“The View From the Phlipside” is a media commentary program airing on WRFA-LP, Jamestown NY. It can be heard Monday through Friday around 7:30 AM. The following are scripts which may not exactly match the aired version of the program. Mostly because the host may suddenly choose to add or subtract words at a moments notice. WRFA-LP is not responsible for any such silliness or the opinions expressed. You can listen to a live stream of WRFA or find a podcast of this program at wrfalp.com. Copyright 2013-15 by Jay Phillippi. All Rights Reserved. You like what you see? Drop me a line and we can talk.
Program scripts from week of November 22, 2015
My name is Jay Phillippi and I’ve spent my life in and around the media. TV, radio, the movies and more. I love them, and I hate them and I always have an opinion. Call this the View from the Phlipside.
Holiday Media
Thinking
about media and the big holiday weekend this week. It suddenly
dawned on me that Thanksgiving sits in the middle of bit of a media
desert. There’s not a lot going on for this weekend.
about media and the big holiday weekend this week. It suddenly
dawned on me that Thanksgiving sits in the middle of bit of a media
desert. There’s not a lot going on for this weekend.
Compare
it to the two holidays that bracket it. Halloween does just fine,
thank you. You can start with every horror movie that has ever been
made and you’re in prime media territory. If you want something a
little different there is always the classic “War of the Worlds”
broadcast by Orson Welle’s Mercury Theater of the Air, which aired
originally on Halloween in 1938. If you need something a little
lighter amidst the cinematic axe murderers, walking dead and monsters
then you can always opt for the second best Charlie Brown special
with “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown”. For a relatively
minor holiday I’d say that’s a pretty good selection.
it to the two holidays that bracket it. Halloween does just fine,
thank you. You can start with every horror movie that has ever been
made and you’re in prime media territory. If you want something a
little different there is always the classic “War of the Worlds”
broadcast by Orson Welle’s Mercury Theater of the Air, which aired
originally on Halloween in 1938. If you need something a little
lighter amidst the cinematic axe murderers, walking dead and monsters
then you can always opt for the second best Charlie Brown special
with “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown”. For a relatively
minor holiday I’d say that’s a pretty good selection.
Of
course on the other side you have an absolute avalanche of media for
Christmas. You’ve got movies, music and television specials to keep
you rocking and rolling right through the month of December till the
man in the sleigh arrives with the goodies. Each year I publish my
personal Christmas viewing favorites on The View From the Phlipside
website. You’ll find it there next week. For the record, because I
do not consider it a Christmas movie, the list does not include “Die
Hard”. No other holiday picks up the kind of media attention that
Christmas does.
course on the other side you have an absolute avalanche of media for
Christmas. You’ve got movies, music and television specials to keep
you rocking and rolling right through the month of December till the
man in the sleigh arrives with the goodies. Each year I publish my
personal Christmas viewing favorites on The View From the Phlipside
website. You’ll find it there next week. For the record, because I
do not consider it a Christmas movie, the list does not include “Die
Hard”. No other holiday picks up the kind of media attention that
Christmas does.
Which
makes the Thanksgiving media void all the more noticeable. There is
an awful Charlie Brown special. Let’s be honest, there’s “Merry
Christmas, Charlie Brown”, then a good ways back is “It’s the
Great Pumpkin” and then everything else just needs to go away.
That leaves the great turkey feast holiday with just two things.
First, we have football. What is now up to three games on the big
day is actually the continuation of a tradition dating back to the
1890s for pro football and before that for the college game. The
first TV game was in 1953.
makes the Thanksgiving media void all the more noticeable. There is
an awful Charlie Brown special. Let’s be honest, there’s “Merry
Christmas, Charlie Brown”, then a good ways back is “It’s the
Great Pumpkin” and then everything else just needs to go away.
That leaves the great turkey feast holiday with just two things.
First, we have football. What is now up to three games on the big
day is actually the continuation of a tradition dating back to the
1890s for pro football and before that for the college game. The
first TV game was in 1953.
The
other big media event for this holiday is that big parade up in New
York City. I need to ask a question here – what’s it called in
your family? It’s commonly called “The Macy’s Day Parade”. I
know I’m not alone since Green Day has a song with that title. This
is another long standing tradition on this day. The parade itself is
tied for the second oldest in the nation, dating back to 1924. The
first television broadcast was in 1952. In my house it’s the must
see TV of the day (unless the Steelers are playing).
other big media event for this holiday is that big parade up in New
York City. I need to ask a question here – what’s it called in
your family? It’s commonly called “The Macy’s Day Parade”. I
know I’m not alone since Green Day has a song with that title. This
is another long standing tradition on this day. The parade itself is
tied for the second oldest in the nation, dating back to 1924. The
first television broadcast was in 1952. In my house it’s the must
see TV of the day (unless the Steelers are playing).
