Our local country radio station, 99.9 KISS FM (Kiss Country), is going all out to show its conservative values. What’s up? The station’s morning show hosts, Chuck Marsh and Drew somebody, already play to homophobic stereotypes and tell racist jokes. Guess that wasn’t enough.
Chuck stood out along Leicester Highway begging for money – actually asking for $20 bills – so the station can buy flags for Asheville City Schools. The station is doing this because a new state law passed this year requires local boards of education to adopt policies to “(1) require the display of the U.S. and state flags in each classroom when available, (2) require the recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance be scheduled on a daily basis and (3) provide age-appropriate instruction on the meaning and historical origins of the flags and the pledge. These policies shall not compel any person to stand, salute the flag or recite the pledge.”
The law says that if flags are donated or available, they must be displayed in the classroom.
So KISS Country is trying to raise $4,500 to put a three-foot-by-five-foot flag in each of the school system’s 200 classrooms. The radio station claims that the schools are suffering a flag shortage.
We’ve got no problems with the flags or the pledge, but why is the radio station trying to get in on this? Just seems odd, perhaps better suited for our local political parties. Or maybe U.S. Rep. Charles Taylor and Heath Shuler could see who could raise the most money to put flags in classrooms.
KISS Country already has preachers come on the radio station every Friday morning to pray for all the high school football players. That’s because prayer at football games was banned a few years ago.
2 Comments
Yeah, that really rubbed me the wrong way, too. I listen to those guys for awhile most mornings, mainly to get the traffic report, and it really seems like they’re bending over backwards lately to kowtow to the more "rednecky" of us country music fans. I think what bugs me most about it is how insincere Drew & Chuck sound about it all — which might mean syntax is right about it being mandated from above. Compare that to the other local Clear Channel country station, WESC in Greenville. They’re as "red, white and blue" as anybody, but you just know morning guy Charlie Munson is being himself if he gets a little misty.
i have to wonder if this isn’t a corporate mandate from clear channel…