Issue link: http://southshoremagazine.uberflip.com/i/1274225
29 TheSouthShoreMagazine.com veterans such as Joe McMillan, Jimmy Jay and Larry Justice will host shows that are nothing like the prerecorded segments heard on national chain stations: WMEX's deejays will communicate with the listeners and take requests. Says Perry, "Interaction with the audience is the most important thing in radio." Shows like these have inspired countless people to pursue radio as a career, including WATD and WMEX board operator Benjamin Rabinowitz, who engineers Larry Justice's show "Halls of Justice" weekdays from 12:15 to 2pm, and "The Bobby Katzen Show" Saturdays 6 to 8am. "Larry Justice is the reason my father became a deejay, which got me interested in radio. Who would have predicted that in 2020 I'd be working on Larry's show," says Rabinowitz, who also announces high school hockey games and has his own business as a freelance deejay for events. In addition to WATD and WMEX, Perry has brought a third radio station to the airwaves: WBMS in Brockton, 1460 on the AM dial and 101.1 on the FM dial. Like WBET, which occupied the frequency from 1946 to 2006, it will broadcast local news, sports, politics and music shows. It took Perry five years to get WBMS on the air, starting from scratch with the FCC building and permitting process. "Creating WBMS was the right thing to do," says Perry. "Brockton is the largest city in Plymouth County and it, again, has a radio voice." One influence on WBMS' line-up is the late Brockton mayor, Bill Carpenter, who announced Brockton football games and entertained listeners on various talk shows. "Even if we cannot broadcast high school sports this year because of COVID-19, we have the recordings of 43 years of sports that we can air," says Perry. "It is a thrill to replay those moments and allow people to remember wonderful times." WBMS' music also awakens nostalgia. On Larry Nelson's show weekdays from 9am to 2pm, the tunes are almost completely request-based. "It's a few hours to forget about what's going on in the world and listen to those old favorites you don't hear on the other stations," Nelson says. In addition to reintroducing timeless music, Perry plans to expand news coverage to match his now larger market. Reliable news has always been a staple of WATD, which has won several national awards for news excellence. Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, WATD news has been a mainstay for people who have come to count on its accurate and thorough reporting. Says newscaster Christine James, "The coronavirus situation and society's social unrest are reinventing what we do every day and every week. It's emotional, and we worry about the safety of our reporters and the safety of our listeners. We mask ourselves, mask extra-long mics and use Zoom audio —whatever it takes to make sure we're still out there, getting people the information they need. People are stressed out, and we get a lot of emotional emails from listeners thanking us for the work we're doing." Even during an unprecedented time of social isolation, the South Shore's independent radio is still keeping people company. Over the years, not a week has gone by that the station hasn't received a thank you from someone about a program that touched, helped or informed them in some way. As corporate chains make radio increasingly automated and impersonal, Ed Perry has preserved the voice of the South Shore by keeping 95.9 FM WATD independent. With two new stations, he's now expanding that voice. WATD, WMEX and WBMS may be on different frequencies, but they have the same mission: a proud commitment to service and to the community. When you turn on the radio and hear music and voices that are live and local, you know you're home and you're not alone. As Jonathon Richman sings in his 1989 hit, Fender Stratocaster: "Like Woo Woo Ginsberg at the juke box joint/ You hear the sound and you get the point." Ed Perry and Larry Justice. Photo by Audrey Constant.