Idaho Radio News Etc.

The Best of Weekly rolled out its annual Best of Boise reader’s picks this week. This summer, we got the chain newspaper’s chain survey (mmm…. McDonald’s french fries!) – and now we get the local newspaper’s local survey!

See, Boise Weekly (mostly) limits its winners to locally-established businesses and people.

Just like last year, we’re honoring only locally owned and operated businesses that meet our local-business criteria because, let’s face it, this is about honoring the best of Boise, not the best of (insert random U.S. city here)

So. Um. Most media companies aren’t locally owned (shh, don’t tell anyone). In fact, other than the Boise Weekly itself and Impact Radio – Boise has no major commercial media outlets that are actually… local.

Editor Rachel Daigle told me the media carousel presents a unique challenge.

“It’s the one category we have such an issue with year after year,” she said by e-mail. “There are so few of we media people who work for truly independent companies in town.”

But a local DID win the “best radio station” category – albeit one owned by the State of Idaho. KBSX/Boise State Radio News 91 grabbed the top honor.

We like to think BW’s audience is NPR/Boise State Radio’s audience. Why? Plain and simple: Professionally, we respect the hell out of what 91.5 delivers; personally, we’re big listeners ourselves.

Second place was KRVB/94.9 The River – with KSRV/96.1 Bob FM snagging third.

The best DJ category went to a pair of familiar names: Ken & Tim:

Rock test! Name the reigning champions of Best of Boise’s best DJ category. Here’s a hint: There are two of them. Is it A: Bill and Ted, B: Amos and Andy or C: Ken and Tim? Here’s another hint: Their names are in bold nine lines above. Ken Bass and Tim Johnstone, The River’s dynamic morning duo, have been claiming numero uno in this category for so long that we can appropriately refer to them as “The Reigning Champions”

The dynamic river duo also won this award in 2008. And 2007. And ought-six. They didn’t win waaaay back in 2005… but that might be because they didn’t work together then. Just a hunch.

KCIX/Mix 106 morning hosts Mike & Kate got second place this year – with KSAS/103.3 Kiss FM host KeKe Luve grabbing third.

Congrats to all the winners!