By By MICHAEL C. GUILMETTE JR. / Niles Daily Star
NILES – Their voices may have fallen silent on WNIL-AM, but Gloria Cooper's and Ric Clingaman's popular morning show may return to airwaves – broadcasting from Dowagiac.
While neither of the well-known local radio personalities have committed to the project, WGTO 910 AM, located in Cassopolis, is working to return the show to it's morning slot.
Chris Cole, the sales and marketing director for WGTO, said Wednesday the process to pick up the morning show has been under way for about a week.
"It's not official yet," Cole said. "It's still a fishing expedition." He said the station is working to convince advertisers to back the project. Cole admitted he has been unable to speak with many businesses so far, primarily due to absences during the holiday season.
He added, however, the businesses he has spoken to have been interested in the idea.
"It's definitely something we think will go," Cole said, also saying WGTO would like to begin broadcasting the show in January 2007.
Cooper, so far, has not committed to the project, but she said she has been approached by WGTO.
"They have put out some indicators they would be interested in picking up the morning show," Cooper said. "Nothing is definite yet."
Cooper, 72, announced she would be resigning from WNIL on Dec. 6, the day she also announced the station was dropping the morning show. She also indicated she was interested in taking some time off before committing to any new plans, but added she has a number of options to consider.
If the project goes forward, Cole said the show would be broadcast from the WDOW-AM studio in Dowagiac. He said WGTO recently purchased the facility, and that it has a stronger signal than WNIL, giving the station better coverage.
Cole also said WGTO does not have as big of a budget as Federated Media, the owners of WNIL. However, he is optimistic about returning the morning show to the air, and he believes it will be received favorably.
"Community-wise, it will be easy to get the following to switch stations," Cole said. "We think this will be a 'win-win' for the station and the community."
WGTO is owned by Larry Langford of Chicago. Langford was unavailable for comment, but Cole said Langford has ties to the Cassopolis area and he is very community-minded.