The Ghost Station

“The Ghost Station” is a fictional oral history from Strange Horizons featuring interviews about a mysterious radio broadcaster named Zelda Zhang. In summer 1992, a group of young women in Rockford, Illinois discovered a pirate radio station called Radio MQZ broadcasting from the “Midwest Quarantine Zone,” a post-apocalyptic version of their region. Zelda Zhang appeared on Friday nights, playing punk and alternative songs with commentary, only receivable through car radios despite attempts to record her on other equipment. The broadcasts inspired listeners including Crystal Herrera, Hessy Church, Charlotte Purdy, L.J. Stewart, and Glory Owens-Whitehead to form bands and pursue music. The nature of Zelda’s broadcasts—whether a prank, supernatural phenomenon, or something else—remains ambiguous throughout the accounts.

Original article published on Strange Horizons — AI-generated summary. Read the full article at the source.