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t FAVORITE RADIO STATION Melissa Hanna's resignation as Executive Editor of the Athens Banner-Herald causes another shakeup in our "Athens News Matters" show on WUGA FM 91.7. We lost her predeces sor, Jason Winders, to the same Banner-Herald problems. Maybe we should just invite the publisher to join us, since he seems to have the only bullet-proof job over there. But the radio station is the topic here. If you're one of the many thousands who eagerly await "Athens News Matters" every week, you have noticed that we've been pushed back on Thursdays from our usual 4:30 p.m. spot to 3:30 p.m. Most of the other local programming has suffered a similar shift backwards from drive time to dead time. These changes have occurred because the station is under new management. The station is under new management because it has been taken over by Georgia Public Broadcasting, the state radio and television network in Atlanta. GPB had long coveted WUGA and finally got control of our radio station as a result of the television station snafu. The University of Georgia bought the Toccoa, GA commercial TV station, WNEG-TV, planning to run it as a commercial station at the university, but it turned out to be a devastating financial failure. To save face, the university asked GPB to take the Now, the question is whether even these local elements will survive in the long run. station off its hands. Control of the radio sta tion was the price UGA had to pay GPB. GPB had for a long time owned the license to WUGA radio, but the university had enough clout to continue control of the sta tion's management. Now that control has shifted to Atlanta, the fear over here is that we will lose our local programs such as "Athens News Matters," "It's Friday," "Just Off the Radar," etc. and become just a "repeater" station for the GPB network, running the same programming as their other stations around the state. The schedule change at the first of the month is seen as the first shift that will eventuate in the loss of local program ming. In that shift, local programming was moved back so that GPB can air "All Things Considered," the afternoon NPR news/ features show at the same time it's broadcast on the rest of the network. GPB says listeners need this regularity, so that when they're driving from one coverage area to another they don't lose their program. It is also true that the schedule adjustment gives GPB a larger sponsorship package to sell. WUGA is already but a shell of its former self. Budget cuts ovc* the years have reduced the station to a news director without a staff and a program director without programs except for recorded music and shows cobbled together with unpaid volunteers. Now, the question is whether even these local ele ments will survive in the long run. Programming on WUGA is now determined "co-operatively" between GPB and the university, and administrators in both places are quick to point out that they intend more, rather than less, local programming. What is meant by "local" has yet to be determined. University and GPB administrators talk about developing local programming good enough to be put on the statewide network and perhaps even the national NPR network. They mention concerts originating in the UGA music department, for instance, using the considerable resources of the university to generate programming. They also profess a commitment to continuing and increasing programs aimed at the Athens com munity. That's an important programming distinction. As one person close to the station puts it, local programming about Athens holds up a mirror to the community; beaming out pro grams developed here is like sending postcards from our com munity to the world. Time will tell whether we lose the programming that has made WUGA the perennial favorite local radio station among Athens listeners