Christian radio

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Christian radio refers to Christian media radio formats that focus on Christian religious broadcasting or various forms of Christian music. Many such formats and programs include contemporary Christian music, gospel music, sermons, radio dramas, as well as news and talk shows covering popular culture, economics, and political topics from a Christian perspective., [1]

Contents

Business models

A church with its own radio station WWOC-LP Christian Radio Broadcast Station and Seventh Day Adventist Church.jpg
A church with its own radio station
Radio Maria studio in Switzerland. Radio Maria Studio in Adliswil.jpg
Radio Maria studio in Switzerland.

Brokered programming is a significant portion of most U.S. Christian radio stations' revenue, with stations regularly selling blocks of airtime to evangelists seeking an audience. Another revenue stream is solicitation of donations, either to the evangelists who buy the air time or to the stations or their owners themselves. In order to further encourage donations, certain evangelists may emphasize the prosperity gospel, in which they preach that tithing and donations to the ministry will result in financial blessings from God. Others may have special days of the year dedicated to fundraising, similar to many NPR stations. Although the solicitation of donations and the sale of airtime may resemble a commercial enterprise, such actions do not necessarily constitute a call to action, and thus this does not forbid them from airing on noncommercial licensed stations in the U.S. A minority of stations, typically music stations, use the traditional model for music radio and allow traditional commercial advertising. [1]

Numerous religious broadcasters own many of their own stations. In the U.S., religious radio stations are exempt from certain rules requiring radio stations to have some local operations, which allows them to have massive networks of transmitters covering far larger areas than a radio station would otherwise be allowed and may not face the same restrictions on the number of signals a broadcaster can own within one geographic area.

Radio formats

Most Christian radio stations transmit a mixture of Christian music and Christian talk and teaching.

Christian music

Christian music radio outlets mirror commercial radio in many ways, and music in a variety of different genres is available. Many stations play primarily gospel music, including Black Gospel and Southern Gospel, or contemporary worship music, while others play all formats of contemporary Christian music, including Christian pop, Christian rock, Christian rap, Christian country music, and Christian alternative rock. Many artists within the Christian music industry criticize Christian radio for only playing "safe" music, and not taking enough chances on new artists, or in some cases older artists, that may not be as appealing to the largely conservative Gospel Music Association. [1]

Many non-religious radio stations devote some of their weekend programming to Christian music; for example, Black Gospel programming is common on Sundays on many stations featuring the Urban Contemporary format.

Christian talk, radio drama, sermons

Other Christian stations will present a no-music format that features talk radio-style programming (sometimes including live radio call-in shows) and/or long-form "preaching and teaching" programs. Notable examples include Focus on the Family with host Jim Daly, Amazing Facts , Living Way with pastor Jack Hayford, and Pastor Rick's Daily Hope; an example of an inspirational program are Moments of Melody and The Voice of Prophecy. Radio drama programs, long dead in most other radio formats, continue to be transmitted on Christian radio; notable examples include long-running Adventures in Odyssey , Patch the Pirate , and Unshackled! and relative newcomers such as Down Gilead Lane and A Work in Progress.

Denominations

Christian radio, particularly in North America, is dominated by Protestant ministries, particularly those associated with evangelical Christianity. The predominant Roman Catholic radio service is the Eternal Word Network, founded by Mother Angelica as a spin-off of her television service EWTN.[ citation needed ]

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, a sect whose place in Christianity is heavily debated, maintains some limited radio evangelical operations through BYU Radio, which owns a single FM station. The Seventh-day Adventists are most closely associated with Three Angels Broadcasting Network.[ citation needed ]

North American and international availability

Most Christian radio stations as well as programmers based in the United States are members of the National Religious Broadcasters, a Christian organization. There are reportedly 1,600 Christian broadcasting organizations in the U.S. They range from single stations to expansive networks. It is common for religious broadcasters to purchase many small broadcast translators to create networks that stretch across large regions. Moody Radio was the first example, and still one of the largest, though most of its stations broadcast stand-alone programming as well as network feeds. Z88.3 in Orlando, Florida, the WAY-FM Network, K-LOVE, Air 1, The Joy FM, Reach Radio, 3ABN Radio, Radio 74, and the Bible Broadcasting Network are other notable examples in the world.

Christian radio expanded in the early twenty-first century. It became available in the United Kingdom with changes to broadcasting regulations. Premier Christian Radio is based in the London area where it is available on medium wave and DAB; elsewhere, it is available digitally or by Internet. United Christian Broadcasters is an international broadcasting and media company; radio stations are based in Albania, Australia, Canada, Denmark, New Zealand, the Philippines, and the United Kingdom. Trans World Radio is an evangelical media distributor broadcasting Christian programs in 190 countries in more than 300 languages, TWR-UK can be heard in the United Kingdom on Sky, Freeview and online. [2]

Christian radio programs

See also

Related Research Articles

Music radio is a radio format in which music is the main broadcast content. After television replaced old time radio's dramatic content, music formats became dominant in many countries. Radio drama and comedy continue, often on public radio.

