Bad Fiction Radio and the Gangs of Downtown

Another aspect of Bad Fiction Radio is its following amongst Downtown adolescents, particularly those who belong to the majority of the organised gangs there. While most gangs will not consider themselves beholden to any of the Rival Company operatives who operate in their turf, and indeed will sell information on them to Operatives for the right price, the Gangs themselves are extremely protective of Bad Fiction, which, as stated before, has managed to shed its former image as a DarkNight puppet station, and transmuted itself into the voice of an independent Downtown.

As such, most gangs, even those with diametrically opposed views, ethnicity, or just long-established grudges can find common cause in their support of BFR. The very fact that not only does BFR act as a 'Voice of Downtown', play up to the minute music, provide an acceptable form of 'rebellious' entertainment media, but also gives the gangs a voice that can be heard across Downtown gives the Station a great deal of currency with them.

3 gangs are represented from amongst the DJs who broadcast over BFR; The Johannes, KrossTown Traffik, and a little known gang called the Dream Weavers. Because of these gangs deep involvement in this media sensation, Operatives seeking information on Bad Fiction through their usual (or unusual) contacts with the Downtown street gangs will at best find themselves blanked or frozen out; at worst, gangs have been known to tip off BFR, DarkNight, or even organise ambushes or traps themselves in order to protect their precious station.

Amongst the gangs of Downtown, BFR has also served another, slightly more insidious purpose. Nowadays, Bad Fiction is considered 'neutral' amongst the gangs of Downtown due to its cross-culture appeal. As an upshot of this, Bad Fiction clothing as become something of a 'white flag' between warring gangs. Members of rival gangs looking to negotiate will prominently wear a Bad Fiction bandanna, T-shirt or similar, in order to ask for free passage to negotiate. Of course, this is far from a given; dependant on the psychoses of the gang, or the depth of the rivalry, this can be completely ignored on occasion; however, amongst the more reasonable (as if there were such a thing) gangs, people sporting BFR clothing are more likely to at least be questioned before they are set upon.

The upshot of this is that BFR is working in some ways to provide a unity between the gangs in Downtown, directed against the Operatives of SLA Industries. All 3 gang DJ's, especially 'The Jet' of the Dream Weavers, often espouse a greater co-operation between the gangs in resisting the efforts of SLA to 'take what's theirs'. Of course, they aren't suggesting peace, love and unity between themselves; after all, they are gangs, and have their pride - but a temporary alliance of prominent gangs could and does make things all the more hard for Operatives operating in Downtown, which is a result DarkNight and Bad Fiction Radio are justly proud of.

Bad Fiction Radio Gang Personalities

Blink Blink

Blink Blink is the representative of the Johannes Gang amongst BFR's broadcast team - and his show 'Cock Crow' is without a doubt very popular, especially amongst a certain subset of BFR listeners.

It's commonly believed that Blink is absolutely, totally, and constantly stoned. He defines stoned. His show consists of a non-stop loop of mixed dark and brooding drum beat music, samples, with Blink rambling half-nonsense over the top of it. Blink has a deep soothing voice, and people with altered consciousness due to relaxants such as Flip have described his show as 'amazing' and 'mind expanding'.

Blink's mandatory News Reports are also considered to be some the best listening on BFR. Blink will, quite slowly and occasionally stumbling, read the news brief he's been given by the BFR team, but will follow each news item with some deep, cryptic, sometime meaningful/sometimes gibberish statement which makes listening to his reports either extremely deep and philosophical or incredibly funny, depending on your outlook, state of mind, and exactly how stoned Blink is at any one time.

There has been some concern amongst those in high office about the nature of Blink's ramblings. Certain words used infrequently by him (Legba, Loa, Hougon) have been flagged by Cloak Division, and transmissions monitored by Station containing these key phrases are immediately copied to Cloak Division as part of an ongoing investigation. Beyond this, however, nothing more has been done at this time.

