A report of the first Radio Wave interview!
This is the story of Jean Altomare’s interview – the first of our ripples through the airwaves
At 10:30 on Friday morning my phone rang while I was walking into my office building, and I was suddenly being prepped to be live on air. I chose this brief opportunity to inhale the muffin I’d just bought, and settled in to participate in 12,000 watts, volunteer-powered radio goodness. The radio show is called Mid-Coast Currents, and covers a wide variety of both worldly and local news.
The portion of the show that I was on followed the conversation about the 12,000 strong encircling of the White House, and my involvement with 350.org. We talked about the Tar Sands Action, Tim DeChristopher, and what was next for 350, which was my lead-in to Radio Wave. Instantly, thousands of residents of Maine were hearing music that addressed the climate crisis and acknowledged the international, growing movement to save our planet. In addition, those Mainers were all sitting inside, avoiding the cold, while the song called to mind the home of this year’s Conference of the Parties- the exceedingly climate-vulnerable South Africa.
It was certainly a shift from typical Maine radio tunes – but a good one. The Unity college students thought it was great – it’s not only a great song, but it’s very direct – the song is about climate change, about people power, and you can’t read into it whatever you want. If the song is playing, and you’re listening to it, you’re thinking about climate change. And considering how quickly the clock is running out, that’s absolutely necessary.
Being on the radio was a wonderful experience – although it was strange to be on the phone and talking through airwaves I listen to regularly. Speaking on the phone, without the radio on, was an incredibly relaxing way to talk about the people power we’re seeing across the globe, without worrying about how my voice sounds (normal to everyone else) or whether my breathing can be heard on air (it can’t).
All in all, it was a great experience. Mainers heard a great song and learned that the climate fight is about to focus on Durban, I spoke on the radio and wasn’t nervous, and we got to share with the world the recent victories and momentum of the environmental movement! It was a good morning.