Televangelism is the use of media, specifically radio and television, to communicate Christianity. Televangelists are ministers, whether official or self-proclaimed, who devote a large portion of their ministry to television broadcasting. Some televangelists are also regular pastors or ministers in their own places of worship, but the majority of their followers come from TV and radio audiences. Others do not have a conventional congregation, and work primarily through television. The term is also used derisively by critics as an insinuation of aggrandizement by such ministers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">VCY America</span> Christian radio network

VCY America, is a traditional, evangelical, conservative Christian ministry based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The VCY America Radio Network maintains a format of Christian talk and teaching, as well as traditional Christian music through its broadcast outlets.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Religious Broadcasters</span> American association of evangelical Christian broadcasting groups

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Family Radio, also known by its licensee name Family Stations, Inc., is a non-profit, non-denominational, educational Christian radio network based in Franklin, Tennessee with network operations located in Alameda, California, United States. Established in 1958, Family Radio airs religious music and programming, both past and present, and is listener-supported.

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Educational Media Foundation is an American nonprofit Christian media ministry based in Franklin, Tennessee, a suburb of Nashville.

Religious broadcasting, sometimes referred to as faith-based broadcasts, is the dissemination of television and/or radio content that intentionally has religious ideas, religious experience, or religious practice as its core focus. In some countries, religious broadcasting developed primarily within the context of public service provision, whilst in others, it has been driven more by religious organisations themselves. Across Europe and in the US and Canada, religious broadcasting began in the earliest days of radio, usually with the transmission of religious worship, preaching or "talks". Over time, formats evolved to include a broad range of styles and approaches, including radio and television drama, documentary, and chat show formats, as well as more traditional devotional content. Today, many religious organizations record sermons and lectures, and have moved into distributing content on their own web-based IP channels.

A radio format or programming format describes the overall content broadcast on a radio station. The radio format emerged mainly in the United States in the 1950s, at a time when radio was compelled to develop new and exclusive ways to programming by competition with television. The formula has since spread as a reference for commercial radio programming worldwide.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WJIV</span> Radio station in Cherry Valley, New York

WJIV is a commercial radio station licensed to Cherry Valley, New York, and serving the Mohawk Valley. The radio format is primarily Christian talk and teaching, along with some Southern gospel music. WJIV is a brokered time station, with national and local religious leaders paying for time on the station, which allows them to seek donations to their ministries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WNYM</span> Conservative talk radio station in Hackensack, New Jersey

WNYM – branded "AM 970 The Answer" – is a commercial radio station licensed to Hackensack, New Jersey, and serving the New York metropolitan area. The station is owned by Salem Media Group and programs a conservative talk radio format. Its studios are shared with co-owned WMCA on Broadway in Lower Manhattan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WAWZ</span> Radio station in Zarephath, New Jersey

WAWZ is a contemporary Christian music radio station located in Zarephath, New Jersey. It is a listener-supported/commercial radio station owned by the Pillar of Fire International. The station's target demographic is 25 to 54 year–olds. The Class B, 28,000-watt signal based in Bridgewater, New Jersey, serves the New York City market along with northern and central New Jersey.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WRTH (FM)</span> Classic hits radio station in Greer, South Carolina

WRTH and WLTE are classic hits radio stations licensed to Greer, South Carolina and Pendleton, South Carolina respectively. Both stations broadcast as "103.3/95.9 Earth FM WRTH" and are located in the Greenville/Spartanburg, South Carolina area. The stations are licensed by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to broadcast with (ERPs) of 2,700 watts and 6,000 watts respectively. The stations play hits from ranging from the 1970s through the 2010s.

Crawford Broadcasting is a family-owned media company based in Denver, Colorado. Crawford Broadcasting primarily owns radio stations with Christian, Talk radio and Urban formats.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WGTK-FM</span> Radio station in Greenville, South Carolina

WGTK-FM is a radio station licensed to serve Greenville, South Carolina. WGTK-FM is currently owned by the Salem Media Group, through licensee Salem Communications Holding Corporation.

KLFV is a radio station in Grand Junction, Colorado. The station broadcasts a contemporary Christian format from the K-Love radio network; the station and network are owned by the Educational Media Foundation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WCGB</span> Radio station in Juana Díaz, Puerto Rico

WCGB is a radio station broadcasting a Religious format as part of The Rock Radio Network. Licensed to Juana Diaz, Puerto Rico, it serves the Puerto Rico area. The station is currently owned by Calvary Evangelistic Mission, Inc. and features programming from Salem Radio Network.

KYTT is a Christian radio station licensed to Coos Bay, Oregon. The station is owned by Lighthouse Radio Group.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Rock Radio Network</span> Radio station in San Juan, Puerto Rico

The Rock Radio Network is a 3-station AM and 3-FM-translator radio network out of San Juan, Puerto Rico. It broadcasts Christian biblical teaching in a bilingual format. The Rock consists of the stations WBMJ/W258DT in San Juan, WIVV/W280GC in Vieques, and WCGB/W293DP in Juana Díaz, Puerto Rico. The Rock is owned and operated by Calvary Evangelistic Mission, Inc.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KLYT</span> Contemporary Christian music radio station in Albuquerque, New Mexico

KLYT is a non-commercial FM radio station broadcasting a Christian talk and teaching radio format, branded as "The Light." The principal station is in Albuquerque, with two FM translators and two repeaters around New Mexico. The station is owned by Calvary Chapel of Albuquerque, Inc.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "What's Up with Radio?". ChristianityToday.com. Retrieved July 27, 2017.
  2. ↑ "About TWR-UK". TWR. Retrieved February 20, 2023.
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