To Air Is Divine, Say Backers of Imperiled Station

"We made an all-cash offer and believe it was for the same amount, and were disappointed to learn that our offer was not accepted," Jenkins said. "We are hopeful that we will be given an opportunity to present our case when the matter comes before the full [college] board of directors" in September.

WGTS's own board has not given up hope. "WGTS is God's radio station and always has been," the station's general manager, John Konrad, wrote in an appeal to loyal listeners to pepper the college and the church with messages of support. "We've all done our share of worrying about the future of WGTS in recent days, but you know what, God is completely in control. We have nothing to worry about. He has a purpose for WGTS and that purpose is being worked out every step of the way."

Listeners have responded with hundreds of letters attesting to the station's transformative role in their lives. WGTS's music -- a kind of soft rock with Christian lyrics -- provides solace and encouragement to listeners who have filled message boards at http://savewgts.net with testimonials such as: "I find it most comforting to keep the station on all night. It is a blessing because it encourages me, lifts up my spirits and teaches me life."

"This seems to be an attempt at a quick fix to cover up the horrible financial and substantive state of affairs at the college," says Noel Gould, a Washington Adventist and donor to WGTS, who has hired a law firm from the District to look into ways to halt the sale.

"The college is fairly hard up for cash," says Doug Walker, a member of WGTS's board who for many years hosted the station's "Divertimento" classical show.

A Columbia Union spokesman, Scott Steward, and the college's board president, Dave Weigley, did not return calls seeking comment. But Steward told the Adventist News Network that the offer from the WGTS board was "insufficient" because it proposed to pay for the station over 25 years and the college wants a cash deal.

WGTS stalwarts say their only hope for saving the Christian format is to appeal to fellow Adventists. "If the overall mission of the college and the station is winning souls, then you don't sell off the station," Walker says. "The college's board has to decide whether to save the college or the station."

A college statement says WGTS's current format could be salvaged even if the station is sold by putting the programming on a digital sub-channel that would be available to listeners who buy the HD or digital radios that came on the market last year. But sales of those radios have been slow, and WGTS executives are skeptical that the college would retain the staff needed to maintain the current programming. Walker called that plan "a load of rubbish."

WGTS, which aims at an audience of 20-to-45-year-old "soccer moms," collects about $2.5 million a year in donations from about 15,000 listeners and is, according to the Arbitron ratings service, the second-most-listened-to noncommercial religious station in the nation.

"We're heavy on music and camaraderie," Walker says, "as opposed to preaching and right-wing politics."