FORT WORTH, Texas (BP)–When most people were worried about the Iron Curtain (the Soviet Union) and Bamboo Curtain (China), Ed Malone was concerned with breaking through the “Nylon Curtain” (America).
Malone, vice president of radio services for the Radio and Television Commission, has been using radio programming to reach people for Christ for more than 31 years at the Southern Baptist agency.
“We use radio to reach into places where the door is shut on personal evangelism,” he said. “There’s a hurting world out there that sometimes can’t be reached in any other way. We sow seeds, then pray that the Holy Spirit will work in the hearts of the people who hear. I’m sure there are many people who hear and respond to Christ that we don’t know about, but our counseling and other response mechanisms provide ample evidence that the message is being heard.”
In the more than three decades Malone has been connected with the RTVC, he has been responsible for the inception and development of every radio series the agency has produced other than “The Baptist Hour.”
Malone felt called to Christian ministry when he was a teenager but didn’t immediately respond. That’s because he didn’t have a clue as to what he was supposed to do.
He graduated from high school in Vernon, Texas, then went on to Southern Methodist University in Dallas. While there, he came under the influence of the late Norvell Slater at WFAA Radio in Dallas. Slater, of course, became famous in north Texas for his radio program called “Hymns We Love.”
When Malone graduated from SMU with a degree in public relations, radio and television, the call to ministry was still there, loud and clear, but again he didn’t really understand how he should respond.
Instead, he took a job with a public relations firm in Dallas that specialized in radio and television production. The firm did work for the Baptist General Convention of Texas and the RTVC.
One of the RTVC projects Malone was involved in was the development of “MasterControl,” a 30-minute weekly program that over the years has been one of the mainstays of the agency’s radio ministry. Hosts of “MasterControl” at the time were Norvell Slater and Nick Ramsey.
“The public relations firm I worked for also provided interview material for ‘MasterControl,'” Malone said. “Another project we did for the RTVC was to develop a program called ‘Patterns for Modern Living.'”
When the RTVC opened its new facility in Fort Worth in 1965, Paul Stevens, who was director, wanted to expand the agency’s radio ministry. He offered Malone the responsibility.
“I felt a definite call and joined the RTVC in April of 1965,” Malone said. “I had never satisfied the call I felt as a teenager, but after accepting the RTVC position I felt at peace with God. And over the years, I don’t think anyone could have had a more wonderful experience than I have had in God’s service.”
Radio stations in the United States were changing rapidly when Malone joined the RTVC, experimenting with all sorts of formats. Stevens wanted him to develop creative, innovative programming that would reach the masses with an evangelistic message and take advantage of the various formats.
“We wanted to develop programming for every available
format, so that when a person turned to any number on a radio dial there would be a possibility that they would hear a gospel message,” Malone said. “From 1965 through 1970, we created and tested a number of formats. We did a program called ‘Omniscope’ for college radio stations and a classical music program that we no longer do.
“In 1969 we went on the air with ‘Country Crossroads’ and ‘Powerline,’ both of which are still going strong.”
The RTVC currently produces five weekly 30-minute programs: “The Baptist hour,” “MasterControl,” “Powerline,” “Country Crossroads” and “On Track.”
“By 1970 we had radio programs that fit formats of most stations and reached the masses,” Malone said. “The RTVC was recognized nationwide by the industry for producing quality family programming. Our goal with each program we produce has always been to provide a gospel message within the framework of wholesome entertainment. And when a program did not work, we killed it.”
Malone said every statistic about radio provides positive evidence it is a powerful tool for evangelism.
“There was a period in which some people thought radio was dead,” he said, “but instead the industry has grown and flourished. Research sanctioned by the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) shows that 95 percent of cars have radios, that seven of 10 adults and almost all teens listen to a car radio during any given week. That same research shows that the average American household has five radio sets.”
Malone thinks radio “spots” (commercials) can reach more people than any other format.
“We’re being consumed by the Internet and other forms of new technology,” he said. “People receive information in bits and pieces. With a ‘spot’ you can provide a succinct message, and if it’s properly produced, that message can have lasting results.
“For example, people remember some of the ‘spots’ run during the Super Bowl more than they remember the game. That’s why we need to continually be producing new ‘spots’ and why we need to always be looking ahead at new formats. And we need to use those formats that are proven.”
Malone said during the 1970s the RTVC, in cooperation with the SBC Home Mission Board and state Baptist conventions, produced more than 15 different language programs directed at various ethnic groups.
“I recall visiting a Navajo minister who was taping his radio program in a trailer,” he said, “and a Japanese minister who was taping his program in the hallway of his house that was near a busy freeway. Where they did the program didn’t matter, they were reaching people.
“That’s the nice thing about radio. You don’t need an expensive studio and sets to reach people. And if we’re going to reach the lost and lonely, we have to be available on radio in all sorts of formats.”
For any Christian group to reach the world for Christ, Malone said, it must use radio. The new millennium will be the platinum age of radio, and the best is yet to come, he said.
“As we look at interactive radio, becoming part of the Internet, the potential for proclaiming the gospel is staggering,” he said. “This will enable a listener to not only talk to a counselor on the telephone, but for the listener and counselor to communicate with each other on the computer.”
Because of its proud history of excellence in programming, RTVC radio is respected by secular broadcasters worldwide.
“RTVC radio has been steady, always there, innovative and on the leading edge of new technology,” Malone said.
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