I wanted to offer this space to congratulate my very good friend of nearly twenty years, Ryan Smith, on a few fronts - his graduation from Plattsburgh State, his recent change of careers (he is now working for the New York State government in Albany), and on the continued success of his Sunday afternoon radio show, Homo Radio. Ryan's no stranger to broadcasting; from gigs in commercial radio in the Eighties, stints in college radio, and now his weekly show on WRPI-FM, he brings his vast knowledge of popular music and current events (and his delightful baritone voice) to this unique Capital Region program:

Since Feb. 1992, "Homo Radio" has served as the voice of the LGBT community of New York's Capital Region (Albany). It's on every Sunday from 12 noon to 2 p.m. EST on WRPI, 91.5 FM, Troy, NY. It also streams on the web at www.WRPI.org. There are no plans to podcast "HR" as of yet. [Though it would be lovely, though, for those of us in the Midwest and elsewhere! - Ed. :)] "Homo Radio" begins with the nationally syndicated newsmagazine show "This Way Out" from 12 Noon-12:30 p.m. TWO features national and international news affecting the LGBT community. That's followed by a segment on entertainment (musical performer, comic, actor, etc).

The local portion of "Homo Radio" begins at 12:30 p.m. There are segments devoted to news, entertainment news, the "Community Calendar" (pubic service announcements, fundraisers, entertainment, etc., geared to the LGBT community), interviews with local and national newsmakers and performers, and inbetween, a wide range of music by LGBT and LGBT-friendly artists.

"Homo Radio" is a collaborative effort between Ryan Smith, Tim Ruppert, Barbara Willow, Kathy Breda, David Liebig, and Jim Dickson. Sean McLaughlin is the chief engineer and host of the program. Joe Galu is our news editor. Volunteers are always needed and appreciated. Ryan Smith has been with "Homo Radio" since June 2000. He is the principal writer and editor of the "Community Calendar" segment. He also writes some of the news stories.

You never know what musical selections Ryan will bring in to play, and what stories he'll tell about the songs and the artists. He has worked in several NYS radio markets since 1983 including stops in Utica, Herkimer, Plattsburgh and Albany. From 1992-1998, he was the writer of two columns about radio in the former Albany, NY based publication, "The Source Weekly Magazine". Ryan is a Dec. 2003 graduate of Plattsburgh (NY) State College where he went to school with Lenka :-)

Congratulations, 'Sly'!

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