The internet and social media make it easy to zoom out and connect with any point on the planet. Local media—papers, magazines, radio and TV stations—help us zoom in for city-wide goings-on. But there are few resources for hyper-local information and perspectives from those who are often underrepresented in popular media, which is exactly the niche that Lexington Community Radio seeks to fill. Lexington Community Radio, a 501 charitable organization, is a public station that produces programming around the clock through two stations, in Spanish on “El Pulso,” WLXL-FM 95.7, and in English on WLXU-FM 93.9.
“We are a go-to information resource for Lexington’s urban neighborhoods—especially communities of color, Latin communities and LGBT communities, whose experiences and concerns are not represented in other media,” said Mark Royse, Lexington Community Radio’s executive director and general manager of the two stations.
Mark Royse, executive director and general manager of Lexington Community Radio, said the station relies on the support of local businesses.
Each station has a full-time program director to coordinate recording times, post-production and volunteer schedules. As general manager, Royse’s role is to grow relationships in the community and to help identify and bring in financial support for the stations. He cites the Lexington-Fayette County Health Department, State Farm and Toyota as strong and consistent supporters, along with the city of Lexington and Blue Grass Community Foundation. “Largely, though, we are supported by donations from listeners and underwriting sponsorships from local businesses,” he said.
Royse has a degree in theater from the University of Kentucky. A former communications director at the UK College of Design, he has worked in an advertising agency and in the nonprofit sector. “It’s one of the most exciting things going in Lexington,” he said of Lexington Community Radio.
The two stations’ programming is open format, which means “you might hear sports, then jazz, then social activism, then a movie review, some local news and your horoscope,” Royse said. “Even when there is not hosted content airing, our entire music collection has been selected and curated by our volunteers. You’ll hear obscure tracks and old favorites you won’t hear anywhere else on the air.”
Lexington Community Radio has trained 160 volunteer DJs so far. Area residents and business owners are welcome to submit ideas for shows they’d like to host. “There are lots of topics we would like to partner with businesses on,” Royse said. “One in particular is increasing financial literacy for both our English- and Spanish-speaking listeners.”
He would also like to see a program addressing legal topics, particularly around personal and family law, to fulfill listeners’ requests. “We would love a show dedicated to the local tech scene in our community,” he added, “and we’d welcome a show about starting and growing a small business.”
Currently located in the basement of the STEAM Academy on East Sixth Street, LCR is also looking for a new home. “Lexington Community Radio has thrown our hat in the ring to be a tenant in the GreyLine Station project [in development at the corner of West Loudon and North Limestone],” Royse said. “Our target move date is August 2019, as that’s when STEAM faculty and staff will be relocating to a new location as well.” (Fayette County Public Schools will be moving the academy to Georgetown Road.)
“There’s a real appetite for people to feel connected and to know the local stories." — Debra Hensley, Lexington Community Radio founder and board president.
“We’re bursting at the seams. We’re growing like crazy,” said Debra Hensley, Lexington Community Radio founder and board president. She is the owner of a State Farm agency and has a passion for community service. It was 2011 when the first inklings of starting a community radio station came her way. After a two-year process of paperwork, engineering studies and input sessions from members of the community, LCR was granted a construction permit by the Federal Communications Commission for a tower with an antenna in 2013. In September 2015, WLXL-FM 95.7 went on the air. Its tower is located on a former BCTC campus off Leestown Road. The second station, WLXU-FM 93.9, went on the air in May 2016; its antenna is on the property of television station LEX18. Both towers transmit a signal across a five- to eight-mile listening range. Mobile apps and online streaming provide unlimited coverage.
“There’s a real appetite for people to feel connected and to know the local stories. There’s some really wonderful material here,” Hensley said. “Local community radio serves as a hub for the community. It is extremely relevant.”