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Bridging the gap with Catholic radio
archived from: 2007-03-19
by: Chuck Moody

Relevant Radio’s motto is “talk radio that bridges the gap between faith and everyday life.”

“Many people today are suffering from a disconnect between their faith and their work, their family, their money situation, their friends,” said Tim Callahan, manager of Relevant Radio’s Pittsburgh station, WZUM-AM 1590. “The secular media, a lot of the time, gives a biased idea of what religion is, and specifically what it means to be Catholic, or what moral values we should be holding close. When you tune into Relevant Radio 1590 AM and the programming we provide, no matter where you are in your faith walk, there are answers to everyday problems.

“Most of the shows on our network are tackling problems facing you and I everyday — broken families, money situations, ‘how do I raise my children to be moral?’, ‘what are the basic tenets of our faith, and how am I expected to respond to them?’ And the answers to these questions posed by our listeners are coming from theologians and priests who are well versed in our trials and tribulation. We are a tool, whether you are listening in the car or doing chores around the house, to help get Catholics thinking about their faith and back involved in their church.”

Relevant Radio 1590 AM has been a part of answering Pope John Paul’s call to a new evangelization for more than four years, Callahan said.

“The network itself is more than 6 years old,” he said. “We as Catholics here in Pittsburgh are blessed to have this valuable asset available to us to enrich our spiritual life and help us to continue on our faith journey, wherever we are on that walk. Relevant Radio’s founders knew that Pittsburgh had a strong and large base of Catholics and targeted this market to move into, even though the majority of Relevant Radio stations are based in the upper Midwest.

“With a firm knowledge that it was extremely important to get the blessing of the local bishop, one of our founders, Mark Follet, forged a relationship with then-Bishop Donald Wuerl. Our status, probably much like the rest of the diocese’s, is ‘status quo’ until we learn who our next leader will be and can establish a relationship with him.”

Green Bay, Wis.-based Starboard Media Foundation Inc. purchased WZUM in September 2005 from Horvath Broadcasting LLC. WZUM, with its transmitter in Crafton and studio in West Mifflin, had been broadcasting some of the Relevant Radio programming since May 2003 under a lease agreement. Starboard Media Foundation now identifies itself as “Relevant Radio.”

The Pittsburgh station airs some local programming in addition to the network shows.

“Currently, we are airing ‘The Teaching of Christ’ with Archbishop Wuerl,” Callahan said. “As a new bishop is named, we are hoping to ramp up our local presence on the station and continue to build ties with the diocese. As it is now, we have contributors from the Pittsburgh area that regularly assist on our network shows — Bob Lockwood (general manager of the Pittsburgh Catholic and director of the diocesan Department for Communications), author Mike Aquilina, Father Thomas Acklin from St. Vincent Seminary and Ken Ogorek, the director of the diocesan Office for Catechesis, among others. Plus, Father Larry Richards, who was born and raised in Pittsburgh, his show, ‘Changed Forever,’ is heard every weeknight at 8 p.m. on the station.

“It is great to live in a diocese that is so rich in Catholic knowledge. Plus, our headquarters in Green Bay is blessed to have Bishop David Zubik (former auxiliary bishop of Pittsburgh).”

WZUM broadcasts at 1,000 watts via a directional antenna during the day and 24 watts at night. “Not the strongest of signals, but we are blessed to have a Relevant Radio station here in Pittsburgh,” Callahan said. “Most of the signals in Pittsburgh are pretty well tied up. We are pretty well tied in to the signal we have, which is directional from Crafton/Carnegie out over the city up toward Butler and east to Monroeville/Murrysville.”

The network’s programming reflects its mission, Callahan said.

“Relevant Radio has worked hard to establish its own brand of insightful, informative and, most importantly, Catholic faith-centered programming,” he said.

The shows include “Morning Air,” “Life is Worth Living,” “Father John Corapi,” “On Call with Dr. Ray and Friends,” “Searching the Word,” “The Inner Life,” “The Drew Mariani Show” and “Changed Forever.”

The station’s relationship with the diocese is “seemingly strong,” Callahan said.

“The diocese is extremely media savvy and realizes the importance of utilizing today’s forms of broadcasting, thanks to Archbishop Wuerl and the many people put in place that understand this fact,” he said. “That fact should help as we here at Relevant Radio get ready to assist our new shepherd in spreading the good word.

“We would love to have Father (Ron) Lengwin contribute on the station, but his commitment to KDKA radio (where he has a Sunday night talk show) doesn’t allow it. We are fortunate to be able to broadcast the insightful local commentaries (from the diocese) as a great benefit to our listeners.” The station also leases some time on weekends to various groups.

“Any of this programming would still adhere to our guidelines of what is acceptable,” Callahan said.

The Relevant Radio network has grown from one station to 17, plus 19 affiliate stations that air all or part of network programming, he said.

“The Relevant Radio signal reaches an estimated 28 million people across 14 states,” Callahan said. “As a non-profit Catholic lay apostolate, our network is making it possible for community Catholic radio to grow. When the Federal Communications Commission had limited windows of opportunity to apply for low-power FM licenses, we gave of our time, talent and expertise to help nearly 250 local groups in 21 states apply for these licenses for the broadcast of Catholic radio. Today, we continue to assist groups in the follow-up processes and procedures. Although these stations are small, they have a combined potential listening audience of over 8.7 million people.”

Callahan lives in Scott Township and attends St. Thomas More Church in Bethel Park. He has been married to his wife, Jackie, for 15 years, and their two sons, Jordan, 9, and Brendan, 5, go to St. Thomas More School.

Callahan grew up in Penn Hills and attended St. Gerard Majella Parish. He has worked at 1590 AM for more than three years after working at various other stations in Pittsburgh. Callahan attended Indiana University in Bloomington, Ind.

“Relevant Radio was a response to Pope John Paul’s call for a new evangelization,” Callahan said. “Pope John Paul stressed how today’s media needs to be utilized by Catholics to spread the good word. That was the vision of our founders when they purchased one station in Green Bay over five years ago. It’s hard to believe how big of a network we have become in that short period of time, especially with the costs involved in buying a license and equipping a property to operate day to day.

“Relevant Radio is non-profit and listener-supported. We derive a majority of our operating budget from quarterly pledge drives and appreciate the support of our listeners. We have also made the decision to accept advertising, in a limited fashion. Our station’s licenses are commercial, which allows us to do this. All advertising will adhere to strict guidelines and will allow us to keep our apostolate growing.”

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