Media & Society-Week 9

TOPIC 1: MUSIC'S INFLUENCE - 

1.    Describe an instance in which you or others may have tried to "protect" someone from music's "corrupting influences," or a time when something you listened to "crossed the line" or raised the eyebrows of others. 

I honestly can’t say I myself or those around me have ever tried to “protect” someone from inappropriate or “corrupting” music. My family has always had wide-ranging musical tastes and I was brought up in that environment (in fact, my parents discovered the best way to get me to sleep when I was a baby was to put me in my carseat and play the Butthole Surfers-to this day, I frequently listen to music to help me fall asleep and it’s frequently rock or techno, not what you’d think of as calming tunes). Sure, Raffi and other “kid’s music” was in rotation, but so was a lot of punk, experimental, rap and other kinds of music, including some which some people would view as “corrupting.” I’ve always held the view that people should be able to listen to whatever they want when it comes to music.

The closest time in recent memory that someone else took issue with the music I listened to was when I bought a Hozier album and my mother was disgusted by what she interpreted was his sexist worldview displayed in the music.

2.    How did you feel about the experience?

She made some very good points and I honestly haven’t really listened to his music since then (except for “In the Woods Somewhere” because it’s basically a short horror story in song form and I’m a sucker for those). After hearing her analysis and listening to the lyrics with a more critical ear I guess I’d rather listen to other artists.

3.    List your favorite music genre and your top five bands/artists. 

It’s very hard to define what my favorite genre is…I listen to a little bit of everything. I have a lot of dance, rock, and experimental music on my mp3 player. My five favorite bands/artists are: Johnny Hollow, The Knife/Fever Ray, Radiohead, Austra, and Kent.

TOPIC 2: CAMPUS RADIO – 

-A group of students is checking out the possibility of launching a radio station based at LBCC.  

1.    What do you think of this idea? Does it seem feasible to you? WHY OR WHY NOT?

I love the idea of a radio station at LBCC! I’m not generally a radio fan, but the stations I have enjoyed in the past have been college radio stations. The stations I enjoyed were in Rochester, NY which had two major universities, the University of Rochester and Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT’s channel was a little bit more ‘out there’ and was easily my favorite) and Rochester was a much bigger city than Albany, so perhaps there was more of a target audience there than here. I would definitely be interested in at least seeing how such a venture would go, though. There might be an audience just waiting for that kind of station.

Also, I’ve recently gotten it in my head that I want to be the DJ of a Gothic music program, and that would be the perfect outlet.

2.    What TWO programs/formats/services would you recommend the station adopt in order to build a loyal niche audience. Be specific, give examples. 

I think an informative program discussing local events that have relevance or might be interesting to the student body would be a good idea-especially for getting word out about the local campus groups, who sometimes have difficulty finding new members. LBCC has people from all walks of life and demographics on campus, and so programs by different DJs that might appeal to people who don’t just want to hear what’s on the local radio stations.

3.    How would you recommend the students fund this venture? Be specific, give examples.

If funding through the college is unlikely (I think the college radio stations I’m familiar with got their funding through their corresponding departments at the universities) then I suppose advertising is inevitable. The station would have to sell blocks of time to local advertisers trying to reach the student body for funding. Short-term methods of raising money, such as crowdfunding and charity events, don’t seem feasible in the long term.