Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, December 17, 1993 TAG: 9312170175
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: A21 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE:
DATELINE: MELANIE S. HATTER LENGTH: Short
WLVA (590 AM) will simulcast the Roanoke station's programs daily from 10 a.m. until 5 a.m. starting Jan. 3. WLVA, owned by Madison Broadcasting, already started airing popular conservative talk show host Rush Limbaugh a year ago, but will broadcast the rest of WFIR's programs beginning next month.
The Lynchburg station will have its own morning show with its own personalities, similar to WFIR's morning show with Frank Murphy.
"We felt that if WFIR had the ability to cover both markets, then the ratings would be stronger," said Terry Gibbons, general manager of WFIR and WPVR (94.9 FM). The news station got a 6.0 audience share in the spring Arbitron ratings, up from 4.6 in 1992.
Gibbons has wanted to reach the Lynchburg side of the market for a long time. He even put in an offer for WJJS (101.7 FM), now owned by the Virginia Network Inc., when WROV-FM (96.3) was trying to buy it.
After exhausting his options for buying a station, Gibbons "worked out an arrangement for WLVA to mirror us," he said. "We feel there was a need for it in Lynchburg that wasn't being filled."
by CNB