Radio stations shirk responsibility during storm

Last week while shivering in my darkened living room lit only by two flickering candles, I eagerly tried to find some news as to what was going on.

Armed with my little AM/FM portable radio I scanned the dial of one band from the low end through the higher portion trying to get an update of the storm. I worked the FM band, then the AM band. No news was ever presented. I did manage to get a few weather reports, but nothing of value to me.

I thought it was part of the individual station’s mandate to provide some form of service to the community to maintain their license. Would not news of the storm help to fulfill their duty?

Growing up in the Olympia area we could always depend on Dick Pust and KGY to keep us informed of current events. Not even the present KGY had any news.

In future storms I probably will go through the same routine desperately seeking news, and might find a “Dick Pust” sort that will have compassion for the community and give a little news of how things stand – even a little tidbit now and then would help.

Shame on all of you radio stations out there. Have some compassion for those of us shivering in the dark wondering when the power is coming back!

This story was originally published December 1, 2015 at 11:57 AM with the headline "Radio stations shirk responsibility during storm."