Broadcasting on 105.9 FM out of Lawrence, Kansas "The Lazer" was originally a modern rock radio station with a largely alternative format, but while still having a wide variety of lesser-known and sometimes harder fare. This attracted them a large following in the surrounding college town as well as in Kansas City and Manhattan, Kansas (home of Kansas State University).
Support for the local music scene was excellent. Aside from sponsoring numerous concerts in the area they had an excellent Sunday-night show broadcasting live from local venues. They heavily supported local bands giving them a significant portion of airtime and often were instrumental in helping to launch a band towards bigger and better things most notably for Ultimate Fakebook and Frogpond.
In the fall of 1999, however, they switched formats to Top 40 with heavy amounts of rap and hip-hop. The change created a void which no other station has since attempted to fill and leaving the market (a large portion of eastern Kansas) without anything similar. This was apparently based on surveys conducted in Topeka rather than Lawrence itself. One of the most memorable quotes about this dealt with making a station that "mothers and daughters could listen to together". A massive boycott campaign developed almost immediately not only of the station, but also their sponsors to express the large fanbase that was lost in the format change, an act that predictably did nothing to change things.