Wisconsin Public Radio Regional Programming Moves to New Afternoons

In a move designed to increase the impact of both regional and statewide programming, Wisconsin Public Radio’s The West Side and Spectrum West will soon be airing on different afternoons on Ideas 88.3 WHWC/ Menomonie-Eau Claire.

The West Side, the award-winning issues-based call-in show produced and hosted by Mary Jo Wagner, moves from broadcasting on Monday and Tuesday afternoons to one broadcast per week at 5 p.m. Thursdays beginning April 30.

Spectrum West will move from Thursday to Friday at 5 p.m., beginning May 1. The program, hosted and produced by Al Ross, recently celebrated its 15th anniversary of providing interviews and samples of the arts, music and cultural scene in the Chippewa Valley.

The programming switch is part of a network-wide alignment of regional programming, according to Wisconsin Public Radio’s Chief Operating Officer Mike Crane.

“Our regional shows like Spectrum West and The West Side in Eau Claire add a real sense of place to our overall programming,” Crane said. “The success of those programs led to similar programming in Wausau, and new regional programs we plan to start in Green Bay and La Crosse. This move is designed to set aside two hours per week – 5-6 p.m. Thursday and Friday – that Wisconsin Public Radio dedicates to regional programming.”

Crane said the development of the regional shows through the years had resulted in the Eau Claire-based programs airing Monday, Tuesday and Thursday afternoons, while Wausau had an hour Thursday, and the Superior station did regional programming Fridays. He said that variety made it difficult for producers for the statewide offering at 5 p.m. weekdays, At Issue with Ben Merens, to plan their shows.

“Under the new plan, Ben will know he has the statewide audience Monday through Wednesday at 5 p.m.,” Crane said, “And listeners can be confident they’re getting all of the statewide programming we offer at those times. Thursdays and Fridays at five, the focus will turn local, with the same high quality people have come to know and expect from The West Side and Spectrum West.”

Because Eau Claire was the only studio producing three original hours of regional Ideas Network programming each week, the change will result The West Side going to one hour per week, rather than two. Crane said he expects the program and host Mary Jo Wagner will continue to make a difference for listeners in the Chippewa Valley.

“The West Side is really a prototype to what we hope to design in each region – a show that carries the ideals of the Ideas Network to local issues and newsmakers,” Crane said. “That will still be the case with one hour weekly, and it will free Mary Jo to contribute more to the statewide efforts as a reporter, and as an occasional substitute host on our statewide programs.”

The West Side has traditionally held on-air candidate forums prior to each legislative election affecting seats representing western Wisconsin, and Crane said that expanded hours of The West Side will be added as needed to continue that service. Wagner said she is proud of the show’s accomplishments, including five Eric Sevareid Awards as the best medium market talk/public affairs program in the six states represented by the Northwest Broadcast News Association. Wagner said she looks forward to continuing the important service The West Side provides to local listeners.

Dean Kallenbach, regional manager for Wisconsin Public Radio in Eau Claire, agrees that The West Side will continue to make a strong impact in western Wisconsin in its new Thursday time slot. And the move of Spectrum West to Friday brings that show back to its roots.

“When we started Spectrum West back in 1994, the show aired on Friday afternoons as a kickoff to the weekend,” Kallenbach said. “Its subject matter and tone are designed to shift us away from a week of dealing with hard-news issues, and I’m looking forward to hearing the program as it continues to evolve under the leadership of Al Ross, with help from our segment producers Kathy Stahl, Kris MacCallum and Jim Oliver.”

More details about both The West Side and Spectrum West, including future program topics and archives, are available at www.wpr.org/whwc