Bott Radio launches second Branson station

Bott Radio also operates 103.9 FM in Branson; that station is a mirror image of the network’s Springfield station, 90.1 FM.

The new station is a project three years in the making for the Christian radio network.

Network president Dick Bott said that AM 1570 will have a similar format to other Bott stations, but it won’t simply repeat what they broadcast.

“We wanted an independent voice in Branson,” Bott said of his station, which is geared toward a Christian family audience.

“We have quality Bible teaching and Christian information; we know what we’re about,” Bott said. “No music, nothing else. That’s what we are 24 hours a day, seven days a week.”

Monna Stafford, Bott Radio regional manager, said launching the new station has been an incredible experience. She was busy making community contacts for AM 1570 prior to the launch.

“I worked on getting community leaders involved,” she said. “It was important to get the word out that a new station is coming on the air.”

Stafford, who has managed Bott’s Springfield-Branson region for more than a year, said there is a listening audience of 1.3 million in the area, many of whom are in the network’s target demographic of ages 25 to 54.

And, she added, the Branson area has both faithful listeners and visiting tourists.

“The Branson market includes 7 million visitors a year,” she said. “Those visitors are coming from other Bott network locations. Our listeners want to continue to listen to the Bott Radio Network as they travel. Now, they will be able to listen to their favorite ministers while they are on vacation.”

Bott Radio Network was founded in Kansas City in 1962 and now has 35 stations, 18 of which are in Missouri.

“We liked Missouri, so we decided to branch out from there,” Bott said. “Missouri is in the middle of everything. It is the heart of America.”

Bott said the network has 99 percent saturation in the state of Missouri.

He added that the network is growing – to the tune of 17 percent in 2005 – though he declined to disclose revenues for the network or its individual stations.