The first two hours of the show went well. However, I'd like to have the last half hour back. I was suppose to interview a member of the Marxist-Lennist party of Canada over the phone. But the gentlemen, never called the interview line. Instead, I was forced to stall which is something I don't like to do. My program director once said, "Good radio is something made up along the way. Great radio is something that is scripted that was made to sound like it was made up along the way." I am a firm believer in this notion. When I stall, I basically just ramble about all sorts of things. I don't like it because when I ramble, I'm not exactly putting together sentences that flow and make sense. I also stumble on my words. That might be okay on a campus station; but it would sure not fly on stations like CFRA, CBC or, The Bear.

Instead of rambling I could have played an interview from the "ready to air" election file I created. But, the problem with that was that I didn't have time to preview the new files. I could have also played more music. But, I burned all my ads and therefore, didn't have time to cue CDs.

This is why I prefer to record my interviews. That way, I don't have to rely on other people too much and it prevents a guest dropping out at the last second. I do like the live interview but, it has it's limits. As I said, the guest might forget about showing up to the station. In terms of the phone, CKCU cannot afford the long distance. They simply have no plan and it would cost a fortune. If the guest lives in the Ottawa area, you can simply call them and then, not have to worry about them forgetting. However, for anyone outside of Ottawa; say in Gatineau or the Valley, they have to call us. Nine times out of ten, they'll remember to call. Five times out of ten, they're late and you're forced to stall. That's essentially what happened today. Of course, if this was CBC or CFRA the chance of them forgetting, would be quite slim.

So you can now understand why I'd like to have the last half hour back.

But enough about that. I have a big day tomorrow when I get to moderate the CKCU - Charlatan Young Leaders Debate. It's going to be recorded tomorrow and aired on Monday.

The Hek