A Failure To Communicate

"So," you may be asking at this point after having surfed over to PatriotInsightRadio.com to hear the gala debut of the Hard Starboard Radio Network and getting the Rix Report instead, "what the hell happened?  Or were you making it up all along?"

First of all, there's no logic to the latter, as I'd be deliberately setting myself up to wind up with egg on my face.  Second, it does, indeed, have entirely to do with piss-poor communication - but not from my end.

Here's the low-down:

A month ago I was contacted via Facebook instant-message by the aforementioned Matthew Rix about my podcast, Hard Starboard Radio.  This initiated an exchange of emails where I learned about PIR and began working through the details and questions that I had about how it would all work, what, if any, equipment I would need, whether I could host via Skype, the business arrangements, and so on.

Then, a few days into the process, he stopped returning my messages and never has returned any of my calls.  Mr. Rix went dark for ten whole days.

Come the dawn of Christmas week and he reemerged, declaring that he'd had "the African flu".  I googled "African flu" and couldn't find mention of any such specific illness, but figured he was being whimsical about it and had had some sort of upper respiratory illness and he finally had it licked.  We had another flurry of email exchanges, all but the last few of my questions were answered, and I spend much of last week preparing for today'd debut.  Key in which was that I was told I'd be able to host via Skype.

The last message from Mr. Rix was on December 22nd,  Then he disappeared again.  I diligently prepared through last week, watching the days tick by, counting them down in this space.  I reach this past weekend and started sending increasingly urgent emails reminding him that debut day was fast approaching and I needed the final set of questions answered ASAP.

Last night I finally got a response telling me that PIR has decided that no, I can't host by Skype, I'll need a bunch of broadcasting equipment, but Mr. Rix will send it to me.  Hopefully with a "how to"/Building Broadcast Studios For Dummies manual.  A generous gesture that I appreciate,  but something about which I would have appreciated being informed well in advance of now.

Then, this morning, I logged on to PatriotInsightRadio.com and found that it has finally launched, only my name and face and show are nowhere to be found on the site, and Mr. Rix's program has taken what was to have been my time slot.  Something that I might have understood if I hadn't been on the ball and delayed providing answers and otherwise not communicated - "You snooze, you lose," and all that.  As it is, I've been trying to get answers for the past month, was told one thing, and the day before this new venture was to have begun, I was told something else.

So the truth is, folks, I don't know what's going on with Patriot Insight Radio and the Hard Starboard Radio Network's relationship, if any, with it.  I'd like to believe, and give Mr. Rix the benefit of the doubt, that his show is just temporarily plugged into my time slot and he'll send me the mixing board and microphone and cables he's offered as well as helping me to get it set up and I can get this new show on the road soon.  I'd like to believe that.

I'd like to believe that.

But who the hell knows?

One thing seems certain: It'll take me a long time to get a straight answer.  As soon as I have it, I'll post it here.

In the meantime you all, and Mr. Rix, know where to find me.