An ayoda on radio

  So what were you doing in 1980? That was when Fred Roggin debuted as the weekend sports anchor on KNBC-TV, now better known as “NBC4 LA.” He’s spent 42 years at the same station, sitting behind the sports desk, while also interviewing athletes on his show “Going Roggin,” bantering with Petros Papadakis after Sunday Night Football on “The Challenge,” and doing news-focused shows including “The Filter.” Though it’s now known Roggin will be leaving behind the nightly sportscasts on Thursday evening , he’s making it clear he’s not retiring.  Rodney Peete, Fred Roggin “I don’t want a party, I don’t want a cake – I’m still working! I’m just not going to do the nightly news,” said Roggin. He’s looking forward to doing more creative endeavors such as producing TV programs, create and complete other projects, both sports and not sports related. He also continues his weekday show with Rodney Peete on AM 570 “L.A. Sports” (KLAC). Eric Dickerson, Fred Roggin, Rodney Peete “Radio is m...

  I mentioned on Sunday (Jan 22)  my familiarity with both Monterey Park and Alhambra, where the shootings took place over the weekend. Since that writing, another victim has died, which means 11 were killed, 9 were injured. I’m hearing from friends that their parents are safe, but they knew of either victims or witnesses to the tragedy. Many of my friends were at the street faire only a few blocks away from the crime scene. I’m not ethnically Chinese, but as someone who identifies with the Asian American Pacific Islander demographic, I’ve had the privilege to know many in the community. So this story hits close to home. This blog entry is in two parts. One reviews how local radio covered the calamity. Another offers some personal thoughts. Please bear with me. In the last edition of the blog, I wrote how local radio provided quick and needed updates with a breaking story which seemingly became more heart-rendering by the minute. Over the last two days I’ve focused on thre...

  I had trouble sleeping on Saturday night, so I turned on the radio. I was surprised to hear Pete Demitriou  offering what sounded like a live report. It took me a few minutes to understand the tragedy that had happened. Having worked in nearby Alhambra for many years, I'm rather familiar with the area.  I can't really add to everything that's already been said elsewhere about the horrific news and how it's particularly painful to have this tragedy occur on Lunar / Chinese New Year, in of all places Monterey Park . It would be as if a mass shooting happened on the 4th of July, what should be a time of family and friends celebrating together. Right now I'm conflicted as I have some gatherings this week to commemorate the "Year of the Rabbit," yet the thought of 10 people killed, 10 people wounded (at this writing) makes me pause.  Mike Simpson, Steve Gregory, Chris Sedens I want to offer my props to what radio did with this story. I think KNX was the only...

  His Highness, The Real Don Steele Salute!:  On this National Disc Jockey Day, we start off this edition of short takes with a salute to all of you who sat behind a microphone ad, back-cueing records, loading cart machines or CD players, and doing the point-and-click on a computer monitor to provide us listeners. Each of you personified “multi-tasking” before that term ever existed. Thank you for keeping me company while I labored finishing (overdue) homework assignments, driving up-and-down and around California, or making my workday go by a bit more quickly. I wish I could tune in to more of you right now, but am grateful for you being our entertainers. Who’s paying attention? : That was the title of one of the shows, hosted by comedian Alonzo Boden , on progressive talker KBLA. Boden has left the station to pursue his standup career, but the talent lineup has relatively been stable – Dominique Diprima , Tavis Smiley , Don Amiche , among others since 2020.  What’s no...