THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Tuesday, January 16, 1996 TAG: 9601160265
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY CRAIG SHAPIRO, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Short : 37 lines
While others were observing Martin Luther King Jr. Day with marches and church services, deejay Henry ``The Bull'' Del Toro was in the bathroom of WROX-FM - reading the slain civil rights leader's ``I Have a Dream'' speech on the air.
Monday wasn't the first time Del Toro, co-host of the ``Perry Stone and The Bull Show,'' has broadcast from the 96X john. He's read poetry, letters to the editor of The Virginian-Pilot, Richard Nixon's resignation and the Declaration of Independence.
It's part and parcel of his morning schtick, Del Toro said.
``When I gotta go I gotta go, and I bring something to read,'' he said. ``Sometimes, it's box scores. This just happened to be the `I Have a Dream' speech. It doesn't deviate from anything we've done in the past. It's a regular feature.
``I wasn't making fun of Dr. King or his philosophies. This is about freedom of speech, and Dr. King advocated freedom of speech, if I'm not mistaken.''
Bob Sinclair, vice president of WROX and WNIS-AM, said no one called the station to complain. He also defended his on-air crew.
``I give them total freedom,'' he said. ``They know the rules. They know where the boundaries are. Both have been broadcasters for years and years. Both have been fined by the FCC, and they've learned from their mistakes.
``My personal comment would be a general statement to anyone who's offended by what Perry and Henry say: lighten up.'' by CNB