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10 Questions with ... Nick Rizzuto
June 17, 2008
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NAME:Nick RizzutoTITLE:ProducerSTATION:Sirius Satellite RadioMARKET:North AmericaCOMPANY:Sirius Satellite RadioBORN:August 19, 1981RAISED:Rockland County, NY
BRIEF CAREER SYNOPSIS:
Began my career at 92.3 K-Rock in the promotions department before moving to sales assistant. Became producer of The Wilkow Majority on Sirius in August of 2006.
1. How did you get into radio? Why radio?
My interest in radio began when my brother (Scott Rizzuto, music director and midday DJ at St. Louis' KPNT) and I would record mock radio shows on a boom box when we were young. We'd banter and introduce songs and play them back to ourselves. Radio just appealed to me from a very young age. I grew up listening to 77 WABC here in New York, whose lineup at the time ran the full gamut from Bob Grant to Lynn Samuels. The opinions and views expressed on radio just seemed to me to be unbound and honest and even radical compared to everything else.
Eventually, I became a DJ at my college station, WNFP in New Paltz, spinning punk rock and reading from Mad Magazine during breaks. Interestingly enough the quality of the show didn't really advance much from my boom box days to my college days.
After graduation, I wrangled a job on the K-Rock street team, eventually finding my way into the sales department as a sales assistant. No offense to that department, but working in sales almost sapped every ounce of passion I had for radio. I loved the people, hated the job.
Thankfully I was rescued shortly after K-Rock transformed into its evil alter ego, 92.3 Free FM. I got a call one day from Andrew Wilkow, with whom I had co-founded www.conservativepunk.com asking me to come to Sirius Radio to produce his show.
2. About what are you most passionate these days?
I'm just really passionate about the current election. I think we're at a crossroads in this country. On one hand we can continue down the road of further nationalization and soft, European-style socialism the left wants to take us, or we can change course and reject the idea that government interventionism is going to somehow save us from ourselves. People need to realize that government is the problem, not the solution. With the most liberal candidate in American history running for president, the choice has never been clearer.
3. You created ConservativePunk.com, which to the uninitiated might come off as a contradiction in terms. Why do you think so much of punk, and rock, and youth culture leans so far to the left? In a year when Obama-mania is dominating the political discourse among those under 40 (and, to some extent, among everyone else), what's it like to be a dissenter when it seems like everyone of your age is going another way?
I wish this was called '10 Pages' so I could properly answer. In a nutshell, young people are in some respects easily misled and co-opted. Fully understanding the state of the nation is much more time consuming and difficult than repeating a line that fits nicely on a bumper sticker. However, I never really minded being on what might be considered the fringe of the political spectrum of my generation. If I wanted to be a follower, I would have kept my mouth shut, attended Green Day concerts, and pulled the lever for Kerry in '04.
4. On the same note, the music you like sometimes carries with it political messages with which you disagree, and the artists are up there on stage pontificating and proselytizing for candidates and causes you don't support. Does that detract from your appreciation of the music? How do you shut that off and enjoy the music?
I've locked horns with much smarter people than any of these artists who fly their Liberal flags on stage and in their music. Very few of them are saying anything original, and the simplicity and superficiality of their political views make them laughable.
To be honest, this music has become a lot less listenable to me over the past few years. What really pisses me off is that leftist statism now passes for edgy. While I used to be able to simply tune out the political lyrics, I find myself less able to do that.
At least the Ramones are apolitical! I'll always have them.
5. As his producer, what would you say is the most important thing that sets Andrew's show apart from other political talk shows -- what are listeners going to get from him that you won't hear anywhere else?
Andrew's show is really 'full spectrum', if you will. He doesn't just repeat conservative talking points; he explains WHY we believe what we do. The format at Sirius radio really allows him to delve into political theory; we don't have to interrupt the flow with a break every 5 minutes.
The two of us have an incredible amount of passion for the subject matter, so during our show prep, we'll have debates amongst ourselves. Sometimes I'll play devils advocate in order to insure his arguments are airtight. Other times, I'll just play devil's advocate to piss him off.
6. What other radio, if any, do you listen to and enjoy? Who else out there is doing it right?
At the risk of sounding like a company man, I've really fallen in love with Satellite Radio since I was introduced to it. It really brings radio to a new level, in that it's able to narrowcast so effectively. Anything you want is there for you, 24/7. As Wilkow has been known to say, it's like radio porn, there's something for everyone.
Also, I'm a fan of Mark Levin. That guy is pretty smart.
7. Of what are you most proud?
I'd say I'm most proud some of the guests we've been able to pull over to satellite radio, and helping to make Sirius a destination for a lot of political figures who might otherwise have otherwise not have known the value. The day the Mark Foley scandal broke, we were one of only 2 or 3 programs to then speaker of the house Denny Hastert gave time to. We've pulled in some pretty big names over the course of a short period of time. It says a lot about the growing influence of satellite.
8. You were involved in convincing Virgin Atlantic Airlines that it was a bad idea to play the fringe 9/11 conspiracy film "Loose Change" on flights; how did that come about, and what do you think the episode says about the company?
The morning the fact that they were planning to show that film broke, we jumped right on it. I called Virgin Atlantic's headquarters in England and demanded a representative account for their decision. After an initial rejection, I engaged one of their executives in a rather lengthy debate on the merits of playing that piece of conspiratorial nonsense to airline passengers. It was just stupid on so many levels. I guess Virgin Atlantic decided that there's nothing like showing images of history's most well documented air disaster to set a passenger at ease. After my throw down with this executive, they hastily held a meeting in which they decided that perhaps it wasn't the best idea. They immediately issued a statement to us saying that "Virgin Atlantic does not show movies or documentaries that cause mass offence."
Minimally, the incident showed a lack of judgment on the part of Virgin Atlantic. At worst it showed a disregard for their American clients. In the end they made a good decision.
9. Fill in the blank: I can't make it through the day without ________________.
...www.hotair.com. Probably the most well researched and insightful political blog on the net. Also they feature videos of robots humping from time to time.
10. What's the best advice you ever got? The worst?
The best advice I ever got was from my brother who said, get ready to work hard for very little money.
The worst piece of advice I ever got was what a fantastic investing opportunity Enron was...
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