Tampa Bay Times from St. Petersburg, Florida • 65

Commercial TV stations see no threat from WCLF By JEANNE PUGH 8r Patanburo, Ttmaa Raltgion Wrttar gious segment. The station also carries a half-hour church service at 7:30 a.m. Sundays, two half-hour religious programs between 7 and 8 a.m. Saturdays, and 3-minute devotionals at sign-on each morning. "WE DON'T look at (the new station) as competition for us," the representative observed.

WFLA-Channel 8, the NBC affiliate, has the heaviest commitment to religious programing in the area, with six hours scheduled each Sunday morning. Doug Duperrault, program director, said he does not expect that the new station will cause a change in that schedule. But he added, "You can't say for sure. This is another ballgame in town. It will be a new experience for everybody." Duperrault said it is possible that some of the local programs mostly pretaped church services will move to WCLF because of the cost of WFLA air time.

"Their (WCLF's) costs of operation will be a lot lower," he said, noting that the new station has a smaller staff and will be operated on a non-profit basis. Ed Moser of WTOG-Channel 44, an independent station, said he intends to make no changes in his station's schedule of three hours of religious programing on Saturday mornings. "We switched religious programs from Sunday morning to Saturday some time ago," he said. "We decided to give (Sunday) viewers an alternative by showing kid's programs on Sundays." The Saturday morning fare on Channel 41 includes Dr. Robert Schuler's Hour of Power and evangelists Gerald Derstine, E.

J. Daniel and Ernest Angsley. The only other religious program carried on the station is a half-hour Jimmy Swaggert show at 10 p.m. Saturdays. THE FOUR STATION representatives expressed little fear that WCLF seriously will diminish their viewing audiences.

"I guess we'll have to wait and see how the Arbit-ron ratings come out," one said, adding that traditionally Christian television seems to attract dedicated but rather small audiences. But he noted that these audiences "are so dedicated that they will send in a lot of money to keep the stations going." Nationwide, that appears to be the case. A recent report by the National Religious Broadcasters indicated that 77 new Christian television stations went on the air in the U. S. between 1964 and 1977.

Only two have failed, the report said. Cecil Rush, general manager of TelePrompTer, the local cable television system, said Thursday that preparations are being made to add WCLF to that system. He said FCC regulations require the inclusion of all local television stations in locally franchised cable systems. "We have ordered the necessary equipment (a unit that can convert the WCLF signal to an assigned channel on the cable)," Rush said, "but we haven't yet heard a word from them." He estimated that the conversion can be made in about 90 days if WCLF officials come forward with the necessary scheduling information. If Sunowst TV viewers want Christian television, then the road to success is open for the state's newest station WCLF (see accompanying story).

Representatives of Suncoast commerical TV stations said this week that they have no plans to compete with WCLF in Christian programing. "We've already reduced the number of religious programs on our station, knowing that they will fill the gap," said Jane Boyd, program director for WTSP-Channel 10, an ABC affiliate. The station recently cancelled its live broadcast of 11 a.m. Sunday services at Calvary Baptist Church, Clearwater. It now airs a week-late, videotaped program between 8 and 9 a.m.

Sunday. THE MID-MORNING slot on Channel 10 is now filled with "family-type" movies and a half-hour local news-interview program. The only other religious programs carried by the station are Hour of Power and Sound of the Spirit between 7 and 8 a.m. Sundays. From now on, Miss Boyd said, Channel 10 will broadcast additional religious programs only when something "special" like the Pope's recent visit occurs.

"I really think the new station is a good thing," she said. "It will benefit those who want to see that sort of programs." Her comments were echoed by a representative for WTVT-Channe! who acknowledged that religious broadcasts on his station are currently "at an all-time Channel 13V rfl'gioiis programing was reduced veral j.i when CBS ciii.ci mornimr shows. Lump My Fett and Vamrra Ihrre, j.ikI iiitrnfiiu-rd Kur.iit new Sunnnv whu-Ji a rt-ii- a i "fas 1 jmi I 1 ') ft a. i rr. 1 1 vi -l 1.