One: In an age of corporate domination of the media, KCSB 91.9 FM provides independent, non-commercial programming. No sponsors to offend, no bottom lines calling the tunes. Have you ever heard Tuvan throat singing? Grindcore? Twee? KCSB takes you places you might never expect to be otherwise led, with lesser-known music of all genres, independent news, public affairs, cultural arts, and UCSB sports.

Two: Only KCSB is on the ground and in our town: opening our doors to all, offering free year-round media training to individuals and groups who would not otherwise have access to radio resources, and giving all of our community access to the public airwaves. No experience necessary!

Three: Bummed that you won’t get see His Holiness The Dalai Lama’s sold out lectures at UCSB on April 24? Tune into KCSB that day to hear an exclusive live broadcast of both his talks that day, free of charge. We’re excited to bring you special broadcast events like these, Sen. Hillary Clinton’s town hall meeting at UCSB, and former President Bill Clinton’s conversation at the Arlington Theatre with Paul Orfalea, and others. KCSB also sponsors numerous films, concerts, and lectures in our community. What’s more, a portion of our fund-drive proceeds go into producing public lectures by Democracy Now!‘s Amy Goodman and Jeremy Scahill (Blackwater), an occasional film premiere, and unique concerts by local and independent artists (including a spring 2008 festival at La Casa de la Raza that featured a live simulcast). As we ask for your financial support only once a year, you might say we’re the cheapest ticket in town.

Four: KCSB calls attention to events in our area with PSAs [public service announcements], interviews, news reports, live in-studio performances, and airplay for touring and local bands. We’re a hugely significant part of the intellectual and cultural life of this region. And we have a broad global awareness to boot.

Five: KCSB is powered by volunteerism. We receive no money from the University of California. UCSB students voluntarily elect to keep the station alive with their student fees. All of our shows are produced by volunteers, as KCSB pays no one to create our programs. We get by with a fraction of the budget of comparable radio stations. We hope that you will volunteer your financial support to sustain and grow our operations as well.

Six: Your donation can buoy our hosts for months – more than words of encouragement or a call to our request line, which are of course also always appreciated. With this financial support, you become an important part of our community – as a KCSB member – and can claim cool thank-you gifts as well. By selecting a KCSB hoodie, T-shirt, or coffee mug, you too can show your KCSB pride!

Seven: Somebody always answers the phone in the KCSB studios. Make a request. Express your opinions. Make a donation. Or just let us know you’re there.

Eight: Because we’re peopled 24/7, we’re able to cover area disasters such as the recent Gap and Tea fires. We have backup generators, so even when you have no electricity, your portable radio can still receive our signal. That capacity was part of the reason we and The Santa Barbara Independent developed a partnership to cover local emergencies.

We hope you appreciate such operations and show your support for KCSB by calling (805) 893-2424 through February 8 or by donating online at kcsb.org. (Twenty-five percent of this year’s fund-drive proceeds will be contributed to Carla and Lance Hoffman.)

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