Actually,
maybe Thanksgiving isn’t so badly served by not being overwhelmed
with media. The focus of the day should be family, friends and the
feast.
maybe Thanksgiving isn’t so badly served by not being overwhelmed
with media. The focus of the day should be family, friends and the
feast.
But
come nine AM, that TV better be tuned to the parade.
come nine AM, that TV better be tuned to the parade.
(Following the recording of the original program I was reminded that I’d forgotten two musical pieces for the holiday – Adam Sandler’s “Thanksgiving Song”, and, I have no idea how I forget it, Arlo Guthrie’s classic “Alice’s Restaurant”. My apologies)
StoryCorps
It’s
not often that I take time on this radio program to advocate for you
to listen to another radio program. But given what week it is this
other program is especially important and appropriate. In this case
I am talking about the StoryCorps project that be heard on National
Public Radio.
not often that I take time on this radio program to advocate for you
to listen to another radio program. But given what week it is this
other program is especially important and appropriate. In this case
I am talking about the StoryCorps project that be heard on National
Public Radio.
StoryCorps
actually predates the NPR program by two years. It began with a
booth at Grand Central Terminal in New York City. The idea was to
offer people a way to record the stories of their lives. In the
years since it has grown to be a national reservoir of American oral
history. It is a multiple Peabody award winner and continues to
gather stories from all parts of American culture and society.
Perhaps their most important contribution is the value they place on
listening to other’s stories.
actually predates the NPR program by two years. It began with a
booth at Grand Central Terminal in New York City. The idea was to
offer people a way to record the stories of their lives. In the
years since it has grown to be a national reservoir of American oral
history. It is a multiple Peabody award winner and continues to
gather stories from all parts of American culture and society.
Perhaps their most important contribution is the value they place on
listening to other’s stories.
That’s
why this week is the time to bring them up here. A few years ago
StoryCorps encouraged people to celebrate an unofficial “National
Day of Listening”. A day set aside for families to share their
stories, for all of us to ask questions and listen to the answers
about what has gone on and is going on in the lives of people we
love. The day designated is the Friday after Thanksgiving. A day
when many families are all together, when many stories can be
gathered in one place.
why this week is the time to bring them up here. A few years ago
StoryCorps encouraged people to celebrate an unofficial “National
Day of Listening”. A day set aside for families to share their
stories, for all of us to ask questions and listen to the answers
about what has gone on and is going on in the lives of people we
love. The day designated is the Friday after Thanksgiving. A day
when many families are all together, when many stories can be
gathered in one place.
I
have a very personal reason for bringing this up. There are many
stories in my own family that have been lost forever. My father died
in 2000, my mother in 2005 and I very nearly died in 2010. The
symmetry of those dates struck me very hard this year and I’ve been
thinking about the stories that have been lost.
have a very personal reason for bringing this up. There are many
stories in my own family that have been lost forever. My father died
in 2000, my mother in 2005 and I very nearly died in 2010. The
symmetry of those dates struck me very hard this year and I’ve been
thinking about the stories that have been lost.
My
dad served in the Navy in the 1950’s. He never talked about it much,
it was peace time and he didn’t seem to think it was very
interesting. In a generation that valued long term employment with
the same company he had the vision to walk away from jobs that no
longer engaged him. It was only after both of their deaths that I
learned there was a whole story to the beginning of their romance
that we never knew. All those stories are gone.
dad served in the Navy in the 1950’s. He never talked about it much,
it was peace time and he didn’t seem to think it was very
interesting. In a generation that valued long term employment with
the same company he had the vision to walk away from jobs that no
longer engaged him. It was only after both of their deaths that I
learned there was a whole story to the beginning of their romance
that we never knew. All those stories are gone.
So
in the week of Thanksgiving I want to encourage all of you to take
the time and share some stories. Dust off an old cassette recorder,
or download the brand new StoryCorps app for your smartphone. If
you’re not sure what to ask, the StoryCorps web site provides a wide
selection of questions on many topics and covering many
relationships. The most important thing to remember is that the
project encourages conversation, especially between generations. Our
young people don’t get to spent as much time with older generations
as in the past.
in the week of Thanksgiving I want to encourage all of you to take
the time and share some stories. Dust off an old cassette recorder,
or download the brand new StoryCorps app for your smartphone. If
you’re not sure what to ask, the StoryCorps web site provides a wide
selection of questions on many topics and covering many
relationships. The most important thing to remember is that the
project encourages conversation, especially between generations. Our
young people don’t get to spent as much time with older generations
as in the past.
