BYRNESMEDIA CLIENT SHOWS THE POWER OF RADIO A ByrnesMedia Guest Article Sean Kelly Tuesday, February, 7, 2006
Ingrid, Todd, Jack, Nina (the intern) and I are busy having a fun show!
We get into a bit about a charity online auction of men in the area for the Heart & Stroke Foundation Fundraiser, upcoming Saturday at the Belleville Legion. A singles company in Trenton is promoting this fun evening and so we think, “what the hell,” let’s have some fun with this!
We talk about all the 27 hunks in the event! We interview a Heart & Stroke person about the night - everyone is having fun. At 8:55am (the end of the show) a caller asks to speak with me. I take the call… she won’t identify herself… she tells us ‘off the record’ that Bachelor #4 is a convicted pedophile! Not long after, we receive a call from another, more reliable source, saying the exact same thing!
After 9am the morning show gets together and discusses what, if anything, we should do. We study #4's profile online and he's pictured with teddy bears and a baby doll sitting on a comfy chair with a smile. We call the OPP in Orillia to find out how many people are on the Ontario Sex Registry – over 8500! At that point we decide to hold off until all our ducks are in a row.
That night I make contact with the online dating company and ask for the phone numbers and email addresses of the Top 10 guys in votes (#4 is tied at this point for 2nd spot). The lady agrees to send the info overnight - she heard us that morning talking about the fundraiser.
Wednesday, February 8, 2006
5:30am – I email the pedophile and invite him to join the show via phone regarding the event.
5:45am – The morning show meets to discuss the upcoming show. Everything has been checked and rechecked regarding Bachelor #4 and we know we have the right guy. Ingrid has gathered info about "pedophile" characteristics. Everyone is ready to go and is on the same page!
6:30am - During the news cast, Todd leads with the story.
6:33am - We all discuss the breaking news and take calls from listeners.
7:07am – The Heart and Stroke director joins us live and is shocked!
7:16am - Another bachelor in the event calls and says how shocked he is and that he doesn't like to be associated with sexual predators.
7:30am – The lady from the online dating service speaks her mind and is also shocked but has agreed to leave the guy’s picture on their website so the MIX Nation can see what he looks like. Women and men continue to call the show.
8:00am – The Chief of Police speaks out during the news cast about the role of the cops and why women should be careful.
8:11am – Ingrid and I take a call from a woman who was speaking with Bachelor #4 the night before at 11:30. She was going to be his date for the event and had no idea he was a convicted pedophile. The emotion in her voice is unbelievable!
8:16am - Bachelor #4 calls the studio (obviously he hasn't been listening). I ask him if he'd like to go on air with us and talk about upcoming event. He says yes and is excited about being on the radio. The first 30 seconds of the interview are kept light and he seems to be enjoying things. I ask him when he signed up for this if had to sign a waver or agree to a police check. He says “no” and wonders why I asked the question. I then ask him if he is a convicted pedophile. He says “no” to being a pedophile and “yes” to being a sex offender (?). Ingrid hammers him with more questions and asks if he preys on single moms. He says “no” and blames his mother's death and the fact he is dealing with brain cancer and his wife has left him! We talk for another few minutes about why he would enter such a contest, why have a picture online with teddy bears and a baby doll. He said he likes teddy bears. We asked if he is currently getting professional help! Finally, we ask him to leave the event and not participate in such things in the future - he agrees. We continue to receive calls from listeners.
8:40am - A professional calls the show with stats on pedophiles and what their victims deal with every day. It is great info that we share with the listeners.
8:44am - Bachelor #4's son calls and we put him on. He's angry at us for bringing the subject up and tells us his dad has a right to go in public events. I tell him the public has a right to know if he's in these events. The son is emotional and loves his father, but you can hear it in his voice that he understands the message we are trying to get out.
8:56am - An unidentified OPP officer calls and gives us 60 seconds on pedophiles and thanks MIX 97 for the show!
9:00am - We are finished.
9:10am - One of Bachelor #4’s victims calls the studio. She is now 20 years old, but was only 9 at the time she was sexually assaulted. She is crying and mentions how she deals with what happened every day. She thanks us for show and believes we only helped draw awareness to this issue.
Notes of interest after the show:
It was one of those days that showed the power of teamwork and the immediacy and impact of radio!
Being a father of a 4-year-old girl and 5-year-old son, I felt obligated to bring this story to the listeners. Kids are our most precious gift of all and I’m hopeful MIX 97 did the right thing. It seems to me, a story like this can’t be covered in 20 seconds as part of a cast – it just doesn't do it justice!
The Valentine's fundraiser went ahead and MIX 97 continues to support the Heart & Stroke charity events. The local online dating company has now changed their policies when posting pictures of men and women for such events. They now ask folks to sign a waver and agree to police checks!
God Bless,
Sean Kelly Program Director Mix 97 Belleville, Ontario |