Produced at WETS 89.5 FM
Johnson City TN
Airs on WETS and WMMT, Whitesburg KY

(last update: January 2001)

Environmental News is an all-volunteer, weekly 1/2 hour radio show that airs on 89.5 WETS, and on 91.5 WMMT in Whitesburg KY.

The show airs news about environmental issues, both regionally and nationally, but with a focus on Southern Appalachia.  The show also includes spoken, reflective essays on natural and human history of the region.

The show is affiliated with Cherokee Forest Voices, a local forest watch-dog group, and is sponsored in part by the State of Franklin Group of the Tennessee Chapter of the Sierra Club.

Environmental News strives to avoid partisanship, while encouraging listeners to think about environmental policy and issues.  The issues of greatest concern are national forest protection, regional air and water pollution, sprawl, excessive dependence on automobiles and highways, and litter and recycling.

History

First aired in March 1993, as a 15-minute show, Environmental News was started by Pete Zars, Jane Ensign, Arthur Smith, and Kristen Zimet.  Smith, a well-known Kingsport eco-warrior, was a major force behind the show until his death in December, 1999.

Personnel

A complete list of the people who've contributed to this all-volunteer show would be quite long.  Here is a selected list of some of the people who have recently been active with the show:

• Executive Producer is Jane Ensign, of Kingsport.
• Ron Wickman, of Johnson City, is the engineer.
• Don Sluder, of Johnson City, is a premier announcer.
• Dean Whitworth, a local activist and actor, writes, announces, and produces.
• Frosty Levy, ETSU Biological Sciences, contributes original investigative pieces on Cherokee National Forest management policies.
• Elaine Walker, of Erwin, writes and announces.
• Kevin O'Donnell, ETSU English, writes, announces, produces.
• Ted Olson, ETSU English and Center for Appalachian Studies and Services, hosts the "Green Songs" series.
• Fred Waage, ETSU English, writes and announces.
• Tess Lloyd, ETSU English, writes and announces.

• Spring Brooks, English undergrad; writer and announcer.
• Megan Gregory, English undergrad; announcer.
• Kathy Hallenbeck, English MA student; writer and announcer.
• Scott Honeycutt, English MA student and instructor; writer and announcer.
• Josh Kinser, English undergrad; writer and announcer.
• Devon Koren, English undergrad; writer and announcer.
• Julie McCloud, Psychology undergrad.
• James Ovington, English undergrad; writer and announcer.
• Nancy Pucci, Continuing Studies; writer and announcer.
• Maggie Smith, English undergrad; announcer.
• Susan Stanford, Geography undergrad; writer and announcer.
• Cate Strain, English MA student; announcer.
• Jesse Willis, Biology undergrad; writer and announcer.