Big Dreams For Small-Time Radio

FULL TEXT — THE HARTFORD COURANT · DEC. 30, 2004

Charlie Profit, whose real name is Charles Bosworth, arrived in town with the goal of boosting local involvement with what is now WXCT.

SOUTHINGTON — Charlie Profit embodies small-time radio, with 24-hour, on-call responsibilities as general manager of WXCT-AM (990), the town's only station.

Profit, 34, has run the station since leaving his job as operations manager for two stations owned by Citadel Broadcasting Corp. in Lake Tahoe in 2001. But he has found time for other media ventures. He is pushing to syndicate his show "The BEST," which is broadcast Sundays from 4 to 7 p.m. His company, CAB Radio, offers commercial production and other industry services.

He operates five websites, one with a blog. And by the middle of next month, if there are no snags, one website — southingtonscene.com, an alternative to southington.org — will carry a live audio feed of town government meetings using cell-phone technology. The broadcasts will be available by archive within a day; published minutes of meetings are usually ready for the public within a week.

"There are all kinds of opportunities out there," Profit said Tuesday from WXCT's humble studio on Old Turnpike Road. "You just have to look for them. When an opportunity comes up, I try to seize it."

Profit, whose real name is Charles Bosworth, left the University of Toledo before graduating in 1992 and began his radio career, part-time weekend overnights at WVKS-FM in Toledo, Ohio. He has lived or worked in Salt Lake City, North Carolina and Reno, Nev.

Profit arrived in town with the goal of boosting local involvement with what was then WNTY. He changed the station's call letters to WXCT in April 2003 to "renew its presence in the community," he said.

Nine months later, as part of that commitment to the community, Profit established "Eye on Southington," a one-hour show broadcast on Tuesdays that gave town officials a forum.

Victoria Triano, chairwoman of the town council, said the show made an impact in town. "There is a genuineness to Charlie that is very well received," she said.

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Music. On Sundays, there is a mix of ethnic and religious programming along with Profit's local show, a general interest talk show. "The BEST" (Because Everybody Seeks Truth), from 4 to 7 p.m., debuted in August 2003 with a combination of entertainment and information.

WARL-AM in Providence broadcasts The BEST, and Genesis Communication Network in Minnesota is negotiating with Profit about syndicating it as well.

Profit has interviewed Libertarian presidential candidate Michael Badnarik, author Phyllis Schlafly, Gov. M. Jody Rell and former Gov. John Rowland. Topics include politics, show business and health, although the show is usually driven by the listeners who call in.

Profit does not shy away from controversy on his show. Several callers expressed concerns last May about former DePaolo Middle School girls' basketball coach William McKernan when he was under police investigation. And School Superintendent Harvey Polansky had to respond when some callers asked why he was grocery shopping during office hours.

When the topic turned to Bristol's attempt to take property from the Bugryn family by eminent domain, a Hartford listener spoke aggressively about Bristol's mayor, which some construed as a threat and prompted the Bristol police to take security measures in city hall.

"It really wasn't a threat," Profit said, "because the listener used if and then."

Profit is interested in local programming that can make a difference. He is disappointed with the recent format change, he said, because it disrupted the momentum of building local programming such as "Eye on Southington."

"We were working hard to build up local programming, to get local listeners more involved in the station," said Profit, who would like to revive the show within a few months.