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Mark's
Career Capsule
While
in college I had the opportunity to do mornings and help with
programming at KLRC (I also spent a summer doing overnights at
Oldies 95/KLDZ just so I would never run out of "weird caller"
stories :-) ). In 1997 I went to KGBI-Omaha and had the privilege to
be there almost 10 years before I was invited to come back and help
program KLRC and work with our broadcasting students at John Brown
University. I also get to consult Mission Nebraska's My Bridge
Radio network of stations
1.
Personally how do you keep the ministry in the “business”?
To me this all
comes down to priorities and motivation... no matter where you are,
we all have "business" to get done each day, but we also all have
the chance to invest ourselves in people and finding ways to be
about what really matters for eternity.
2. Overall, how is Christian radio different today, from 5 years
ago?
Without question
we're reaching more people; more and more stations are finding a way
to raise their standard of excellence, stay relevant, and reach out
to a greater portion of their community.
3. What do you think are the main characteristics of today’s
Christian radio PD?
I really believe
the best PD's are great coaches, architects, and students. We all
have to find a way to build and grow a great team, blend the art &
science of crafting a compelling on-air product, and ultimately
continue to grown, learn, and adapt to a changing culture. You
probably can't underestimate the value of great mentors. I know how
blessed I've been to have guys like Tom Sommerville, Alan Mason, and
Chuck Finney take me under their wing.
4. What criteria do you require for a song to be played on your
station?
At KLRC our
mission is to communicate hope in Christ so really it comes down to
finding the absolute best songs our target will connect with, and
songs that will support the overall mission and strategy of the
station.
5. What kind of promotions work best for Christian radio?
I've always
believed that the CCM format should own the "community service"
image in any market so we spend a lot of time on those type of
promotions. We're also always looking for relevant promotions that
will reinforce our family-friendly image and break down the
stereotypes that Christian radio is not "fun".
6. How do you think Christian Record labels can better serve
Christian radio?
We're all in
this battle of trying to adapt to a changing media landscape. As
long as the labels continue to help provide compelling content and
we continue to find out how to work together in mutually beneficial
ways, we can have a great partnership.
7. In your opinion what are the biggest obstacles facing Christian
radio today?
Most of us seem
to still struggle with awareness issues and finding ways to market
the benefits of our format to potential listeners.
8. What do you believe is the primary role of the Christian radio
air personality?
We preach to our
on-air staff that their job is to find a way to memorably connect
and build an authentic relationship with the listener... one break
at a time! More and more it's all about what is happing between the
songs that will help stations stay relevant and viable. CCM has a
huge advantage in that when properly communicated, God's love and
the hope of the Gospel is still the most compelling content on
earth!
9. What (if any) Christian radio stations do you consider as
innovators today?
There are a lot
of great stations finding creative ways to reach an audience... for
a long time I've admired what WAY-FM, KLTY, KSBJ, KCMS and an others
have done. The staff at My Bridge Radio are trying some innovative
things in using radio to unite and mobilize and entire state. And
often in spite of me, I have to brag on our incredible team at KLRC,
each does some really creative, amazing work!
10. Where do you see Christian radio in 5 years?
I wish I knew, I
think we're all trying to figure out how audience patterns are going
to shift and what it will take to stay viable. The more we embrace
ourselves as original content providers, and new technology as a
tool to reach people, I believe we can continue to grow. It's a huge
challenge but it's also going to be a lot of fun!
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