Columnist
John Kelso, Austin American-Statesman
Well, this ain't his first rodeo. For six years running, our readers have bootlicked Austin's answer to Dave Barry for his inimitable skill in tweaking our spleens and chuckling our butts. Lordy, he's got the gift of wit; he makes us laugh out loud, and that's a powerful good thing. No doubt about it, this bubba's got his Bud on our pulse.
305 S. Congress, 445-3650
Journalist
Andy Langer, The Austin Chronicle
Andy Langer walks a narrow line as a nationally published journalist and as local deejay on both KUT-FM's Sunday Overnight show and 101X's Next Big Thing. But with feet his size, his steps are solid. One thing Langer emphatically is, is on top of things. He was on the scene of Carole Rylander's self-serving tax raid on Antone's within minutes thanks to a hot tip; that's the kind of chutzpah that will only fuel his career. Andy Langer, we salute you and our readers salute you. But you smoke too much.
4001 N. I-35, 454-5766
http://www.auschron.com
Sportswriter
Coach Cotton, The Austin Chronicle
The Coach would not like for it to be widely known what a softie he is, but it's the truth. That certainly does nothing to diminish the high regard with which our readers hold him, but it goes a long way toward explaining his passion for sports. And is he passionate! Dallas? Phooey! Chicago? Yay! The coach does not dillydally with these things. What's been most fun is reading his rants through the years as his kids grew up, his love life fluctuated, and his dogs wreaked havoc. Kinda like one of the family, our Coach is.
4001 N. I-35, 454-5766
http://www.auschron.com
Photographer
Alan Pogue
This is Alan Pogue's ninth BOA. What words can be said about this Austin legend that his pictures worth far more than a thousand words can't? He's been capturing shards and slices of moments in Texas time for decades. His recent shows on Iraq and on U.S. prisons put it all in black and white.
1701 Guadalupe, 478-8387
http://www.Austin360.com/news/features/national/gallery.html
Radio Station
KGSR 107.1 FM
No Ricky Martin, no genies in bottles, and no retro new wave disco dance party Fridays. Just groovin' music -- even Austin music -- that people love delivered by well-informed and mellow-modulated deejays. Adult contemporary? Adult alternative? The Gee-Zer was all over those before they even had names.
8309 N. I-35, 832-4000
http://www.austin360.com/kgsr/index.htm
Radio Station to Listen to at Work
KGSR 107.1 FM
The executive secretary likes to keep the company dial tuned to classical, just to keep his nose close to the boss' ... you know. The assistant manager changes the thing to "Way Over the Top Wednesday" every chance she gets, while she "gets down" with her bad self. The boss? When no one's looking, the old man bangs his brains out to the local metal station. Can't we all just get along?!? With a format that doesn't overwhelm our working environment, KGSR makes the flourescent lights seem a little mellower, the cubicle walls a little lighter, and Friday a little closer.
8309 N. I-35, 832-4000
http://www.austin360.com/kgsr/index.htm
Austin Talk Radio Host
TIE: Alex Jones, KJFK 98.9 FM; Shannon Burke, KJFK 98.9 FM
Two different takes on the political spectrum, but both from the same station: Go figure. Our readers like KJFK. Some favor Shannon "Shando" Burke's liberal (and sometimes scatological) midday shift, while others go for the extreme libertarianism of Alex Jones' The Final Edition, which keeps listeners up to date on the sinister lurkings of The Delta Force (and in light of the latest Waco revelations, Alex might not be so far out).
12710 Research, 331-9191
http://www.989kjfk.com/
Evening Radio
KUT 90.5 FM
We love to listen. From Selected Shorts to Car Talk, with cool jazz and informed deejays, every night we find something to satisfy our craving for great radio from this longtime favorite. Who'd a-thunk we'd still be enamored with such a low-tech dinosaur as radio? Some things do get better with age. So why haven't we sent in our pledge yet? Hey, it's not too late.
26th & Guadalupe, 471-1631
http://www.kut.org/
Locally Produced Radio Show
Local Live KVRX 91.7 FM
This is Local Live's second take of this award and KVRX's seventh BOA of the decade. Even back in its day as the cable-only KTSB, Texas' only student-run radio station received national recognition as a true-to-form innovator. Local Live, the station's weekly blast of live local music recorded right there in the Moore-Hill dorm studios keeps listeners loyal and true. This past year, KVRX has featured Knife in the Water, Futura, and Tick Tock among its stellar lineup of guests.
