WDET's Liz Copeland is leaving the building

[alocispepraluger102]

Always a breath of fresh airwaves, WDET's Liz Copeland is leaving the building

March 25, 2007

BY BILL McGRAW

FREE PRESS COLUMNIST

As usual, Liz Copeland was understated and cool just after midnight Saturday morning when she welcomed the world to her “Alternate Take” show on WDET-FM (101.9).

It was her first moment on the air after the station announced another revamping of the daily schedule. Copeland’s 12-year-old overnight show will be cancelled as of April 2, replaced by a program produced by the British Broadcasting Co. as listener-supported ‘DET continues the purge of its cutting-edge contemporary music and airs more news and information.

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“‘Day Six,’ as we’re calling it, six more shows left of ‘Alternate Take,’” Copeland told listeners. “We have six more days to celebrate all that we’ve done in 12 years together.”

Copeland plays a wide-ranging selection of music that mostly is never played on other stations in Detroit. She also conducts interviews, supports local music and art and is one of the last ‘DET program hosts who are savvy contemporary musicologists. Even if you were only mildly curious about music outside of the mainstream, such modern deejays as Judy Adams, Martin Bandyke and Dave Dixon would almost without fail turn you on to something interesting every time they were on the air.

With its new lineup, ‘DET is also losing expert hosts W. Kim Heron, Ralph Valdez, Mick Collins and Chuck Horn. Remaining will be Saturday’s shows featuring folks, blues,, bluegrass, spirituals and worldbeat. Ed Love’s weeknight jazz program will be cut back.

As a disseminator of contemporary music, WDET-FM after April 2 will be relegated to the dustbin of Detroit radio history. It will join some great contemporary music stations and personalities of the of the past 40 years that added to -- and played off of -- Detroit’s sophistication as a music capital -- CKLW-AM, WABX-FM, Electrifying Mojo, Ernie (The Frantic One) Durham and WKNR-FM, to name just a few.

On Saturday morning, Copeland began her show with United Future Organization, Clara Hill, Nouvelle Vague, The New Pornographers and Radiohead. She moved on to Goldfrapp, Lou Reed, The Stooges, Hot Chip, John Peel, The Dirtbombs, The Cure, Bryan Ferry, Arcade Fire, Television and Thunderbirds are Now! She closed with Talking Heads, Elbow, Spiritualized and Pass into Silence.

How many of those artists can you hear on other Detroit-area stations? Not too many.

Wayne State University owns ‘DET, and you hope its officials know what they are doing. They hired Michael Coleman to be station manager, and he engineered the first major shift to news and information before he pleaded no contest to misdemeanor charges relating to financial irregularities at his previous radio employer. WSU kept him on, but he resigned in December when fund-raising fell off. In addition to Coleman, the station has endured a significant staff turnover in the past year.

In the 1970s, WDET was hyper-local, with shows produced by Detroit Native-Americans, women, Hispanics and African Americans, In fact, when the bilingual show “El Grito de Mi Raza” (“The Outcry of My People”) was cancelled in 1994, protestors assailed the station. The public also spoke up when a show hosted by Nkenge Zola was deep-sixed in the same era.

Now, many of the programs will originate in New York, Washington and London, though ‘DET continues to be committed to local news. A new public affairs show, “Detroit Today,” will air on weekdays from 10 a.m. to noon.

In an email to fans and friends, Copeland was upbeat: “For 12 years (a lifetime in radio), I have been determined enough to continue to be energized by radio in the wee hours. I have learned much, yet feel as if I’ve just begun. As I investigate new methods of connecting the music with its fans in a relevant fashion, I am optimistic that its reach could have more of an impact than ever before. I will keep you updated on developments through this mailing list. I am grateful that we have been a part of this together. Now, let’s look to the future.”

Her finals shows will air Tuesday morning through Saturday morning, starting at midnight.

During the early part of Saturday’s show, Copeland played a cover of “Dancing with Myself” by Nouvelle Vague. When she identified the piece, she said: Dancing with myself “is something I often find myself doing when I’m doing the radio show. I guess I’ve kind of felt that it’s the only way to do the radio show. If you’re not dancing with yourself or singing or whatever, it’s just not worth it, is it?”

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danodownriviera

I have not listened to WDET since that crook took the helm.

