As of August 1, 100.3 The River, Knoxville's last decent, locally-run radio station, will be no more. It's a now-typical story:
The Las Vegas-based Citadel bought 11 stations from Dick Broadcasting in 2000. But because of complications in the sale, Dick maintained control of 100.3. The license is technically owned by Johnny Pirkle, but he sells the air time through a marketing agreement, and that is what Citadel will take control of on Aug. 1. When Dick sold the rights, The River employees were under the impression that the format would not change, Snukals says. But they were later given pink slips. "As of July 31, we will go dark at midnight and another format, unbeknownst to us, will take over. And The River will drown," he says.
The River has never been a perfect station — one DJ, in particular, has this unpardonable obsession with Jackson Browne of all people — but it has consistently supported local acts and live music, and it's been the only stop on the Knoxville dial where you might hear Lucinda Williams and Beth Orton back-to-back. Just a few weeks ago we joined some friends at Rockin' on the River for a fine evening of fireworks, funnel cakes, and good music, including local-boy-done-good Scott Miller. I guess that's gone now. And Americana Cafe is gone. And the in-studio interviews are gone, too. How lame. (More coverage)
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