KUT FM radio is an immensely popular public radio station in Austin, with imaginative local programming that's the envy of local markets everywhere. Stewart Vanderwilt, KUT's general manager, says, "More than just about any other station, KUT truly sounds like the community it's in."

Austin, Texas -- Live Music Capital of the World. Home of Austin City Limits, Willie Nelson, Jerry Jeff Walker, Marcia Ball, Jimmie Vaughan, Charlie Sexton, and Asleep at the Wheel.

Austin is also the home of The University of Texas and a cultural, artistic, and intellectual center that often tops the annual list of Most Books Purchased Per Capita.

In the 1990s, the Austin metro area grew by a quarter-million people and became a magnet for new development in the high tech industry. Newsweek named Austin "One of the Top Hottest Tech Cities" (1998) and Forbes magazine ranked it "The Number One Place to Make the American Dream" (1999).

In such a fertile environment, can Austin's favorite radio station become the model for local programming all across the country?

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