Casting A Vision
Photos by Joshua Rodgers
WOBV Starkville Channel 5
Theodore Roosevelt said, “nothing in the world is worth having or doing unless it means effort, pain, difficulty.” That rings true for the things we challenge ourselves with and, even more so, the things we are called to do. Nothing worth doing is easy.
In 1975, God moved Reverend Prentiss Gordon, then pastor of First United Methodist Church of Starkville (FUMC), to begin a new ministry to serve our community. This new endeavor would be a completely in-house television station, funded and staffed exclusively by FUMC. While a daunting challenge, it was one the congregation pursued fervently nonetheless. That mission came to fruition and is still operating today as WOBV, Starkville Channel 5. From the very beginning, the WOBV TV ministry’s mission has been to serve and include Starkville’s people. WOBV has always sought to bridge cultural, physical, and spiritual gaps by including diverse content – from church services and religious teaching to local government proceedings and original Starkville programming. First Baptist Starkville is proud to be a part of WOBV’s regular programming, re-broadcasting our Sunday worship service on Wednesday nights at 6:00 pm. Our partnership with WOBV is possible because of the vision and firm foundation laid by Reverend Prentiss Gordon for the WOBV TV ministry.
In the Summer of 1975, Revered Gordon began the delicate process of establishing FUMC’s television ministry. He appealed to both church and community leadership. FUMC’s administrative board approved a TV ministry concept, and the Starkville Cable system graciously offered to provide a channel to the church for free. Next, he brought the idea to the church congregation. Gordon believed, “the fundamental aim is to make it as soon as possible a medium of community service where programs of local origination covering the entire interest of the community will be shown.” Furthermore, he indicated, “it would not be sectarian in its policy, which is in full agreement with the United Methodist beliefs and theology.” These statements laid the foundation of this new ministry, creating a framework for policy, programming, and operations for decades to come. Gordon believed that the ministry should not be monolithic in its religious affiliation.
“This is projected as an outreach of the church to emphasize Christian values and a Christian setting in exploring community needs and interests. The possibilities in community service through our church are unlimited at this point.”
It would not be a “Methodist” TV station; rather, it would be nondenominational, opening the door for partnerships with other local religious organizations. By the Fall of 1975, pledges for funding the TV ministry, by way of increasing the church’s annual budget, had been secured. After months of research, direct communication, and casting of a clear vision, WOBV would become a reality.
During the fundraising process, Reverend Gordon held an open question and answer forum for the FUMC congregation. A church member posed the question of the nature of programming. Gordon replied, “The emphasis other than the worship services will be on religious education, community affairs, service projects, etc., with entertainment as a low priority.” He continued, “This is projected as an outreach of the church to emphasize Christian values and a Christian setting in exploring community needs and interests. The possibilities in community service through our church are unlimited at this point.” This statement was the foundation on which the WOBV programming schedule was built. The first live broadcasts began in May of 1976. These were limited to the sanctuary worship services while work was completed on the proper studio space. This meant that for the first five months of service, WOBV was solely focused on religious education.
In the Fall of 1976, the studio space’s work was completed, and WOBV programming expanded to include local community programs. Just one year later, in the Fall of 1977, WOBV had grown to include 32 hours of weekly programming and was operated by a 60-member volunteer staff.
This growth and expansion necessitated forming a policy committee to determine specific content types to air on WOBV and safeguard both the church’s and WOBV’s reputation. Gordon once again involved the congregation in this process, asking for “suggestions on types of programming you [the congregation] think a community service channel should have.” The final policy contains eleven provisions, focusing on transparency, a balanced program scheduled, and a commitment to holding all religious communication to high competency and quality standards while maintaining a nondenominational approach.
Like every step during the ministry’s establishment, these provisions honor the vision cast from the very beginning: that WOBV would be a station for all people in Starkville. For decades, WOBV has served the Starkville community, and with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, they find themselves more important than ever. WOBV has become an effective ministry tool for FUMC and several local churches to make their Sunday activities available to as many people as possible. Bill Green, the TV Ministry Director at FUMC, says they’ve “always had a good following of people watching our church services, but our programming of the Sunday Schools is absolutely priceless!”
During the pandemic, FUMC has expanded its Sunday programming to include several Sunday School classes. They’ve adapted their studio space to offer separate but unique filming sets for each of these new classes. In much the same way as our schools have gone virtual, FUMC has made a significant portion of its classes virtual during the pandemic, but they’ve leveraged WOBV to increase their community reach. Bill says, “We are eager to increase our programming, particularly because of the number of people that can’t attend classes or services, not just for the virus protection, but for those that can’t drive or whatever reason for not attending.” In a world as connected as ours is, it’s easy to forget that not everyone chooses to take part in social media. Many don’t even have access to a computer or the internet. WOBV’s over-the-air broadcast offers another way for people in our community to hear the Gospel and connect with a local church. Above all, Bill believes that the essence of WOBV’s ministry is to spread the Gospel. “The most important thing is to spread the message to everyone! Luckily, we have a broad choice of programs that keep people coming back to watch again... up to several different church services, both local and remote services, Methodist, Baptist, Presbyterian, and a number of other Christian denominations!”
Parker Lee, the Creative Media Associate at FUMC, is one of the staff members curating and developing content for WOBV. Parker continually asks questions like, “How do we get people connected? How do we move them from this passive watching on TV to being engaged?” The pandemic made these questions become a day-to-day reality for the staff at FUMC. Parker notes, “I think the church world was moving toward digital, but COVID pushed us forward at least ten years.” FUMC has had many challenges related to its specific circumstances. For instance, they’re not currently singing congregational music during their worship services. This safety guideline has motivated the staff to think creatively about worship and engaging their congregation. “We can’t sing because of COVID”, Lee recounts the process, “What are we going to do...how do we get people involved during services?” In this instance, the staff began recording small 4-person choirs. These ensembles were then edited together to create larger virtual choirs that became part of their regular worship services on WOBV, a segment that the church has grown to love and has become an effective tool for ministry at FUMC.
Today, WOBV continues to have a balanced but wide variety of programming. You can catch a local cooking show, Making a Chef, or a religious talk show, The Common Table, or you can watch local church services from First Presbyterian, Meadowview Baptist, and First Baptist Starkville. As a part of their balanced programming, WOBV includes several classic shows during the day, like Bonanza or Sherlock Holmes. Even though WOBV has been in operation for over 40 years, it’s still resting on the firm foundation laid by Reverend Prentiss Gordon. That’s both a testament to his leadership and God’s purpose for the ministry. Above all, WOBV seems to exist to clearly and correctly share the Gospel with our community, no matter your denomination or life circumstances. It’s an impressive and God-honoring ministry in our community. So next time you want to check out a Board of Alderman meeting or a local church service, don’t forget about our very own, locally operated TV station, Starkville Channel 5.
Click here for WOBV’s schedule and watch First Baptist Starkville Wednesday’s at 6:00 on Starkville Channel 5.
