Media crosses the waters on short-wave. Its prime objective is to preach the "true Gospel" "God Squads" on Radio untainted by the "spiritual harlotry" of"new Gospels." While sampling the religious program- ming in the Virginia-Washington area. William F. Ryan tuned in on Jerry Falwell (the latter-day version of Fat her Coughlin) on station Radio has always been a choice medium for the full radio spectrum—AM, FM. long- WABS-AM in Arlington. WABS has a busy Bible slappers and pulpit thumpers. It wave, and short-wave. Using that spectrum programming day, from 6 A.M. to 8:30 P.M. It heralded primitive Christianity's resurgence outside the United States, Armstrong lists at is devoted entirely to Christian preaching in the twentieth century so much so that least 235 Christian radio stations. and religious music, much of the latter quite free-thinking liberal commentators like H. I asked him about Christian radio up-beat—rock and roll, vintage 1972, an L. Mencken and E. Haldeman-Julius railed networks. "We have quite a few different obvious appeal to the youthful listeners who against "bunk on the radio" as far back as networks," Armstrong said. "But we have a tune in on car radios. The station broadcasts the 1920s. But their rejoinders to the radio real problem keeping track of them. The from a studio just downstairs from a obscurantists were only in print. lots of Northwestern College Network has 11 commercial new-wave rock station, WAVA- Americans don't read. They rely on radio stations. The Moody Bible Network has 11. FM. The team upstairs refers to the WABS perhaps as much as on television for talk and The Crawford Broadcasting Network has 9. crew as the "God Squad." music and escapism. Radio offers a realm of Jimmy Swaggart's Broadcasting Network, WABS is only one of seven Christian productions relying on sheer imagination. out of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, has 8. James radio stations serving the metropolitan When the imagination receives a message in Bakker's PTL [Praise the Lord] Network Washington area. The others are, in the such distilled, concentrated sensory form, it has quite a.%en• stations!" main, less lively, but well-entrenched in city sticks to that message. The vocal audio What about Christian stations that and suburbs. WUST-AM, which has always lingers —and sometimes reverberates. And, push hard on political issues and condemn been a station for a primarily black audi- depending on what media are available to secular humanism as un-American? "My ence, beams from the inner city of Washing- minds of sinister purpose, the reverberations guess is that, of the total number, about 5 ton, D.C., and now calls itself "Classic can be chilling, even threatening. percent are involved in political things," Gospel Radio." From Falls Church, Vir- The late Father Charles Edward Armstrong told me. "As stations, most don't ginia, comes WFAX-AM, which sells "The Coughlin proved radio's power to muster want political discussion. But some syndi- Talking Bible" tapes and is a comfortable America's gullible to a pro-fascist cause cated programs of a political nature may get place for "Christian" advertisers— realtors cloaked in muscular Christianity. His on." and financial consultants and their ilk. This weekly broadcasts during the Great Depres- Most of the syndicated programming station also carries Catholic programming sion years were carried fora time on the CBS on the standard AM and FM dials is an on Saturdays, some of it blatantly anti- radio network. Father Coughlin's Radio overload of Bible prophecy. Doomsday isn't abortionist. From Potomac, Maryland, League of the Little Flower, headquartered far off. Its signals are apparent daily and emanates the dulcet waves of WCTN-AM: in Royal Oak, Michigan, amassed some nine were set down in the Old Testament—and from Takoma Park, also in Maryland. million blue-collar shock-troops for the later by Jesus Christ—centuries ago. Equal- WGTS-FM, sponsored by Columbia Union ranks of his National Union of Social ly as offensive are those syndicated pro- College and the Seventh-Day Adventists, Justice, whose sixteen-point "Preamble" grams servicing the so-called "Messianic features a mix of classical music and "Why was a flimsy mask for anti-Semitism and Jewish Movement." The mission and the Jesus can help you" homilies: from Annapo- pro-Axis propaganda. Father Coughlin held message of these preachers—among them, lis, WFSI-FM gleefully carries the revivalist forth when radio and movie newsreels were Dr. Charles Halff and his spouse. Bernice, of programming of the listener-supported the major popular news media. San Antonio is that Jews can and will Family Radio syndicate. And from deep in According to Ben Armstrong, execu- certainly be "horn again" in the Baptism of the backwoods of Winchester, Virginia, tive director of National Religious Broad- Jesus. If you write to Dr. Halff and tell him W EFG-FM —a fully automated Gospel casters, an association headquartered in how marvelous his "Christian-Jew Hour" is, station shares the same building with Pine Brook, New Jersey, the NRB directory he'll send you his very own sermon booklet. W H BL, an AM rock station. now lists 580 radio stations with primarily aptly titled Dead Faith. Does the Federal Communications religious programming and 342 more that Religious programming on short-wave Commission require these stations to have primarily religious programming but radio is not easily measured. "The Voice provide equal time for contrasting points of are considered only "part-time" Christian of Friendship" bellows over short-wave view'? Well, I checked with the FCC. The radio broadcasters. Armstrong knows of at from Red Lion, Pennsylvania. From Quito, answer I received was no. "They have the least 535 Christian organizations producing Ecuador, comes a range of Christian shows same requirements as any other station," radio programs. He estimates the number of in English on HCJ B (Herald in Christ Jesus' Ben Perez told me. Perez is an attorney with such programs in this country at 835, with Blessing). This station's signal is comparable FCC's radio division. "The equal time 360 more being broadcast overseas across in power to the Voice of America, and it provisions ensure that all candidates for beams discussions on such topics as a federal office get equal time and that an William F. Ryan is a. Jree-lance reporter and woman's role as the Bible defines it. Trans individual under personal attack on radio novelist. He has recently been associated World Radio beamed into short-wave from gets equal broadcast time to respond. Unless with the National Voter and the City Paper Bon Air. Netherlands Antilles. offers still there's a statutory obligation or complaint, of Baltimore. more of the Good Word in English. It is we hold back." syndicated nationally on AM and FM and Stay tuned. •

Fall 1982 37