30A radio personality Terry Knight plans to bring his personal touch to the format. Photo by Wendy O. Dixon
Listen to the songs of summer, or anthems of the past on 30A Radio 107.1 FM. The station serves communities along Scenic Highway 30A and is operated out of the Seaside Neighborhood School.
“We were invented to become part of the school and give the children an opportunity to learn about radio,” said Jeff Kaufman, general manager of 30A Radio.
The students of Seaside Neighborhood School will learn about the industry and how things work this fall. They will even be given an opportunity to submit their own playlists that will air on the station once a week.
“It’s perfect, we want people to listen and it’s fun, because we are completely sponsor-supported—so we can play whatever we want,” said Kaufman. 30A Radio encourages listeners to call in and request the type of music they’d like to hear — from country, to pop-rock, new age to jazz — the genres run the gamut.
The station is ramping up the energy level and changing the general format, complete with a new logo and additional radio shows that will be aired nightly in the fall and pertaining to the local area.
All of the DJs are voluntary, but have vast experience in the industry, especially radio personality Terry Knight, who has worked for the CBS and ABC radio affiliates in New Orleans and Philadelphia.
“In the early ’90s, large syndicates took personality out of radio, and it became more commercialized. That’s not the style of this area,” said Knight.
The goal of 30A Radio is to give the station an identity and to bring personality back into radio with new DJs, as well as use it to meet people and introduce them to the area and the lifestyle on 30A.
“Guests that are visiting come from much different areas than what 30A has to offer. It’s fun to create that personal touch, something listeners can learn from and interact with,” Knight said. “It’s a great feeling to communicate to someone through music.”
30A Radio is a low-power FM community radio station broadcast 24 hours a day, seven days a week. WTHA is a broadcast service of the Seaside Neighborhood School. For more information, contact 30A Radio at (850) 534-0979 or visit online at www.30aradio.org.