This
week, share a story. It’s important.
week, share a story. It’s important.
Thankful
It’s
a week for being thankful. So I thought I’d take a couple minutes
here and talk about what I’m thankful for when it comes to the media.
a week for being thankful. So I thought I’d take a couple minutes
here and talk about what I’m thankful for when it comes to the media.
I’m
thankful for mobile communications. We take it so much for granted
now but once upon a time once your drove away from your home you were
largely incommunicado. While there are days when I WISH fewer people
could reach out and touch me, I must admit that I prefer knowing that
if something goes wrong my loved ones can be in touch with help
whenever they need it.
thankful for mobile communications. We take it so much for granted
now but once upon a time once your drove away from your home you were
largely incommunicado. While there are days when I WISH fewer people
could reach out and touch me, I must admit that I prefer knowing that
if something goes wrong my loved ones can be in touch with help
whenever they need it.
I’ve
mentioned before that I’m thankful for social media. Especially
Facebook. Again, it’s not without it’s defects, but at the same time
I have connected with family members all over the country. Even ones
that I’ve never met. I’ve made a wide array of friends and
re-connected with friends from childhood. It has widened my horizons
and exposed me to more viewpoints than I would get without it.
mentioned before that I’m thankful for social media. Especially
Facebook. Again, it’s not without it’s defects, but at the same time
I have connected with family members all over the country. Even ones
that I’ve never met. I’ve made a wide array of friends and
re-connected with friends from childhood. It has widened my horizons
and exposed me to more viewpoints than I would get without it.
What
I am most thankful is that I’m alive right now in the history of
media. I believe that this is a truly golden age for the media.
Some may scoff because of the shortcomings of our modern media age
but I would point them towards a clear eyed view of media history.
EVERY age of the media is filled with people using it badly. From
yellow journalism in the glory days of print to today the media has
been a flawed diamond of great worth.
I am most thankful is that I’m alive right now in the history of
media. I believe that this is a truly golden age for the media.
Some may scoff because of the shortcomings of our modern media age
but I would point them towards a clear eyed view of media history.
EVERY age of the media is filled with people using it badly. From
yellow journalism in the glory days of print to today the media has
been a flawed diamond of great worth.
I
think this is the golden age of media because for the first time so
much of the entire span of media is available at the same time. As
just a single example, take a look at the movies. I inherited my
love of the movies from my dad. Back in the early days of video
recorders he put an electric motor on our TV antenna (TV ANTENNA!) so
that he could receive the signals from stations in West Virginia and
Ohio. He would scan the listings for what was being shown in the
late night hours and record them. Honestly, the quality was often
pretty awful.
think this is the golden age of media because for the first time so
much of the entire span of media is available at the same time. As
just a single example, take a look at the movies. I inherited my
love of the movies from my dad. Back in the early days of video
recorders he put an electric motor on our TV antenna (TV ANTENNA!) so
that he could receive the signals from stations in West Virginia and
Ohio. He would scan the listings for what was being shown in the
late night hours and record them. Honestly, the quality was often
pretty awful.
Just
last week I watched the digitally re-mastered version of “Wings”
the movie that won the first Academy Award as the best picture of the
year in 1927. The variety and quality of movies available today, to
be seen at my convenience, is astounding. The same can be said for
books, music, television, even old radio programs. If you love the
media there is no better time to be alive than right now.
last week I watched the digitally re-mastered version of “Wings”
the movie that won the first Academy Award as the best picture of the
year in 1927. The variety and quality of movies available today, to
be seen at my convenience, is astounding. The same can be said for
books, music, television, even old radio programs. If you love the
media there is no better time to be alive than right now.
The
icing on the cake is the slew of new media that is coming with it as
well. The ability for creative people (now called content providers,
which is just so wrong) to find their own channel for expression is a
wonderful and exciting development.
icing on the cake is the slew of new media that is coming with it as
well. The ability for creative people (now called content providers,
which is just so wrong) to find their own channel for expression is a
wonderful and exciting development.
There
really is plenty to be thankful for this week.
really is plenty to be thankful for this week.
Call that the View From the Phlipside
Copyright Jay Phillippi, 2015
Theme music for “The View From the Phlipside” and “TVFTP – Podcast” is “Hustle”
Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com), Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
Stories Are My Life 
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