JOINT STATEMENT OF WARREN COLE SMITH, MINISTRYWATCH.COM, Z MINISTRIES, AND JAMES HOGE
Warren Cole Smith, Ministry Watch.com, Z Ministries, Inc. (Z88.3 FM, Orlando) and James Hoge have been engaged in a legal dispute regarding content that was published on MinistryWatch.com and other websites.
The parties recognized that allowing the dispute to continue in the court system would be costly from a financial standpoint, as well as a detriment to the cause of Christ. We have therefore resolved the matter amicably in a spirit of reconciliation.
To say anything more about this would not further the parties’ desire and efforts to put the dispute behind us, and so we will not be answering questions or otherwise addressing this matter. As Paul exhorts us in Philippians 3:13- 14, we forget what lies behind and strain forward to what lies ahead in the prize of the upward call of Christ.
Warren Cole Smith
MinistryWatch.com
James S. Hoge
Z88.3 FM – Orlando Z Ministries, Inc
Current and Former Staffers Tell of “Toxic” Culture at Orlando Christian Radio Station
May 11, 2021
8 Comments
EDITORIAL NOTE: The Roys Report has removed the content of this article (as of January 6, 2023) because the original publisher, MinistryWatch,
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15 Responses
This sounds similar to what you, Julie, went through at WMBI in Chicago.
I know Julie is aware of this, but the seedy underbelly of Christian Radio has been an issue for years. We used to think it was just the Family Radio/Harold Camping circles, or possibly other fundamentalists or even leftists infiltrating. It isn’t.
I’ve been out of the radio world for a number of years now and have had numerous non-Christian (and occasionally anti-Christian) coworkers, supervisors, and bosses. I haven’t been treated like I was in Christian radio.
I worked as a teacher at 2 different “Christian” schools. The toxic environment in those situations has caused me to never want to work for a Christian again. Such a shame.
Migie, as a Christian, I am so sorry to hear that. You are right. It is absolutely shameful, and there is no excuse for it. I hope that other Christians would listen to what you are saying.
You are right to put the word “Christian” in quotes, after all, what is a “Christian” school anyway?
Regarding work experience, many years ago I worked for a short time for a family at my church, and it was, by far, one of the worst experiences I ever had, too. Other than seeing them show up in church weekly, there was nothing I can remember about them that was like Christ.
I’d be curious to hear more about your experience Migie. I just came from such an environment.
I’m so sorry to hear that you experienced a toxic environment, too. The leaders in my situation were extremely narcissistic and fired people if they were ever questioned. I became so stressed at the first school as to how they treated the children that my hair began falling out!! Thankfully I knew that didn’t exhibit the fruits of the Spirit and weren’t really Christians, however their example left others confused and dismayed. I work for non-believers now and am treated so much better. Did you have a similar experience?
Yes. I worked for a seminary that was/is an extremely toxic place, and lead by a narcissistic leader. High turnover rate, chaotic and unstable work environment, and overwhelmed, miserable staff. I’m glad I’m not there anymore.
We need to be clear about the word Christian. A Christian is a person, not a thing, who follows Christ and acts like Christ. The earlier believers were called Christians, not because they took that name themselves, but because they were so much like Jesus that others called them that.
I hate even using the terms Christian music or Christian radio. What does that even mean anyway? What is it that makes it Christian?
This all reminds me of an old Steve Taylor song about believers who only want to drink milk from a Christian cow, but I digress.
“Guilty by Association!” You should check out the cover version of the song by “The Sanctified Glory Mountain Revival Family.” It’s pretty funny.
Ah, a fellow Steve Taylor fan. Yes, that is the song. I still have it on CD. I will have to check out the cover version. It is interesting, when I think about it, that Steve Taylor, through music, was talking about hypocrisy and greed in the church way back in the eighties. Today we have TRR.
Our own experience with professing Christians is such that they say one thing while immediately doing the opposite. We were swindled by members of the United Reformed Church of North America and instead of the church holding them accountable for theft and lying, the church closed ranks and sued us with a bogus defamation suit. Jesus says in Matt.7:16-20 ” You will know them by their fruits.” They are just hypocrites.
When “business” and “ministry” get mixed together, things just get weird. Things that would not be tolerated in a typical business environment can be excused under the banner of “sacrificing for the ministry.”
Since radio stations have to have their licenses renewed periodically, the process requires public input. So if enough people petition the FCC Hoge could lose the license.
That sounds too good to be true.
This news is of no surprise to me. An old pastor of mine used to say that Satan does his best work inside a cloak of religious false piety. The same exact story is reported over and over again. The names of the individuals and orgs. change, but the story is identical. Men who claim Christ but act like Satan have been sowed everywhere like tares. Only in paying close attention to their fruit does this become obvious.