The Besz Dispenser - This Week's Rant

For the week of November 2nd, 1999

OK, OK, I know it's been a very long while since I've written any columns. However, I new job does do that, not to mention that I haven't really written anything at all lately. Just lost the time. But I'm back, and I'm more bitter than ever before! Which you can decide whether or not that's a good thing.

Anyway, on to the first column since the end of September! Here it is!

To hell with censorship

You know, it's kind of funny. I've been writing this column for well over two years now, I've written lots of poetry, a bunch of articles and reviews of one kind or another, and no one has ever complained about my subject matter, nor how I express myself. My opinion, sure, because that's something that differs from person to person, so that's nothing new. But how I write and the words I use never, ever get discussed because, well, that's how writing is.

Grammar and spelling aside, conveying ideas can be done in many ways, I find. One way is the technical, where everything is factual and long-winded only because the details are looked at ad nauseam. Like computer and VCR manuals, and most factual biographies. Then there is the eloquent. This is where everything is long winded details with really long, flowery language which is rarely used anymore in casual discussions. This is mostly romance and Anne Rice novels. There are many different types, from scientific to blunt to short-form, etc. In any case, I write in the style of talking slang, which basically means that I write how I talk. It's a basic transfer of thoughts to words. This usually means lots of contractions and swearing, but like I said, it never really bothered too many people, and no one ever complained.

So, maybe it was a bad assumption on my part that I could carry this over to radio. Maybe I didn't play the part of a proper DJ and just play music and talk only about the music. What this led to is that my first attempt to try to get a radio show failed because to them, I swear too much. Not only that, but I was "just being snarky and didn't do any research." Now, don't get me wrong, because I probably did swear too much, and I am snarky, so I can't say that I wasn't. And I couldn't tell you what I'm supposed to research for this. My problem with this is that, 1) they never called to tell me this; 2) it wasn't a constructive "you have to curb about 60-80% of your swearing" or what to change. It was a flat rejection; and 3) I warned them on my proposal sheet that I was snarky and opinionated, since that was the point of the show and I was snarky on the proposal sheet.

I can't help but take this as a personal affront to my personality. So I'm snarky, so what? Most people are nowadays, and I try to at least warn people of this. And secondly, I listen to shows where the DJs are eating while they are talking, and they actually stop to chew into the microphone to prove this fact? This is professionalism? I think at least I talk, I discuss what's in the news, and I do it in a funny way. At least people tell me what I say is funny. Or maybe I'm just funny, as in strange. Maybe everyone is just laughing at me.

But I digress. I think they should have called, told me their concerns, and at least allow me to change what was wrong, instead of making me call about a month after just to get denied a chance to even change. It's a good thing I'm stubborn, because I'm just going to walk in and record another demo. And another. And another. I'll keep doing this until I either get under their guidelines or they just give in, because I'm not going to give up. I may be snarky, and I may be an asshole, but I'm persistent!

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