Sabbatical

Sabbatical

Front Page - San Antonio News - March 2, 1972

Effective next Tuesday, Woody Roberts has resigned as general manager of KTSA, rock station here.

Roberts brought in many innovations in his four years at KTSA, including the first woman newscaster and the first Mexican-American program director in Alamo City Radio.

Still only 31, Roberts will work three days a week for a private landscaper, and spend his spare time writing a book about the influence of pop music on politics and fashion.

Roberts starred in a courtroom drama of the '60s here when he and fellow disk jockey Lee "Babi" Simms quit KONO, went to work for a rival station and were charged with breach of contract by KONO owner Jack Roth.

Roth Won. Roberts and Simms left town on the grounds they'd signed a paper forbidding them to work locally in competition with KONO and Roth.

Years Later, when the "Roth ban" had expired, Roberts returned to direct KTSA against arch-rival KONO.

He's best known in local radio circles for telling executives of the electronic media: "You have people of both sexes and all races and colors listening to your programs. Therefore, in staffing your stations, it's only common sense to make them a replica in all respects of the audiences."

Woody Notes: I never did the gardening. Hitchhiked around the USA instead. Didn't finish the book. I was held back by not having a word processor/spell checker and was not that adroit on my old manual Underwood typewriter.

I still have my research books, like Music and Your Emotions, The Philosophies of Music History, etc. On my hard drive today the Music folder has 125 files.

Of course, the reporter meant English language radio. KEDA, KCOR and KUKA had Mexican-American (Latino) Program Directors.

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