Interview with president, general manager of MD radio station

Daily Record, The (Baltimore), Feb 18, 2005 by Kara Kridler

WYPR, Maryland's National Public Radio affiliate, celebrates its third anniversary this month. The station - which produces more than 20 different local programs -is building a statewide presence.

With the purchase of a Frederick station last year, WYPR's signal, located at 88.1 FM, now reaches from Chestertown to Hagerstown. Its next priority is extending the signal to the Eastern Shore.

To discuss the growth of the station, its programming and the changing landscape of radio, station President and General Manager Tony Brandon sat down with The Daily Record last week for a question- and-answer session. Below are excerpts of our conversation.

WYPR is celebrating its third anniversary this month. Will you talk a little bit about how the station has performed and grown during this time?

We started three years ago in February. At the time we acquired the station, it was showing significant losses. The revenue was static. The acquisition required that we borrow money, which would add additional financial pressure - the interest and amortization costs. So we looked for ways to immediately reverse the financial stress on the station.

In our focus groups we determined a number of subjects that would help the radio station connect to this community in a more meaningful way. We added a number of programs that were both supportive of business and supportive of the arts and cultural institutions in the community. We were able to bring small businesses and large businesses into supporting the station.

Some of the programs we added - the morning economic report with Anirban Basu - [last] week we started the Greater Baltimore Committee commentaries with Don Fry. Other programs, Radio Kitchen; Skywatch; Media Matters; Gilbert Sandler's Baltimore Stories; Sports at Large with Milton Kent; Digital Cafe; Cellar Notes; Your Maryland, which is a program of Maryland history produced by the Maryland Historical Society; Backstage with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra - all of these programs were added during the three years we've operated the radio station. It's more than 20 programs.

We also have additional long-form programs - The Signal is our latest creation. On Fridays, Andy Bienstock, Aaron Henkin [and] Lisa Morgan produce a look at the arts and cultural community at noon on Fridays. It's received wonderful reviews. - Friday night is In the Mood, our big band program. Blue Lines and Back Roads is a Saturday night program.

- We have tried to find the way to connect the radio station to the community in way that it has not been in the past.

What are your plans for the next year or two?

We have done an additional focus group through our content committee. Doreen Bolger of the Baltimore Museum of Art hosted 40 community leaders. We talked about programs that would be meaningful for the future. We determined that health and health-related programs would be the next initiative for this radio station. When we see the medical institutions in this area, the government medical institutions and the biotech research that's done in this area, we believe that our audience has an insatiable desire to hear the breakthroughs that these institutions are finding in medical research. This area will also lead to potential syndication that would be a feather in WYPR's cap.

Additionally, we are looking at more business programs that will provide information to small-business people, both long- and short- form programs that serve small-business people.

What do you consider your greatest accomplishments here?

I think there are three major accomplishments. We've attempted to cover the breadth and depth of this community with thoroughness, accuracy and reliability - becoming a reliable source of information. I think that's our biggest accomplishment.

Second, our board of directors determined it would be in our best strategic interest to expand our signal as far across Maryland as possible. Our signal expansion is a very high priority for us. We have accomplished a great deal with our acquisition of the Frederick radio station.

Our third major accomplishment is that we've done one and two above with financial stability. We've created financial stability and strength for the radio station, overcoming the deficits that we originally had to overcome. We are amortizing the debt we took on in a prudent financial way.

How far does your signal stretch?

We extend from Chestertown down to approximately St. Michael's, and then to the west into West Virginia, parts of Hagerstown and Southern Pennsylvania. We clearly have a strong desire to [extend] our signal on the Eastern Shore. That's our next priority.

WYPR is among the top 10 most-listened-to radio stations in this market, according to the latest ratings. Are you happy with the ratings?

Our primary objective is not simply to program for ratings. We want to program for quality and educational value. However, it is gratifying to see. - [In] the fall of 2001, there were approximately 131,000 weekly [listeners]. In the latest [ratings] book, it was 169,000. It's a growth of 38,000 listeners per week. That's very gratifying. And that does not include listeners in the Frederick area who've been added to the mix.