Radio Dissed by White House Press Secretary

To: Robert Gibbs, White House Press Secretary

From: Janet Napolitano, Secretary Department of Homeland Security

Subject: Homeland Security Preparedness

Robert:

It has come to my attention that you are not in compliance with DHS recommendations. As with past administrations, the Obama Administration urges every American to be prepared in the event of an emergency. After food and water, the third "must have" item on our list is a radio.

Please click here and get with the "programming."

- Janet

Recommended Items from DHS in a Basic Emergency Supply Kit:

• One gallon of water per person per day for at least three days, for drinking and sanitation;
• At least a three-day supply of non-perishable food;
• Battery-powered or hand crank radio and a NOAA Weather Radio with tone alert and extra batteries for both;
• Flashlight and extra batteries;
• First aid kit

Mark Segraves, wtop.com

The two men credited with discovering radio, Guglielmo Marconi and Nikola Tesla, must be rolling over in their graves after their brainchild was summarily dissed and dismissed by the White House, General Electric and NBC all in the same week.

On Wednesday, responding to reporters questions about Rush Limbaugh, White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said, "Look, are there days when I just turn my television off? Yes (Laughter). I wish I had a radio -- maybe I should just hook my iPod up."

On Monday, NBC White House correspondent and GE employee, Chuck Todd, told talk show host Joe Scarborough that radio is a "backward looking technology ... very 90s…" He also said radio "is a dying medium, potentially."

Gentleman, where do I begin?

First of all Mr. Todd, you are a student of data, statisticts and factoids. Here's something for you to chew on:

Ninety-three percent of Americans listen to radio every week, that's 235 million listeners. And those numbers are growing. WTOP, for instance, has a bigger local audience than many networks do nationally.

Radio added 3 million listeners last year. Meanwhile, television and cable audiences are fracturing. Let's not forget, there wouldn't be an NBC Television if it hadn't been for NBC Radio.

America is a commuter country. In the Washington region, the average round trip commute is about 90 minutes per day. What do you think people are doing in their cars? They aren't watching Meet the Press, but they may be listening to the replays on the radio.

Where does America turn in times of crisis? Radio has long been the lone voice in a hurricane or any natural or manmade disaster.

If the growth of audience isn't enough to convince you of your misstatement, let's look at another measurment -- layoffs.

While every local television station in Washington is laying off journalists, including NBC at the local and national level, WTOP is growing its staff and resources.

Newspapers may be a dying, but it is far from a dead resource. Television may not be dying, but TV news certainly is. Who is home at 6 p.m. these days to watch? Talk about "backward looking," Mr. Todd.

So perhaps you should put the same level of research that you put into your political prognosticating into your technology assesments.

As for Mr. Gibbs...

Thanks to my colleague, Mark Plotkin, you now have a radio. Plotkin approached Gibbs after his daily press briefing on Thursday and presented him with a gift from WTOP.

"Robert," Plotkin called out. "I have something you don't have: A radio. I want you to enjoy the miracle of radio."

Gibbs accepted the radio, but questioned whether it exceeded the allowable gift value for a White House employee.

Watch the video of the gift exchange below:

All kidding aside, the idea that someone at the highest levels of government dosen't own a radio is a bit scary. What happens when the lights go out? I'm sure the White House has a back up power supply, but when a storm blows over CNN's transmitter or the power goes out at MSNBC, the screens will go dark.

But local radio will just keep on truckin'.

(Copyright 2009 by WTOP. All Rights Reserved.)