or gain more of it. WUGA's broadcast license comes up for renewal at the end of next year, so we may have at least that long before any more drastic changes are made. The real test of GPB's commitment to local programming will be whether they're willing and able to invest in the staff it will take to hold up that mirror and mail out those postcards, and which they value more. Stay tuned. • Pete McCommons editor@flagpole.com THIS WEEK’S ISSUE City Dope 4 Athens News and Views What's going in the retail spaces of the ACC/ Batson-Cook parking deck downtown? Kiddie Dope 8 News from the Juice Box Set Introducing our new column, which helps clue parents in on fun activity opportunities for the young ‘uns. art The Reader Heck in the Pacific Buz Sawyer The War in the Pacific is a collection of one of the greatest adventure strips ever. Film Notebook News of Athens’ Cinema Scene Get ready for a very bad—and very bad-assed—movie night at Cine. MUSIC Upstart Roundup Introducing Athens’ Newest Talent This week: The Sunlight Alchemists, Vespolina, Chromazone and pretty bird 14 AgesandAges Folk-Rock Commune Portland folk-rockers take their anti-apathy fight to the road. COVER DESIGN by Kelly Ruberto featuring sculpted garden gates by Andrew T Crawford on display at the State Botanical Garden of Georgia CITY DOPE 4 CITY PAGES 5 CAPITOL IMPACT 6 ATHENS RISING 7 KIDDIE DOPE 8 THE READER 9 GRUB NOTES 10 FLUKE 11 MOVIE DOPE 12 MOVIE PICK 13 FILM NOTEBOOK 14 THREATS & PROMISES 15 UPSTART ROUNDUP 16 MIXTAPEWARS 17 RECORD REVIEWS 18 AGESANDAGES 19 THE CALENDAR! 20 BULLETIN BOARD 28 ART AROUND TOWN 29 COMICS 30 REALITY CHECK 31 CLASSIFIEDS 32 BIKES ON CAMPUS... 35 ►► Ort rambles through some vinyl in preparation for Kurt Wood’s front porch sale this weekend ►► Get the scoop on the Boys Who Rock for Girls benefit for Girls’ Rock Camp-Athens ►► Let us know about your next event: email calendar® flagpole.com ►► Is your partner incapable of commitment? Get a Reality Check from Jyl Inov ►► Contact Us! Submit your original, non-published writing or story ideas to editor@fiagpole.com EDITOR l PUBLISHER Pete McCommons ADVERTISING DIRECTOR l PUBUSHER Alicia Nickies PRODUCTION DIRECTOR Larry Tenner MANAGING EDITOR Christina Cotter * ADVERTISING SALES Anita Aubrey. Melinda Edwards. Jessica Pritchard MUSIC EDITOR Michelle Gilzenrat CITY EDITOR DaveMarr CLASSIFIEDS. DISTRIBUTION l OFFICE MANAGER Nico Cashin AD DESIGNERS Kelly Ruberto. Cindy Jerrell CARTOONISTS James Allen. Cameron Bogue, Jacob Hunt. Missy Kulik, Jeremy Long. David Mack. Clint McElroy. Matthew Ziemer ADOPT ME Special Agent Cindy Jerrell CONTRIBUTORS Bryan Barks. Christopher Joshua Benton. Hillary Brown. Tom Crawford, David Fitzgerald, Jennifer Gibson. Kate Guilford. John Huie, Gordon Lamb. Knsten Morales. Carlo Nasisse, John G. Nettles. Mark Sanders. John Seay. Jessica Smith. Jeff Tobias. Gabe Vodicka, Drew Wheeler, Kevan Williams. Alec Wooden CIRCULATION Charles Greenleaf. Nash Hogan. Jesse Mangum. Matt Shirley WEB DESIGNER Kelly Ruberto ADVERTISING 1 EDITORIAL ASSISTANT Jessica Smith ADVERTISING INTERNS Caroline Hams. Sarah Zagorsk) MUSIC INTERNS Sydney Slotkm CONTACT US STREET ADDRESS: 112 Foundry St., Athens, GA 30601 MAILING ADDRESS: P.0. Box 1027, Athens, GA 30603 EDITORIAL (7061.549-9523 ADVERTISING: (706) 549-0301 FAX: (706) 548-8981 ADVERTISING: ads@flagpole.com CALENDAR: calendar@flagpole.com COMICS: comics@flagpole.com EDITORIAL editor@flagpole.com LETTERS: letters@flagpole.com MUSIC: music@flagpole.com NEWS: news@flagpole.com WEB SITE: web@fiagpole.com VOLUME 25 ISSUE NUMBER 15 Flagpole. Inc. publishes Flagpole Magazine weekly and distributes 17,000 copies free at over 275 locations around Athens. Georgia. Subscriptions cost $55 a year. $35 for six months © 2011 Flagpole, Inc. All rights reserved t IK< i l At ION I VERIFICATION I iNHUMr—i 0 0 Anctiioefl d APRIL 20,2011 FLAGPOLE.COM 3
