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Daryl's
Career Capsule
I
started out in 1986 at a Contemporary Christian station, WNZR, at
Mount Vernon Nazarene College. While I was a student, I worked
part-time for a Top 40 station, WQIO in Mount Vernon Ohio, and WTLT,
a Contemporary Christian station out of Columbus, Ohio. After I
graduated, the college hired me on as Station Manager (1989-1991).
I did that for two years and then I heard about a new station going
on the air in Cincinnati. I pursued a job there and about three
months before it went on the air, I was hired at WNLT (1991), to
help get things ready. After a year there, finances were an issue
and the owner put it on an automated Christian Network. I went to
mainstream AC station WARM 98 (1991-1993) and worked part-time for
two years. During this time I was hired at WAKW (1992-Present).
Once I was hired full-time at WAKW, I left WARM 98.
1.
Personally how do you keep the ministry in the “business”?
Not to sound all
spiritual, but there are some verses that I try to live by which
address this.
Colossians
3:23-24 (New International Version)
v23Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for
the Lord, not for men, 24since you know that you will receive an
inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are
serving.
If I truly do
this, I am giving my best. I believe my best leads to strong
business.
2. Overall, how is Christian radio different today, from 5 years
ago?
The
professionalism is much greater, the music, the talent.
3. What do you think are the main characteristics of today’s
Christian radio PD?
To encourage
talent to connect with listeners. We do that by being real and
delivering snippets of life in an interesting way.
4. What criteria do you require for a song to be played on your
station?
This is probably
a "no-brainer", but it has to hit the target audience. It needs to
be a great song. Trying to decipher between a good song and a great
song is the challenge. I will look at the charts, too, as a
reference tool. If it reaches the Top 5 and I'm not on it, I will
accept not being perfect once again and try to add it soon.
5. What kind of promotions work best for Christian radio?
Those which are
easy to understand, easy to do, and have a decent payoff.
6. How do you think Christian Record labels can better serve
Christian radio?
It really is
a two-way street. We need to serve each other, which doesn't mean
giving in and playing a song when labels are pushing me to, but we
are in this together to ultimately provide opportunities
for listeners to draw closer to God.
7. In your opinion what are the biggest obstacles facing Christian
radio today?
The lack of
finances which effects the awareness factor. Another one is making
sure the business side doesn't misguide our decisions.
8. What do you believe is the primary role of the Christian radio
air personality?
If we're doing
it right, people see us as a friend. One way to achieve that is
by providing content that relates on an emotional level.
9. What (if any) Christian radio stations do you consider as
innovators today?
KSBJ, WPOZ, and
KCMS.
10. Where do you see Christian radio in 5 years?
More stations
will lose their "Christianese" sound while still delivering the
Christian message by using relatable speech. Stations that are
doing that today will be some of the leaders in their markets, if
they're not already.
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