I’m sure Thomas Toscano has a life outside of WTBN, but whenever I go there, I see him, and he is most often alone. He seems to program the entire show, he is Executive Director, the Program Manager, the lead producer, engineer, and visionary.

He is very smart, and he can be very funny and also outraged at the way things work. he talks like a mystic or a prophet.

It is not a simple or peaceful thing to try to save a Community Radio station in the age of Big Media like Fox News and CNN.

Thomas has devoted almost all of his life to it. We sat and talked for more than two hours today, and I found him fascinating, easy to talk to, compelling. He is definitely David up against Goliath.

I shudder to think of all the obstacles standing in his way of saving that little station – government regulations, community apathy, few donors,  no money, hardly any volunteers, savage big-time competition.

We both are a little bit lit up at the idea of creating an animal talk show that might do some good for the station.

But the thing is, Community Radio was created to give voice to the voiceless and the unheard, and it is important, especially in the Corporate Nation. It’s important to me, too.

We are both big boys, Thomas and I,  we have few illusions. The odds of success are long if not impossible, my expectations are very realistic. The station doesn’t yet have the money to buy an FM transmitter, it can only be heard on AM 1370, but it is loud and clear there.

Steve and I are in, we shook hands today on the idea of giving it a go. So my name is up on the big board for Thursday at 11.  And there it was, right up on the “Big Board.”

“Jon Katz – Dogs.”

I’ve dreamed for a long time about my own radio show, and whatever happens, I relish a shot at it. Thomas says if the show works, he will ask me to run the board all by myself, and he also said I might have to bring in enough sponsors to pay the costs.

I am not at all certain right now that I can do either of those things, so I want to see  how it goes. Thursday will give me a sense of it. I’m bringing some of my beloved dog books to read from if necessary, and there are no or few calls.

If you live within range of the station, you can call 802 442-1010. If you live anywhere else in the country you can livestream the show for free, listen to it, and also call in: 866 406-9286. In American, anything that can be streamed is now a national broadcast.

Check it out here.

Audio: Call Me