Pete’s got the beat

Few oldies stations in the United States have a sound like Washington’s WJPA-AM/FM, says Terry Hazlett in the Observer-Reporter, and the man to thank is program director and morning host Pete Povich. Povich paints a sound portrait from a palette of “a mind-boggling 5,000 oldies culled from the ’50s, ’60s, ’70s and ’80s,” Hazlett writes. A WJPA employee since 1983, Povich says that small alterations keep the format “fresh,” and he tries to add songs that are featured in commercials and movies while also accepting feedback from listeners. “Logically, radio should be able to play a lot of songs because people remember a lot of songs,” he says. “It’s easier, though, to repeatedly play the 300 oldies that have tested well over the years, have low burnout with listeners and are by very familiar artists. But a good song is a good song, and I try to pick a lot of good songs.”