Radio Matters Always

 

(Photo: CNN)

A woman named Tricia is trying to find her sister Tamara on Bear Creek Road in Asheville, NC.

I know this because I'm listening to WWNC Radio from Asheville.

In truth, through the magic of "corporate radio," the duo I'm listening to are broadcasting from Greenville, SC but transmitting over WWNC and other iHeart Radio outlets.

While that's not my favorite, I think you have to do what you have to do.

Certainly, on the night of Superstorm Sandy, I was in the studio until we lost power. But, with no generator, once the lights went dark, we were done. There was no other option for us. We are an independent station. There was no other option, other than we should have had a generator.

"Boots on the ground" as the saying goes, is always best but, in truth, who knows what the conditions are at the WWNC studios in Asheville? Far be it for me to judge them under the circumstances. Given the historic amount of flooding in Asheville, along with power loss, there might be no way to be on the air from their studios. From what I'm hearing, they lost their fiber optic services and so they were off the air.

Regardless, these people anchoring remotely are doing phenomenal work. They're getting whatever phone calls and messages that they can and relaying them.

A big shout-out to Aaron Michael and Kix Layton for the work they're doing tonight. I don't even know if they have a background in news and information but they're crushing it.

They're explaining where the shelters are. They're relaying the messages of what gas stations have fuel. They're saying which roads are open, given the news is reporting that Asheville is closed off to the outside world. The reports are the roads are washed out and Asheville is currently only accessible via air.

But they're explaining more than just Asheville. They're talking about the surrounding area.

They're also taking gutwrenching phone calls. The emotions have run wild. They just took a phone call from Mark Starling, morning host on WWNC. He choked up talking about the events of the last few days. He also said there are trees down all over the access road to the radio station and he'll be back to work on clearing things up on Sunday morning. 

Radio goes on.

Stations like this are often what's known as "voice tracked." Chances are, none of these stations aren't normally live, with the "voices" having been recorded days or hours earlier. Or, as you might know, the program originates over a satellite from somewhere else.

In this case, these two people are live -- granted over an hour outside of Asheville -- but they're local and on top of the news.

I've done things like this, during the Superstorm but also during snow storms and things like that. It takes a calm voice, a firm presence, but also a lot of empathy and patience. These times can get chaotic.

The compassion these two hosts are showing is wonderful. It's truly positive and supportive while remaining realistic.

Sure, they're repeating themselves at times but that's the nature of an audience. New listeners come and go all the time so it's best to repeat. I'm sure that can be frustrating to hear as a listener but please be patient with them.

Radio, since the very beginning, has been about information as well as entertainment. The very beginnings of commercial radio. -- yes, the history is somewhat murky -- featured presidential election night results in 1920 on KDKA in Pittsburgh.

Since then, Pearl Harbor, D-Day, the JFK assassination, Vietnam, Watergate, the Challenger disaster, the Gulf War, Sep 11, and too many weather events have played out on the radio.

Obviously, TV is so important as well but when we do it right, we all work together.

These guys are crushing it and doing an enormously important job.

We sadly see historic events like this frequently.

Even in this era of radio broadcasting, it's good to know that we can find a way to get the information to those who need it.

Sending support to these broadcasters with thanks for what they're doing.

Sending love and best wishes to those impacted by this storm.