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Posted on Sun, Sep. 27, 2009 09:49 AM
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The Buzz 96.5’s Afentra and Lazlo split shifts on air and at home

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Fluffy white clouds hug the bright blue sky, while the sun glows above Johnson County.

Sitting at a picnic table, underneath a thick canopy of trees, Afentra smiles and takes a sip of water.

“Transvestite.”

“Fat.”

“Stupid.”

With her tired eyes peering through dark-rimmed glasses and her brown hair loosely tied in a ponytail, the 34-year-old mom rattles off the latest insults. Every morning her inbox is stuffed with nasty, name-calling e-mails.

But recounting them to her husband doesn’t dampen her mood on this mellow Saturday afternoon, a perfect day for a family outing to the Overland Park Farmers Market.

Sitting at a picnic table in downtown Overland Park, dressed in T-shirts and jeans, the two seem like all the other parents. Lazlo picks up their 2-year-old son, Jon, making him giggle. Afentra calls out a question to her mom. Her dad watches the scene in amusement. Grilled cheese sandwiches and Coke cans are spread out on the table.

•••

Afentra and her husband, Lazlo, 37, are two of the best-known names in Kansas City radio. Afentra, who has Greek ancestry, heads “Afentra’s Big Fat Morning Buzz” at 96.5 the Buzz; her husband hosts the afternoon show “The Church of Lazlo” at the same station. Afentra uses her real name as a radio personality. Lazlo is a professional name. Both choose not to disclose their full names publicly.

Their liberal views, scandalous topics and vulgar language have helped bring in more listeners to the alternative radio station in the past decade.

Lazlo’s afternoon show ranks second in ratings for Kansas City area male and female listeners 18 to 34; Afentra’s morning show ranks fourth for the same demographic.

But their personalities have also brought them a lot of hostile reactions.

The popular disc jockeys are used to receiving vicious e-mails and being verbally accosted in public. It comes with the job.

Lazlo recently ruffled feathers by saying on the air that he felt many “old” people who didn’t support President Barack Obama’s health care plan weren’t aware of all the facts.

The same day, a listener chastised him in an e-mail for freely using the word “retarded” during his show. Lazlo offered a heartfelt apology and promised to donate money to the Special Olympics every time he used the term.

The disc jockey has a habit of being politically incorrect. Another week he took a crack at homosexuals.“I came home and found Afentra asleep and this horrible movie, ‘Mamma Mia!,’ was on TV,” Lazlo said. “I thought a gay man had broken into our house and trashed the place.”

Lazlo insists, however, that he doesn’t use offensive terms to hurt people. He uses them jokingly. For instance, he would never call a mentally disabled kid “retarded,” he says. But he might not think twice about using the term on a buddy.

Similarly, he says, he has no prejudices against gays, despite the jokes.

Afentra is a big supporter of gay rights, particularly gay marriage, and calls her political views “left, left and left again” on her Facebook page.

Their in-your-face liberalism doesn’t sit well with some conservative Kansas City residents.

“I’m used to people coming up to me in public and calling me a fat (freaking) liberal (dirtbag), and I’m OK with it,” Lazlo says. “If I didn’t want to hear that, I wouldn’t be in radio, I would be working at Home Depot. People aren’t going to say that to the guy who works at Home Depot, but they feel they can say it to me.”

To reach Jennifer Bhargava, call 816-234-7737 or send e-mail to jbhargava@kcstar .com.

Posted on Sun, Sep. 27, 2009 09:49 AM
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