PERSPECTIVE-Everyone knows I like to write.
But only those who are personally acquainted with me know I like to talk.
And I can talk with the best of them, which is why I have always desired to have a radio show of my own.
So when I read that KABC’s Larry Elder was leaving, my spirits picked up.
KABC is one of the few stations that focuses on local issues as much as it does on national events.
For the record, I haven’t listened to Mr. Elder in a very long time, and tended to disagree with him more than not when I did.
My broadcast media experience is thin, but I handled myself well when appearing on NPR, KABC and Fox. Of the three, NPR offers the best format to make a point. Unfortunately, it doesn’t fit the model of commercial media very well. That’s not to say a hybrid approach can’t be developed that minimizes talkover by the host and discourages guests from going off on tangents.
I could also serve as a voice of moderation for the station. I am A Blue Dog Democrat and proud of it. My philosophy is simple: we can have anything we want as long as we are willing and able to pay for it. If there is a consensus to increase social spending at the expense of funding defense, so be it. But we have to pay for it, especially when our national debt is nearly equal to 100% of GDP.
Outside of fiscal issues, I support gun control, gay rights, separation of church and state, and believe that applying the brakes to population growth will be the only way to arrest climate change.
Partisan politics is the worst enemy of democracy. I refuse to watch MSNBC and Fox and annoyed when people post mindless memes on Facebook that are nothing but partisan talking points or slogans.
My favorite broadcast news source is Aljazeera America and newspapers are still my primary source for information.
As a talk show host, I would invite more Neighborhood Council activists on the show, along with other local leaders from the general public.
I have been deeply interested in international relations since fourth grade when the good Irish Christian Brothers made Time Magazine’s world section required reading. Looking back, it must have been startling for adults to listen to a bunch of nine-year-olds discuss NATO, the Soviet Union, Cuba, DeGaulle and Nasser. We probably made more sense than some of the talking heads you hear today.
If anyone from KABC is listening, please consider me. If not Elder’s time slot, another could do.
Just to be safe, I am not quitting my day job.
(Paul Hatfield is a CPA and former NC Valley Village board member and treasurer. He blogs at Village to Village and contributes to CityWatch. He can be reached at: [email protected])
–cw
CityWatch
Vol 12 Issue 99
Pub: Dec 9, 2014