Behind the Mic: Learning the Business of Farm Radio

For Johnna Fulcher, a summer internship with the RFD Radio Network offered a chance to step behind the microphone and see firsthand what it takes to keep Illinois farmers informed.

As an intern with Illinois Farm Bureau’s RFD Radio Network, Johnna quickly discovered the job was about much more than sitting in a studio. Her summer included editing audio, working with market reports, helping prepare interviews and even traveling to MC the Master Showmanship competition at the Georgetown Fair.

One of the biggest parts of the job is helping deliver timely information to farmers across the state. RFD Radio provides hourly market updates throughout the morning, reaching listeners through approximately 100 stations across Illinois.

But for Johnna, one of the most memorable moments of the summer was much closer to home: interviewing her dad on the radio around Father's Day. Asking her father questions she had never thought to ask before gave her a new perspective on someone she already knew well and created a memory she won't soon forget.

Johnna's experience also gave her a closer look at the career of DeLoss Jahnke, RFD Radio's senior audio specialist. For DeLoss, radio has been a lifelong passion. He remembers announcing imaginary baseball games as a kid and listening to the Kansas City Royals while riding in the tractor with his dad.

After discovering farm broadcasting during a college internship, DeLoss found a way to combine his love of radio with his connection to agriculture. He eventually joined RFD Radio in 2015, following a career that included the National FFA Organization and farm broadcasting in Peoria.

Today, DeLoss spends much of his time covering the issues that matter most to farmers like markets, input costs and profitability to the people and stories behind Illinois agriculture. Through programs such as RFD Profit Watch and Vintage Country, he gets to dig deeper into the challenges, traditions and personal stories that make farming much more than a seasonal job.



When we asked DeLoss what he would want non-farmers to understand about agriculture, his answer came back to something that is easy to overlook: farming is a small business, and it's one that operates 365 days a year. From production and livestock to finances, record keeping, compliance and countless decisions throughout the year, there is far more to farming than planting in the spring and harvesting in the fall.

Watch the videos of Deloss and Johnna or tune into RFD radio.