAC will not be changing format after all. If you only know about the fights I lose, then all you'll see is our improvement because this time, when the community spoke up, the folks in control listened.
Our efforts together are an example to other communities who want to reclaim what is really theirs from the major media conglomerates who must eventually listen to their consumers or watch their audience erode away to stations like ours. Thank you for standing with us, Santa Fe.
Santa Fe Reporter