On the 24th September 1994, there was a tremendous amount of love in the air. The Bahamian people were finally able to enjoy an Adult Contemporary Radio Station which was driven by news and current affairs programming.
The new Free National Movement government back then awarded a Radio broadcast license for New Providence to Jones Communications Limited, solely owned by Wendall Jones. He named the station Love 97FM as it was given the frequency 97.5 on the band.
The station was warmly welcomed by tens of thousands of Bahamians who wanted something new, fresh and dynamic on the FM Radio band. Jones attracted some of these most experienced and talented broadcasters and journalists in the industry and embarked on a standard of excellence which others over the years tried to emulate but not duplicate.
On this the 30th anniversary of Radio Love 97FM, the station which is now institutionalized, has received an outpouring of congratulatory remarks and sentiments from around The Bahamas and the world. Those who listen over the worldwide web in many countries, especially people in the Bahamian diaspora have come to enjoy and appreciate the rich programming of Bahamian music, mixed with international sounds. The cultural diversity of the station, the educational content of talk shows and the coverage of news became a formula which is responsible for the grand success and the continuity of the media enterprise.
The station is now a dominant force in the adult market and dials have remained locked on the frequency from day one. There are testimonials from citizens throughout The Bahamas and around the world in general of appreciation on the offerings on the genre of music.
In addition Jones Communications is widely known for its major contributions to Civic Journalism. Some of the programs it conceived over the years include: Operation Love Your Country, designed to maintain a clean environment; The Person of The Year and Civil Society Awards and The Love Games.
Now the owner and founder of the station, His Excellency Wendall K. Jones, The Bahamas Ambassador to The United States of America, Colombia and Malaysia has turned over the management of the enterprise to Kimaley Jones who is Chief Executive Officer and Kristy Stubbs, the Chief Operating Officer. They are ably assisted by a cadre of loyal employees, some of whom have been with the station from the very beginning.
The Jones family is eternally grateful to those hardworking staff, both past and present who over the years have given yeoman’s service and have taken great pride in providing quality broadcasting services to the public.
The Jones Communications Network which includes this publication, The Bahama Journal as well as JCN TV-14 has been instrumental in the training of scores of journalists in The Bahamas. Many of them are found in other media enterprises and in public relations positions in entities in the public and private sectors. We consider this our contribution to the national development efforts of the country and the deepening of democracy.
Incidentally, seven years before Love 97 went on the air, The Bahama Journal came on the scene. The mission in September of 1987 was to go beyond the surface of the news for an in-depth examination of issues facing the nation. So the Journal is celebrating its 37th anniversary. Over the years the entities enjoyed a synergistic relationship with the same newsroom and reporters.
The organization has produced an impressive list of special publications over the last thirty years. Among them are: The 100 Most Outstanding Bahamians of the 20th Century, The 275th Anniversary of The Bahamian Parliament, Fifty Years of Majority Rule, Fifty Years of Growth of Tourism In The Bahamas and coffee table books on the 30th, 40th and 50th Anniversaries of Bahamian Independence.
On these anniversaries of the Radio Station and the Newspaper, we express deep appreciation to the tens of thousands of readers, listeners and advertisers who are responsible for the success we enjoy.
JCN remains a Media enterprise in progress with a new generation at the helm and very bright future ahead.