WBAP Donates Historic Kennedy Tapes
As we approach tomorrow’s solemn 53rd anniversary of the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, Cumulus Media News-Talk WBAP-AM/Dallas announced it is donating 21 historic original recordings to The Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza. These archived reel-to-reel tapes (including this one from the very hour of the assassination) chronicle WBAP’s exhaustive coverage of the events on the day of Kennedy’s murder on November 22, 1963. These original “day-of” recordings are key materials documenting how this historic news event was reported to local audiences in 1963.
“The Museum is committed to preserving not only artifacts and documentation about the assassination itself, but also about the cultural legacy of that pivotal event in history,” said Nicola Longford, Executive Director of The Sixth Floor Museum. “We are especially excited for this generous donation because it shows the vivid local perspective of this tragic day.” She added, “With this incredible donation from our partners at WBAP, we will be able to share them with audiences for many generations to come.”
The donation of WBAP’s priceless JFK assassination archives was spearheaded by the efforts of longtime WBAP OM/PD Tyler Cox in the interest of preserving history. The recordings will be officially transferred to the Museum this morning at 10:30am. “The preservation of these original recordings has long been a goal of ours at WBAP,” Cox said. “The Sixth Floor Museum is the logical place for this audio glimpse of life in Dallas-Fort Worth on this fateful day to be preserved, and we’re pleased to make this donation to the Museum.”
On a related note, RAMP would like to take this opportunity to send our best wishes and much respect to Tyler Cox (left), who is one of those rare radio pros who has the privilege of going out on his own terms — after a stellar 44-year radio career, Tyler has announced his retirement, effective Dec. 2. Tyler got his radio start in 1972 while attending Eastern Kentucky University. This wraps up Tyler’s second tour of duty at WBAP — he started there in 1992, converting the station from Country to News-Talk. In 1998, under former owner ABC/Disney he moved up into station management. He later left the company and returned in 2006. After December 2, Mr. Cox plans to achieve that perfect balance of relaxation and consultation — he can be congratulated at TylerCoxConsulting@gmail.com.
