Radio stations low on power, high on enthusiasm
Despite trying times, 2 low-powered FM outfits stay focused
by Tony Kiss, This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
published April 30, 2006 12:15 am

ASHEVILLE -- If you measure them only by the watt, Asheville's two low-powered FM radio stations barely make a blip on the airwaves.

Limited by strength and other federal regulations, WPVM/LP and WRES/LP hardly cover the city of Asheville or a bit beyond with their over-the-air signals. But more than two years after going on the air, these two little nonprofit broadcasters have made a big impact with listeners, offering unique and very local programming.


credit: JOHN COUTLAKIS, This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it At low-powered radio station WRES, announcer Harry "Hippie" McLaughlin entertains a weeknight audience with a show of R&B and soul music at 100.7 on the FM dial. He is one of many volunteers who work at Asheville's two small, low-powered radio stations.

Cornell Proctor never misses a day without tuning to WRES at 100.7-FM. "It's the music and the talk shows -- they're of such an interest to the black community," he said. "We have no other access (to the airwaves)."

John Hayes, founder and afternoon drive deejay at WRES-FM, working hard behind the mic. (1,307 KB)

Across town, Jim Brown started listening to WPVM at 103.5-FM "the first week they went on the air,' he said. 'I have met many of the people who do shows on WPVM and am very impressed with the quality (of the local programs)."

The staffs of both stations produce a rich rainbow of shows, programming not found on commercial stations.

At WPVM, there are 31 locally-produced programs, ranging from "Let Loose the Kraken" (freeform music, 9 p.m. Mondays) to "Frecuencia Latina" (an all-Spanish Latin news magazine, 6:30 p.m. Tuesday-Friday).

At WRES, the music has a gospel/soul/urban flavor, with informational programs on housing opportunities, credit counseling and "any arena that provides service to people," said station founder John Hayes, whose voice is a near-constant presence on the station with morning and afternoon programs. "It is geared to empower people of low wealth."

Very local radio

Low-powered FM radio stations were approved in 2000 by the Federal Communications Commission. They must be nonprofit and are limited to 100 watts or less.

Both stations rely on volunteers, listener contributions and underwriting for financial support. Neither operates with taxpayer money. Hayes said WRES was given $4,000 from the city of Asheville and $5,000 from Buncombe County in startup funds. But WPVM "has never received a dime of local, state or federal money," said Wally Bowen, director of the Mountain Area Information Network, which holds that station's license.

Neither station endorses particular political candidates. But at WPVM, progressive political analysis and commentary is a key component of programming.

Different formats

With a street-front studio in the Vanderbilt Apartments building, WPVM offers a "a progressive grassroots voice" and eclectic mix of music, Bowen said.

Just a few blocks away, WRES is run by the Empowerment Resource Center of Asheville and Buncombe County. Its studios are on Patton Avenue, facing Coxe Avenue. Neither is listed by the Arbitron survey of commercial stations, or has any definitive way of measuring its audience size.

More than 700 LP stations are broadcasting nationally, said Hannah Sassaman, program director with the Prometheus Radio Project of Philadelphia, which assists in launching these tiny community broadcasters.

"Low-powered (radio) has been an incredible success with the limitations they are forced to exist under," she said. "You find them in Asheville and in Spokane, Wash., where they have survived and thrived and helped enrich the debate." Programming is "extremely wide" in its scope, she said. "The only theme is that it is local. It's made by real people in their communities, reflecting what the community wants to hear."

Progressive voice

In May 2003, WPVM became Asheville's first licensed micro-broadcaster, with WRES arriving at that year's end. Both stations are on round the clock, with live announcers in the prime daytime and evening hours.

Bowen estimates that 50 to 60 volunteers participate at WPVM in a given week. Not all are on the air, he said. Some help get financial support, while others "take care of the light bulbs or door that needs fixing."

Kimberly Miller, who hosts "Sundry Muse Cafe" on WPVM, keeps a busy schedule as a full-time Warren Wilson College student, with jobs off- and on-campus. But she volunteers "because I feel there is always something to debate," and "because I believe in the power of information," she said. "I do it because I know that people rely on WPVM."

No WPVM program is guaranteed to air indefinitely, Bowen said. Each quarter, the station considers proposals for new shows and decides on its next schedule. "We want to be sure there is room for new voices," he said.

Community ties

Hayes, who is also president of the Asheville NACCP chapter, has been a local radio and community fixture for decades, and was an announcer on the old long-gone Asheville urban station WBMU-FM. He spends "usually 10 hours a day" at WRES, but is assisted by a half-dozen or more volunteer announcers.

The "Harry Hippie" program, on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday evenings, is hosted by Harry McLaughlin, who worked with Hayes at WBMU.

"We have listeners young and old," he said. "We try to mix it up the best you can with new and old music. I am more R&B, not a hip-hop person at all," he said. He's called himself Harry Hippie since the 1970s, from the Bobby Womack hit of the same name.

He hosts the show "for community involvement, really," he said. "It's a way of giving back. And it gives me an outlet," said McLaughlin, who is disabled with a bad hip. "It makes you feel like you can do something."

What's next

At WPVM, the biggest challenge is the over-the-air signal, which is overwhelmed in some places by a Knoxville, Tenn., station on the same frequency. The station could improve its signal by moving its transmitter closer to Asheville, but is prohibited by "antiquated FCC rules," Bowen said. He is hopeful that the agency will 'update those regulations." And the station is always online to a worldwide audience at www.wpvm.org.

At WRES, Hayes hopes to soon get its signal on the Web. "We want to serve this community," he said.

Though terrestrial radio is a century old, it remains a powerful force, said Sassaman from the Prometheus Radio Project. "It is a media that is cheap to run, that resonates relevance and is not going to die," she said.