The Infinite Dial

Name:
Jana "Rogers" Lopeman

Current Title/Position/Company:
Managing Partner, WMOM-FM

How did you get your start in radio?
My family's been in the business for years...so I guess you could say by hanging around radio stations and picking up on things from an early age. OR you could say by starting out as a part-timer/weekender running CD's and doing all of the production nobody else wanted, and working my way up from there.

What are your career goals?
I'm a bit undecided. Whatever it is, I'd like to be having fun doing some aspect of radio. I could just as easily enjoy being a midday jock as I could manage a station or doing programming alone. I'd be happiest, I think, if I could be working with my family running one or several stations, and all of the miscellaneous jobs that go with that so...that.

What do you enjoy most about your work?
I like helping people when I come to work. Be it helping an intern present the news more effectively, helping a listener find their lost dog on the air, or help a local charity raise funds through our radio station, those are by far the best things about getting up every morning.

What are the biggest challenges ahead for radio, from your perspective?
I think it's going to be keeping competitive with new and emerging forms of entertainment technology, and I believe strongly that it's entirely possible. We just have to stay CREATIVE!!

What have you learned that you would most like to pass on to your fellow under-thirty-somethings?
ALWAYS take the opportunities to learn more, and try things out, even if they seem over your head. ALWAYS take immediate accountability for your mistakes, be thankful if you get the opportunity to learn from them.