WRAL-TV Anchor/Reporter Brian Shrader is no stranger to morning television news, but did you know he is also a familiar voice on the radio? He recently paid a visit to some decades-long radio friends that he has never met in person.
“Every weekday morning, I record news updates for both MIX 101.5 and Radio One’s The Light 103.9, which has an inspirational music format,” he explained to CapCom.
He does his radio updates between his turns on camera for WRAL’s Morning News.
“I write three newscasts between my traffic hits in the first half of the 5 a.m. news,” said Shrader. “Right after my 5:30 a.m. traffic hit, I run over to the audio booth in the newsroom and record them before my 5:50 a.m. hit.”
That makes for a busy morning, but Shrader is a pro. He has had a lot of practice, but his relationship with his non-CBC radio friends has been purely remote.
“I’ve been doing these newscasts for at least 10 years – and I’d NEVER met our partners at Radio One!” he said. “So, I reached out to Melissa Wade, the assistant program director and midday personality at The Light 103.9.”
WRAL-TV’s Brian Shrader recently stopped by 103.9 The Light and got to meet Melissa Wade in person. He has been recording morning news updates for The Light for a decade and wanted to finally meet the great team in person.
He reached out to set a day and got ready for his in-person radio adventure.
“I asked Catherine Fitzhenry [WRAL-TV Senior Promotion Operations & Event Coordinator] in our creative services department for some WRAL gifts to take over there. She thoughtfully put together a great collection: WRAL mugs with a pen and notepad included in each one!” Shrader continued. “As you can imagine, the WRAL swag was a big hit! Thanks, Catherine!”
Shrader is glad he took the time to stop by and connect in person.
“It was great to meet with Melissa and the people at Radio One,” he said. “I visited the studios for The Light, K 97.5 and Foxy. I’ve been a radio nerd since I was a kid, so I always enjoy visiting stations.”
Shrader loves the opportunity his morning news updates give him to connect with people outside the TV studio, both staff and listeners.
“While the Radio One stations are competitors, our partnership allows us to reach a different audience with the WRAL News brand every morning!” he concluded.
Thanks to WRAL-TV’s Brian Shrader for these CapCom photos.