As a side note, Blink Blinks constant state of intoxication has lead to a new slang term for intoxication through pot or Flip. Someone intoxicated on these substances are occasionally referred to as 'Blinkered' or 'On the Blink', and the act of getting high has become known as 'Blinking' in some circles.

One Downtown resident, Helen, a member of the Dumb Blondes gang, was heard to pronounce 'I like blinking, I do' when asked about this phenomenon (Sorry, in joke for UK residents only there…).

Wire

Wire is KrossTown Traffik's party girl extraordinare. A hard drinking, drug taking 24-hour party person and all round bubbly riot grrl, her show 'The Scene' is considered one of the finest guides to the underground party places in Downtown. Wire loves to have a good time, and in the course of her short life, she claims to have been to just about every club, gig or nightspot that is worth visiting.

Her shows are pretty much always the same vicarious trip into the heart of Downtown's entertainment sector, and it acts very much as a guide as to which clubs are fashionable and which are not. Her music tastes tend towards the up and bouncy, and her Saturday evening show is almost considered a 'must-listen' for those Downtowners preparing for a night of recreational fun.

Wire's broadcasts help both KT and BFR in a very subtle way; because of the lifestyle she leads, and the fun she has, Wire's transmissions are responsible for an upsurge in recruitment to KT; a number of youths listening to her show are often swayed by the argument 'She's a KT, and look at all the fun she's having…', and thus set out to join up. For BFR, the increase in numbers of a gang with known anti-SLA tendencies can only be good in the long run.

Wire's thrilling lifestyle and street-fashion sense have made her /the/ Downtown pin-up. In fact, were any agents from SLA able to get close enough to her through the ring of protective gangers, a career in the spotlight would inevitably await her. However, neither KT nor BFR want to see that happen. To have one of their media icons appear on SLA TV would dilute the credibility both BFR and KT have built up on her success, and so they continue to deflect and destroy the Updown lifeline reaching out from Central to Wire; who, did she know, would jump at the chance to 'go legit'.

The Jet

The Jet is a prominent member of a small, but respected gang operating out of a few square blocks of Downtown level 3. What makes this gang, the Dream Weavers, worthy of a slot on BFR is the position of utter neutrality the Weavers hold.

Weavers membership is made up exclusively of young and creative talents, budding artists, designers and the like, and what makes them truly popular (as well as guaranteeing their neutrality) is not the size of their turf, but what it contains.

An old abandoned textile factory, located in the area the Weavers call home, has been refurbished over the long years, and for almost 60 years, the Weavers have been responsible for the large glut of gang-logo and gang-oriented street clothes often found on gang members. All members of the Weavers are responsible to designing, creating and manufacturing clothing for themselves and a large percentage of the other gangs in Downtown. Independent street-fashion shops in Downtown go to the Weavers for new ranges.

As a result, the Weavers as both wealthy enough to hire a large number of competent Props to protect their turf, and respected by almost every gang on Mort as a provider of important (to them, anyway) resources regardless of gang affiliation.

This neutrality amongst the Downtown gangs regarding the Weavers also means that they are often used and intermediaries and go between for delicate negotiations between gangs; people dare not attack the Weavers, for fear of retribution from every other gang in Downtown - that’s how many favours they are owed.

This relationship and understanding allows The Jet's show, 'The Walkway' to give a clear and accurate view of the events in 'gangland' across Downtown. Almost something of a gangland newsletter, The Walkway charts the movements and activities of any of Mort's prominent gangs, and in many ways is comparable, though in a very different way, to Vox Pop's 'Complex Thoughts' show, or Innocence's 'SitVacs' show.

The Jet is always remarkably candid in his assessment of a gangs activities and position in the social ladder, a habit which has left him with a great deal of personal animosity amongst several of the Downtown gangs. Were he not protected by his affiliation with the Dream Weavers, or if the gangs though they could get at him without anyone knowing, The Jet would soon find his life very difficult indeed.

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