It was only a few short years ago we began discussing ways to broaden the concept of FREE SPEECH RADIO. Some had already foreseen the uncertain conclusion of KDNA , and it was certainly a time of re-evaluation and looking ahead toward a future for continuing OPEN RADIO in St. Louis, and at the same time, inspiring folks in others areas of the country.

I think it was Jeremy Landsman who half-jokingly suggested the most dynamic uninhibited radio could come from the “centralized station” merely serving as a sort of “terminal” or “relay station”, whose purpose would be to extend lines of direct communication out into the community at large, much like a giant tree and her roots. And I thought of a CLOTHESLINE. Imagine seeing boxes on street corners, much like those red fire alarm boxes found all over most towns and cities in America, but instead of triggering an alarm, these boxes would contain live microphones that would be hooked up to the LIVE RADIO STATION via telephone line!

Thus, someone passing by could meander over to the RADIO BOX, open it, and communicate her or his thoughts to the rest of the community. Simple. The STATION of course would need to monitor calls and transfer them to the operating frequency, and when appropriate (no music broadcasting, an interview, etc) these reflections by citizens would be aired. Pretty wild!!!

Then another person, maybe Geoff or Lynn Howard, suggested the idea of DIAL-a-RADIO. Again, the telephone is basic, but this time a person participates from his or her living room or kitchen. It would work like this: a person calls a number and an “operator” would feed the call directly over the airwaves; if no one calls, no radio. The station would only broadcast whenever someone in the community wished to express some view (political, musical, read a poem, etc). There may be times when all the phone lines coming into the station are flooded with callers, and then this concept becomes clear- radio serving as a tool by citizens inside a community to communicate better, as opposed to standard mass media across the US which is merely another tool of large corporations and powerful individuals or oligarchies.

FREE ACCESS. FREE SPEECH. ONGOING FEEDBACK. NATURAL-BORN VIBRANCY! No recorded messages, no hype- none of that! Just folks getting together from their living rooms to their living rooms whenever they want.

These ideas might be pretty far out for the early-70’s; the likelihood of either of these ideas becoming reality in the near future in our city is doubtful.

Therefore, this is why the existence of this new seed of a radio station, KBDY, becomes so terribly vital. Here, we can make happen these and other endless possibilities that a large diverse community of people care about by way of audio communication: open telephone lines designed to encourage people to call in directly and be heard- no compromise!

Think of KBDY as a large piece of putty in the enormous hands of all who tune in to 89.9 and thus can be shaped into whatever directions the people wish. All we have to do, as the community, is first to realize the awesome potential, and second, to convert the potential to actual. What makes this 10 watt COMMUNITY RADIO STATION so vital to all of St. Louis is that it’s one-of-a-kind in its commitment to exist as: a multi-cultural clothesline providing all a forum for all citizens to get together and JAM!

THE POSSIBILITIES BECOME ENDLESS FROM THEN ON…

“A process cannot be understood by stopping it, understanding must move with the flow of the process, must join it and flow with it”  -Frank Herbert, Dune