I call him a crook not only for what he pulled off in Ann Arbor but for robbing the Detroit airwaves of musical tradition not known since the days of WABX.

Free Form Radio............

But now with iTunes radio providing free access to very cool stations like Groove Salad and Sing Sing who needs that crook and his yap..........

RIP DET.............

Posted: Wed Mar 28, 2007 7:10 am

whiteboy1976

You would think at a time when commerical radio in this city is so dismal WDET would try to hold onto the aspects think made this station great. I don't know what they're thinking but management is destroying this instituion. They will get no money during fundraising time. As a 31 year-old average joe who friends have never heard of 101.9, I took pride that this station was my little secret. Liz's voice captivated me, I must admit I have a silly crush on her, but I really felt I learned about new and local artists. I will follow Liz wherever she goes, maybe to the 'River', they're the only cool station left in this city. All I know is thank God for XM radio. Satelitte radio is going to kill public radio. WDET has a chance to be unique, but the station they are turning into I can find in about a half dozen spots on XM. I will say I'll listen to Ed Love, but WDET has lost a loyal listener!

Posted: Tue Mar 27, 2007 9:53 pm

jimsteverson

Cute Music 1, nice rant. Sorry to disturb the group think.

That said, I think the point of running more news programs is to get those listeners to listen more. Seems like there's a connection between using a service more and being willing to pay for it. I doubt they'll gain more audience running BBC overnight, but I also doubt they'll lose any. But they also won't be paying (insert salary here) for it, and those funds can be used to better serve their audience.

Plus, I think they dropped music because it wasn't bringing in enough audience and the audience it did wasn't able to keep the bills payed. So time to try something else. Sorry but I don't think public radio should be castor oil - listen to this, we know best, it's good for you. How arrogant.

Of all that's been dropped, Liz's program was arguably the best. Great diverse music, well presented, small audience. With the growing use of Ipods and satellite radio, sadly, there just isn't room for that in today's marketplace. Whether we like it or not, the state of public broadcasting today dictates that they have to exist in that marketplace. We can thank various administrations and de-regulation for that gift.

Time changes, even in public broadcasting.

Posted: Tue Mar 27, 2007 4:48 pm

lux2001

Yes!!! More time for 20-minute news stories on irrigation ditches in other parts of the globe! I must have died and went to heaven, err, wondered why I gave up on listening to commercial radio 15 years ago..... Neutral

Posted: Tue Mar 27, 2007 12:36 pm

Music1

This is public radio. It's supposed to offer diversity. Besides, their donation dollars have been dropping ever since they eliminated the music programs. I'm not sure how with your great wisdom you think they'll regain that money by running a news program during the hours you claim there's only a couple hundred listeners. Will people start tuning in by the thousands and pledging? Oooh more news, here's my money!

I always thought public radio was supposed to ignore the ratings and offer things not heard elsewhere? Liz Copeland offered a music program that I have yet to hear be matched anywhere else. She promoted the city and its music and made people excited about local bands and events. I currently reside in another state, and actually sleep at night. Due to the miracle of the internet, I listened to her show during the day, as do many people. Most stations have an extremely low amount of listeners at these hours. Liz took what she had and made it something great. Seriously, how many more listeners do you think they're going to gain?

I guess if the ratings aren't there for the news broadcast, but they are for a Top 40 format, a small minded person like yourself would probably think "duh, let's do that..."

Come to think of it, what are you even doing here? Are you pro late night news? Anti late night music? Did Liz turn you down for a date or not play your Phil Collins request? Do you hate public radio? What do you have against 7-11 clerks with good taste in music? Maybe you're just a good samaritan here to help us understand how corporate radio works? I mean, are we honestly to believe that you happened across this article and decided "I think this late night music is bad, and not doing any good for the station. I think the listening audience would benefit from some BBC produced news at this hour." Get real.

Go back to your plastic world and grab a Starbucks. Detroit already has stations like WJR and WRIF to make people like you happy..... Rolling Eyes

Posted: Tue Mar 27, 2007 10:16 am

[Jim Alfredson]

No big surprise. It's happening to stations all over the country.

[alocispepraluger102]

No big surprise. It's happening to stations all over the country.

we are so very very grateful for those we still have.

when wosu-fm did away with most of their onair personalities and went with a satellite service top 50 classical format, announcers with voices and styles as familiar as members of one's own family were no longer heard, and are still missed years later.