User:Radio Watch Sarnia

Radio Watch Sarnia was an entirely academic exercise in democracy and accounatbility that was centered around a group of three radio stations in Sarnia, Ontario. Radio Watch Sarnia is best known, not for what it did or what it accomplished, but for how it ended.

About Radio Watch Sarnia:

Radio Watch Sarnia was formed in February 2001 by its founder, William David Duke. It lasted approximately five months and ended in June 2001.

The story of Radio Watch Sarnia is filled with many misconceptions and falsehoods. Perhaps the single greatest misconception about Radio Watch Sarnia is that its founder believed he had the power and authority to force a radio station to do as he directed. This is not true at all. Radio Watch Sarnia was an entirely academic exercise in democracy and accountability that operated on the premise that local media plays an important and influential role in the community. It was this belief that lead to the idea that an entity as integral and influential as a local radio station, should be responsive and accountable to the public. An idea that the Canadian Broadcast Standards Council, Canadian Association of Broadcasters, and the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (Radio Watch Sarnia had no affiliation with either of these organizations. They just stole and built upon their ideas of public accountability, input, etcetera.) had long postured. Radio Watch Sarnia merely took their idea to a new level.

Under the guise of anonymity, Radio Watch Sarnia sought to become the people's conduit for expressing and discussing concern and interest in the three Blackburn Radio Incorporated owned radio stations in Sarnia, Ontario, Canada. It was never implied or stated that Radio Watch Sarnia had any lawful authority to effect change at the local Blackburn stations. Radio Watch Sarnia was simply people discussing the local radio stations, expressing their concerns and interests, and generally exercising their rights to free speech, free expression, and their right to peacefully assemble. Radio Watch Sarnia could effectively be summed up with these words:  The people have a voice too.

History:

Radio Watch Sarnia was formed in February 2001 after a public backlash ignited over the firing of a very popular local radio personality. Gary Connors had been the morning man on Sarnia's 1070 CHOK AM radio station for many years.