I’m a huge college radio geek, having been on the air at a number of stations over the years, including WBGU. When I arrived in Bowling Green in 1995 I immediately sought out the college radio station because I wanted to stay connected with new music. I moved to Ohio from San Francisco for grad school and was incredibly worried that I’d completely lose touch with the music scene. I couldn’t have been more wrong.

After getting involved with WBGU I actually became much more in touch with music than I had been in San Francisco. For me, WBGU was vital to my cultural survival in Bowling Green. I met interesting music fanatics, band members, and some of the most creative people on campus. It really was a tight-knit community of folks who had radio shows, played in bands, and hit shows at Howard’s to support local music and touring indie bands.

I thought about my time at WBGU when I read some of the comments on an article today about the shut-down of college radio station KTXT in Lubbock, Texas. A commenter made the point that alternative music really didn’t have an audience in small town Texas. I couldn’t disagree more. Small towns need indie media even more than major cities do. So, keep up the great work at WBGU. My stint there from 1995 to 1997 was a fantastic experience and it got me back involved with college radio. I’ve been Djing at other college stations ever since.