The End Of An Era…
On December 25th of 2005 the first broadcast of the American Heathen® show aired LIVE on ShockNetRadio.com. The station was specifically created as the delivery truck for the show. Since then, the show and the station have become separate entities. The station now provides other entertaining and informative shows other than AH, and is part of the lineup of iTunes radio stations. The AH Show was trademarked in 2006 and has taken to the net in various other forms to compliment its radio parent. This blog is one of those. At the beginning of 2012 the show page AmericanHeathen.net and the addition of a YouTube channel became a part of the AH media madness. Of course, to keep up with the times, AH has gone through many incarnations over the past 7 years of its life. But, this past year has been the best, most informative and entertaining incarnation yet. Top quality personalities and contributors have given their all to produce a LIVE radio program that would easily have given mainstream talk radio a run for its money. But alas, times have changed and AH has had to face the cold, hard reality of mass media. LIVE is a dying medium. The prerecorded podcast has become the preferred method of delivery. Unfortunately, the life blood of AH is the LIVE interaction with its listeners through the on-line chat room and the phone call-ins. With the advent and success of the prerecorded podcast, most folks aren’t interested in, or don’t have the time to tune into a LIVE broadcast these days. That’s pretty bad news for a LIVE show. Any LIVE show. This has forced me to face a tough reality. It’s time to hang up the microphone on AH.
The decision to cancel the show was not one that I took lightly. And it didn’t come without a fairly emotional toll. I have dedicated almost every waking moment to the show and the message of “Freedom and Liberty For ALL” that is the mantra behind it. In fact, most of the folks associated with the show, from the personalities and contributors, to our friends and spouses, have all given so much to producing the show each and every week. But, this has been my baby. It was born out of a new-found clarity and must now die in the reality of progress.
I’ve been asked why I won’t continue the show as a prerecorded podcast. The answer is simple. ShockNet Radio and the entire production of AH was built with LIVE broadcasting in mind. The station is designed to broadcast LIVE 24/7. Podcasts that DO air on the station are produced by individuals who work solo, and are focused on their personal commentary as opposed to LIVE give and take interaction with listeners. They are also produced off site in studios that are specifically tailored to produce prerecorded material as opposed to LIVE broadcast. AH introduced a podcast version of the show this year. LIVE shows are recorded and then edited and released for download one week after the LIVE broadcast. But, this has proven to be detrimental to the show. Some folks who would have normally tuned into the LIVE broadcast are opting for the podcast. And still others, who are just discovering the show in podcast, aren’t tuning in for the LIVE show. Either way, the numbers are the tale of the tape and are not easy to ignore.
Things inevitably change. And, so it goes for the AH Radio Show. It’s time to say goodbye. However, this blog and its contributors will remain, as will the YouTube channel. The importance of our message is far greater than the bits and bytes of an internet radio broadcast. It is about “Freedom and Liberty For All”. That’s a message that will not cease. Rest assured that if there’s something to be said, it will be said, and we will not waver in exposing and condemning anyone who threatens it. Hypocrisy will always reveal the lies.
The last AH Show will air Saturday, November 3rd. 8E, 7C, 5P LIVE. As it always has been. LIVE. On behalf of the entire AH crew, past and present, I hope you’ll make time to tune in. It’s the end of an era.
October 22, 2012 at 7:08 am
I’m really sorry to hear this RJ. Cheri and I will truly miss you guys. AH has been something both of us have looked forward to every week for a long time. Thanks and appreciation to all of the AH crew.
October 23, 2012 at 7:24 pm
An encomium from John Mill (IRL: Ronald Bruce Meyer):
I started adding my “Reflections” to American Heathen with the July 9, 2010, broadcast, which will number 50 with the October 27, 2012, broadcast. I started adding my “Week in Freethought History” beginning with the January 14, 2011, broadcast. And my “Quick Comments” have numbered six since the first one aired on July 28, 2012. All told, I have voiced my opinion 234 times over 21 hours on American Heathen.
It has not been without difficulty – in my personal life and with the time it borrowed from making a living. I am, after all, with my wife, running a business full time. So American Heathen has always been a labor of love and a stolen season. I do it because I must, inspired by my respect for and admiration of RJ Evans, who is, like me, a broadcaster to the core.
I cannot quite believe the show will be over. But to all of you who have enjoyed my commentaries (if there is anyone), please know that I will still be writing on my blog and (RJ willing) cross-posting here. But I will miss the discipline of the clock and the thrill and immediacy of the live broadcast. American Heathen has been my most exciting endeavor of the last three years!
I am an atheist and a materialist, but you do not need to be a believer to have hope that American Heathen will be a phoenix. And I have that!
October 27, 2012 at 3:29 pm
I’ll have more to say later, but I want to give mine and Colin’s thanks to EVERYONE associated with the show for their friendship, their love and support to the both of us. Saturdays just won’t be the same!