“Backseat Memories,” hosted by Mike Saffran, on “Oldies 98.9”/WKLX-FM (98.9), Rochester, N.Y. Originally aired Aug. 10, 1996. (Bonus Clip) Special note: This was my first night on the air since learning the tragic news, the day before, about the discovery of the body of kidnapped and murdered 4-year-old Kali Ann Poulton (who went missing more than two years earlier) and the arrest of a suspect (a former East Rochester neighbor, Mark Christie, of Kali and her mother, Judy Gifford). The story of Kali’s disappearance, in May 1994, was national news; and for months afterwards her face had been on posters plastered throughout western New York. For awhile in 1994, I closed each of my WKLX shows with the line, “Keep looking for Kali” (a practice I occasionally continued into 1995 and ’96 — notably on or near the one- and two-year anniversaries of her disappearance). Headed into my weekly request show on the night of Aug. 10, 1996, I wasn’t sure how I was going to handle the horrible news on the air. As DJs on music radio stations, one of our roles often is to give listeners an “escape” from the serious (and often depressing) everyday news. We create such an “oasis” by being generally upbeat and positive (most of the time). At the same time, however, other goals are to “keep it real,” strive to be relatable, and talk to listeners about many of the same things on their minds (in other words, you wouldn’t necessarily want to pretend as though something didn’t happen because doing so could come across as simply being out of touch with reality). Plus, as mentioned, I used to close out many of my shows, ’94–’96, with the tagline, “Keep looking for Kali” (as the story of her disappearance was a big, local media story, for sure — it’s what many people in Rochester, and beyond, were talking about at the time). On top of all that, the “Backseat Memories” portion of my weekly show oftentimes was more relaxed, so to speak, compared with earlier segments (heck, we even played sound-effects of crickets in the background!). So … just how should I handle this tragic news was a question on my mind going in. Hosting a five-hour request show (including “’70s at 7,” “Jukebox Saturday Night” and “Backseat Memories”) was fun and rewarding … but also intense, at times. I can recall oftentimes feeling “spent” (but in a good way — kind of like a “runner’s high”) immediately afterwards. (Note: Not only did I truly play requests on this show, but there was literally *no* prescheduled music 10 p.m.–midnight — “two blank pages,” as I periodically honestly told listeners — which was almost unheard of in radio, even back in 1996.) Thirty years later, I can still recall feeling “spent” after this particular show … but with a real sense of satisfaction with how we — my listeners and I — dealt with the horrific news of Kali’s murder. Ultimately, it was some of the station’s great listeners who helped with the decision about how to handle the news somberly, respectfully … and realistically that night on the radio. And this is how it sounded…. All content (radio aircheck, audio podcast – all components, and show notes): © Michael J. Saffran
