Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, July 13, 1990 TAG: 9007140418
SECTION: SMITH MOUNTAIN TIMES PAGE: SMT-11 EDITION: BEDFORD/FRANKLIN
SOURCE: CHRISTINA A. SAMUELS STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: BEDFORD LENGTH: Medium
In fact, it would be easy to mistake the radio station, for a house, if the call letters on the side and the satellite dish didn't give it away.
The broadcast studio, where station manager Jim Patterson is pulling double duty as an on-air personality, has a control panel, a chair, a microphone and two turntables. Nothing special, nothing fancy.
But the wall behind the radio announcer's seat reveals the station's riches. Shelves filled from floor to ceiling with record albums, including Gilbert and Sullivan show tunes, Motown oldies and Billy Joel pop hits.
Across the hall is another room devoted to storing the rest of WBLT's music collection. Many of the albums are the 78s and 18-inch records that were used when the station started broadcasting. WBLT, which can be found at 1350 on the AM dial, celebrated its 40th anniversary this February.
Although the music library is formidable, ratings show the station has only a small percentage of the listeners in this area tuned in. The latest Arbitron ratings for the Roanoke/Lynchburg metro area, taken in the fall of 1989, show WBLT has about 6,000 listeners. WXLK, better known as K92, the market ratings leader, has about 20 times the audience of WBLT.
But Patterson said daytime-only WBLT has an advantage over the larger radio stations.
"We're Bedford. They can't be all things to all people, no matter what they say."
If people don't want to know what's going on in Bedford, they don't want to listen to WBLT, Patterson said. Although the station does national news, Bedford is the home as well as the focus of WBLT, and the whole county is treated like family.
The idea of family extends to the station's format. Listeners can hear a "Talk Back" program, during which they can question county and city administrators, local baseball games, or even lost-pet alerts - not exactly standard radio programming.
A large part of the broadcasts are public service announcements. The walls of the outer office are lined with plaques from organizations such as 4-H and the Little Town Players, all thanking the station for its help publicizing various events.
And sandwiched between the news and announcements is a mix of what WBLT calls "adult contemporary music," which can include top-40 and hits of the 1940s in the same hour.
Patterson, wearing a white baseball cap with "WBLT" across the front, says working with the radio station is fun but a lot of work. "In a small-town radio station, everyone does everything. . . . You're very flexible."
Patterson has been with the station since 1961. His wife, formerly Angie Ayers, was Miss Bedford County of 1962. "One of the few [couples] who are still married," Patterson said laughing.
Another on-air personality is Mark Jones, who works in the mornings and during the afternoon "drive time" from 3 to 5. Jones was 14 when he got his first radio job, and now, with seven years experience, he knows the business.
But even the experts have their bad days. Jones remembers putting on "MacArthur Park" by Richard Harris and leaving the room. When he came back a few minutes later, the record was skipping at "bake the cake, bake the cake, bake the cake. . . ."
That song is now avoided.
Occupational hazards aside, Jones enjoys the responsibility of working at a small station. "You don't put up with the hassle of a big staff. . . . You wear more hats."
The extensive music collection of the station is also an enticement to Jones. During the station's 40th anniversary celebration, Patterson and Jones played songs from the '40s to the present.
They also found jingles the station was using in the '40s, '50s, and '60s to play between the songs. "It's like a library," Jones said.
Jones tapes his radio shows and listens to himself in his car to improve his performances. He also keeps a piece of paper taped to his sun visor, so if he comes up with a good idea to share with his radio family, he can write it down.
WBLT might increase its broadcast power or apply for a FM license soon, but Patterson wouldn't give any details. He explained, laughing, that in the radio business you never want anybody else to know what you're doing. But, he said, "the gamut is wide open."
by CNB