The Villages - April 2018 - 28

AM-640 WVLG
Tuning in to AM-640 WVLG makes it easy to tune
out the rest of the world.
Broadcasting from their station on the Lake Sumter waterfront,
Kathleen Kane and other WVLG personalities play a mix of music,
talk shows, weather and news for Villagers to enjoy.
Behind the scenes, it takes a team of people to maintain the
station and broadcast over the air.
According to Kane, the station manager, the radio station has been
operating under the WVLG banner since September 2000. At that time,
the station broadcast out of a trailer in the middle of a field, meaning
employees had to wear boots just to reach the station every day.
Prior to 2000, the station's previous owners were using reel-toreel tapes and turntables to play music over the air. Once the station
became WVLG, the broadcasters upgraded to CDs.
Now, the station broadcasts from Lake Sumter Landing. Right
on the town square next to Haagen-Dazs overlooking the lake, it is
even possible to peer in through the large windows and view the DJs
broadcasting live on air.
Instead of dealing with bulky records, tapes or CDs, Kane and the
other broadcasters now rely on computers and digital programs to
play songs and keep track of commercials and station breaks.
WVLG DJs come from all
"We have awesome
around the country. Many of
them previously worked at other
DJs from all over the
stations and, after moving to The
country who have
Villages, decided to contribute
worked in radio."
to the local station. The station
- Kathleen Kane
also employs students from The
Villages High School who report from the town squares - talking
with residents and covering events.
"We have awesome DJs from all over the country who have
worked in radio," Kane said. "We have a couple who did radio a long
time ago and when they came to The Villages and retired they just
thought it would be a lot of fun. We have everyone from beginners to
the most seasoned (people) in radio you can think of, with 35 years
of experience."
With radio, timing is everything. Dead air is a broadcaster's worst
nightmare, meaning everything - whether it is a song, commercial,
station break or traffic report - has a specific time slot measured
down to the second.
WVLG plays music from the 1950s to present day, and the song list
is carefully cultivated by station DJs based on feedback from listeners.
Kane and the other station personalities are community
members, often making appearances at events around The Villages.
They also welcome phone calls for song requests or for sharing news
that is happening in the area.
28

APRIL 2018

Kathleen Kane on the air in
Lake Sumter Landing.

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of The Villages - April 2018