I feel robbed, angry and sad... ~Kethria~

How would you like it if your favorite radio station just went away?

That's what happened to us here in the DC/Baltimore area yesterday. At noon, without any previous warning, WHFS, an Alternative Rock station was changed to Latin music, all in spanish.

According to some of the DJ's, they themselves were informed at 10 am that HFS was changing to "El Sol".

HFS was the sponsor of the HFS-tival, which is well known not only on the east coast, but also throught the US. HFS-tival was a huge annual concert that featured the hottest artists of the year.

I am so angry that I can't even think straight. I am also upset as a latino, because all that the change was made for money reasons. There are no other stations that played the same kinds of songs that HFS played, you could hear Pearl Jam or Nirvana in the afternoon, or Ozzy, or Evanescence, it was a perfect blend of music, no repeats. I have a baaad feeling this will create animosity towards the latino community.

We were so confused when we kept flipping to HFS yesterday and getting nothing but Rancheras, which I hate, and once or twice a Marc Antony song, which was OK, nothing great.

Today on the news they stated that the listening audience was shocked and outraged. That is a pretty accurate statement. I had listened to HFS for 14 YEARS... since I moved here.

So join me by saying Goodbye to HFS, one of the best radio stations ever, 1969-2005.

Angrily,

Keth

**************************************************** Infinity Flips WHFS to Spanish Jan. 12, 2005 By Bram Teitelman





In a shocking move, Infinity has converted 20-year modern rock bastion WHFS Washington, D.C., to Spanish as "El Zol" 99.1. The station will play a mixture of Salsa, Merengue and Bachata, targeting adults 25-54.

"We have made clear our desire to expand into this burgeoning market and believe this move marks an important step in our commitment to Spanish radio," Infinity president/CEO Joel Hollander said in statement. "There exists a tremendous opportunity for Infinity to launch a Spanish-language format in Washington, D.C. where almost 10% of the population is not being directly served. El Zol will be the most powerful Spanish radio station in the area and will provide listeners with the music, entertainment and information relevant to the many segments of the Latino culture."

In October, Infinity pacted with Spanish Broadcasting System, Inc., which gave Infinity an equity interest in the company. SBS served as a consultant to Infinity for the switch.

WHFS became one of the country's original free-form progressive rock stations in the mid-to-late '60s, evolving to modern rock in the mid-'80s. It spawned the HFStival, the grand-daddy of station festivals and a perennial summer concert box-office leader.

Show all stories by   Author:  18527 ( Click here )