With more getting wired each month, don't overlook your favorite radio stations on the Internet.
Currently, 14 of the 28 Wasatch Front AM radio stations and 23 of the 34 FM stations have their own Web sites. A few others can be indirectly accessed through company sites. Some have audio capability to be heard on the Internet.The Radio Disney (KBEE-AM) Web site will keep children under 12 entertained for a long time; adults will find the KALL and KSL sites informative; KZHT still has the unique "toilet" photos of the "Z-Morning Zoo" up; and KQMB ("Star 102") has a biography on new morning co-host Marcus available but no photos yet.
All you have to do is go to one local radio site and you can access all of the available stations: www.saltlakeradio.com.
Click on "Stations" on the left side of the menu.
OUTSIDER RADIO PERSPECTIVE: Having been a lifetime Wasatch Front resident, I admit to taking the radio world here for granted and only have a one-side perspective. But Jeff Haber, 47, of Sandy, who moved from Southern California to Utah about two years ago, can contrast Salt Lake radio with his former home radio market in Los Angeles.
Haber, who did some radio work in Denver during his college days, said he was initially very surprised to find so many stations here and almost every format available. "We have basically everything," he said, explaining that that's unusual for a medium-size market.
Haber was especially surprised to find KLLB, a black gospel station, here as well as a rhythm-and-blues station (KUUU) and a smooth-jazz station (KBZN). He believes the classical music format of KBYU is phenomenally good, but Tom Barberi has become his favorite radio host.
"I think Barberi is more topical than other hosts," Haber said. "I enjoy his kind of sarcasm."
Other than Barberi, he feels there's a void of good talk show hosts here. He also believes all-sports programming isn't very good here. That's partially because there's only one major pro sports franchise here -- the Utah Jazz -- and other local radio sports-talk hosts discuss too many irrelevant things. "I get bored," he said.
Haber said there seems to be a high number of simulcasted stations here, and he longs for a 24-hour all-news station (though KSL comes close), and he'd also like to see an FM talk station in Salt Lake City.
A big difference, he believes, is that formats are a lot tighter elsewhere.
KCPX 24 YEARS AGO: Lynn Lehmann sent me a KCPX "Hit List" from April 26, 1976, and the DJs listed bring back lots of nostalgic memories.
In those days on AM-1320, besides Lehmann doing mornings, the other DJs included Chad O. Stevens, "Wooly" Waldron, "Skinny" Johnny Mitchell, Doug Wright (yes, the current KSL talk-show host), Jordan Mitchell and Terry Pepper.
The top-rated local song for the date was "Welcome Back Kotter" by John Sebastian.
KCPW (FM-88.3 and FM-105.1) will air "Transit: Vision for the 21st Century," an address by John Inglish, UTA general manager, on Thursday, April 20, 10:45 a.m.
Deseret News radio editor Lynn Arave can be reached by e-mail at lynn@desnews.com or by phone at 237-2168.