MASON CITY – KLKK-FM in downtown Mason City has parted ways with a long-time voice of North Iowa, Bruce Wasenius.
If you’ve spent much time in the Mason City area and turned on the radio, Mr. Wasenius would have been hard to miss. He plays all the best classic rock hits and is known for his soft-spoken, friendly voice, reading long lists of names of folks who are listening to his radio station while he’s at work.
Now, NorthIowaToday.com has learned and confirmed that KLKK-FM, located at 201 N. Federal Avenue, has turned off Mr. Wasenius’ microphone.
“I am no longer employed by the station I helped put on the air in 1978,” Mr. Wasenius told NIT this afternoon.
He says “Creative differences between management and myself is what it’s about.”
A friend of Mr. Wasenius says that he may have strayed too far from the radio’s canned playlist, leading to his dismissal.
Mr. Wasenius, however, says he knows what he’s doing during his show.
“My opinion is based on 37 years of feedback from listeners as to what they want to hear and (management) does’t agree. I spend too much time acknowledging my listeners, play music that is unacceptable and don’t follow guidelines. In a nut she’ll that’s it,” he explained.
A call to to the KLKK-FM (641-421-7744) went answered, but a woman on the other end of the phone seemed to be in a hurry to end the conversation. She chuckled when asked about whether Bruce Wasenius had been fired or let go from the station. She put NIT into the voicemail of program director James Shaman, and a message was left. That message was not immediately returned.
Now that Mr. Wasenius is off the air, he is looking into his next move.
“I am looking into other possibilities via the internet,” he said.