Sundays, 10-11 pm, 2500 Whitis, C, 471-5106/495-KVRX
http://www.utexas.edu/students/kvrx/
PM Drive Time Radio Program
All Things Considered, KUT 90.5 FM
Ahhh, take a deep breath. Relax. The world may be imploding, the dog needs walking, the Prozac's running low, but All Things Considered, we're still here, and we can listen in peace to the moderated sounds and civilized voices of public radio at its best. This is indeed the antidote to the shrill cacophony of modern media, a breath of Fresh Air, and we're lucky folks to be amongst the airwaves.
2504 Whitis, 471-1631
Austin Produced TV Show
Austin City Limits, KLRU 9
Year after year, this local mainstay rocks out on top. Must we reiterate why? Great local and national acts. Years and years on the air. Loyal supporters who tune in every week. Or maybe it's just the stripped-to-the-bone-gut-rumbling-hip-rocking-good-time music that shakes the KLRU set every week and made all those ugly rusted metal plates fall off of the Communications Building's old facade.
2504-B Whitis, 471-4811
http://www.klru.org/
Public Access TV Show
Reel Deal, ACAC cable 16
This show may be little more than a crass attempt on the part of the hosts to grab whatever free goods and services they can squeeze out of the Hollywood's bloated PR departments. But it also happens to be the most hilarious show on access. Host Korey Coleman and friends mix promotional clips and no-nonsense reviews with goofily irreverent skits and digressions that are often more entertaining than the Hollywood flicks they make reference to. Wednesdays at 10pm.
1143 Northwestern, 478-8600
http://www.thereeldeal.com
http://www.eden.com/~actv/new.website/
TV Newscast
KVUE 24
For six years running you have voted KVUE your most reliable, best all-around newscast. Perennial BOA favorite Judy Maggio is certainly a draw, but there's got to be more to a good newscast than its anchor. Chalk it up to a great writing staff and good judgement on the part of the news editors, along with the talent in front of the camera.
3201 Steck, 459-6521
http://www.kvue.com/
TV Anchor Person
Judy Maggio, KVUE 24
She's gone and won it again. We count this as the eighth BOA for the KVUE anchor, which is almost half of her station's total wins. We won't argue with your fine choice, either. With a delivery somewhere between mother, teacher, minister, and pal, she conveys the news with warmth, authority, intelligence, and sincerity every night, right into our homes.
3201 Steck, 459-6521
http://www.kvue.com/
TV Reporter
Quita Culpepper, KVUE 24
The management at KLBJ-AM was reportedly greatly saddened by Culpepper's recent jump from radio to television, and with good reason -- they lost an excellent broadcast journalism talent. Now on your small screen, Culpepper has impressed us with her ability to get a handle on hard news issues and concisely explain why they matter. She fits in well with what was already the best newscast in town.
3201 Steck, 459-6521
http://www.kvue.com/
Sportscaster
Andy Liscano, K-EYE 42
No wonder our readers love Liscano. He projects an affable loutishness with just enough dedicated professionalism to keep him credible. Fans think of him as "one of us," not some Ken-doll talking head spouting the latest scores or Sports Illustrated retread. Recent broadcasts hinted at a bit of a change of image, however, for the roly-poly reporter. His sexy new close-cropped hairdo and leaner, meaner gridiron girth just might make him completely irresistable to a whole new legion of fans.
10700 Metric, 835-0042
http://www.keye.com
Weather Person
Jim Spencer, KXAN 36
Jim's competitors don't come within spitting distance of reaching this holy man of weather prognostication. An Oklahoma boy whose fascination with the skies was honed growing up in the heart of tornado alley, Jim has won every weather-broadcasting award there is. He established the Live Weathernet with 75 sites at schools and fire stations all around Central Texas to give us the real look at local weather. Unfortunately, some competing weather vanes feel South Austin stops at Ben White, or that a weeklong forecast is cool, even if not accurate. Jim's Future Forecast is seldom wrong, and the new VIPIR 3-D radar system illustrates each tiny component of every thunderhead, layer-by-layer. Jim surfs the cutting edge of new weather technology, and it's no wonder that our atmospheric freak readers chose Spencer as the weather guru worthy of weekday worship at 6 and 10.
908 W. MLK, 476-3636
http://www.kxan.com@cutline:
