Vic Eliason
Encyclopedia
Victor "Vic" Carl Eliason (born 14 May 1936) is an American evangelical clergyman who is the founder and a prominent on air personality of the VCY America Radio Network, a conservative Christian
broadcasting
ministry
, based in Milwaukee.
, the son of lay preacher, Oscar C. Eliason
, who served with the Swedish Baptist Church and the Assemblies of God
, and Norma Olson (born 1911). Eliason attended Open Bible College
, in Des Moines, Iowa
. After serving as an associate pastor in Des Moines, Iowa, Eliason was ordained in a non-denominational church, in October 1957.
, Wisconsin
. In 1960 Eliason became interim director of the Milwaukee, Wisconsin chapter of Youth for Christ
. In May 1961 Eliason went on the air with Voice of Christian Youth, a 30-minute youth-oriented radio show over WBON-FM
in Milwaukee. Soon after the ministry had expanded to a full broadcast day, resulting in 1970 in Eliason purchasing WBON for $315,000 and renaming it WVCY. In 1976 Eliason started Crosstalk, a radio talk show with himself as host.
Eliason founded Voice of Christian Youth, later renamed the VCY America Radio Network, a conservative Christian
broadcasting
ministry
, based in Milwaukee. VCY currently oversees 15-20 stations mostly across the Upper Midwest, depending on the source, not including its Internet site, a 24-hour a day, seven days a week, television station in Milwaukee, which is WVCY-TV
30, began in 1982, as well as several "translator" and "satellator" stations. VCY America also provides programming via satellite
to stations around the country. The ministry is 100 percent funded through listeners' and supporters' donations.
Eliason is a prominent on-air personality for the network, with duties including being one of the regular hosts for the network's morning public affairs program, VCY Today. He also sits in on various days for the network's nationally broadcast weekday afternoon public affairs program, Crosstalk, which is taped and rebroadcast every weekday evening; one of those broadcasts is also replayed at noon (CDT) on Saturday as Best of Crosstalk. Eliason also provides the voiceover
s for the network’s overnight music program, Music 'Til Dawn, which features "mostly conservative, ministry-oriented inspirational music", where tunes are interspersed with verses from the Bible and life-affirming comments.
In 1978 Eliason established the Voice of Christian Youth school, a private Christian K-12 School at 3434 W. Kilbourn Avenue, Milwaukee. In the early 1990's, the Voice of Christian Youth School merged with Faith Christian Academy and the name of the school was formally changed to Badger State Baptist School, and was relocated to 1170 W. Windlake Ave, Milwaukee.
In 1983 Eliason started WVCY-TV
on Channel 30 in Milwaukee. In September 1994 the WVCY-TV board rejected a purchase offer of $10 million from CBS
.
reporter Julia Brienza (born 1962) was a lesbian and had written a free-lance article on "hate radio" for The Washington Blade
, a gay newspaper in Washington, DC., Eliason began a national campaign that resulted in Brienza's employment being terminated in April 1990. After Brienza was fired, Eliason stated during his radio show that "'Christianity has triumphed". Later in 1990 Brienza filed a US$12.75 million lawsuit against UPI and Elison for "unlawful job termination" based on her sexual orientation. To settle the case, in April 1995 Eliason agreed to pay Brienza $255,000 and to issue a statement that Gays and Lesbians have the right to work in the media.
, the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Milwaukee, "whom Eliason regarded as a "liberal" for his views on homosexuality and sex education".
Eliason is the recipient of an honorary Doctorate of Laws degree given at the 74th Annual Commencement exercises of Bob Jones University
in May 2001. Eliason is also a licensed pilot
.
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
broadcasting
Broadcasting
Broadcasting is the distribution of audio and video content to a dispersed audience via any audio visual medium. Receiving parties may include the general public or a relatively large subset of thereof...
ministry
Christian ministry
In Christianity, ministry is an activity carried out by Christians to express or spread their faith. 2003's Encyclopedia of Christianity defines it as "carrying forth Christ's mission in the world", indicating that it is "conferred on each Christian in baptism." It is performed by all Christians...
, based in Milwaukee.
Early life
Victor Carl Eliason was born on May 14 1936 in Fort Dodge, IowaFort Dodge, Iowa
Fort Dodge is a city and county seat of Webster County, Iowa, United States, along the Des Moines River. The population was 25,206 in the 2010 census, an increase from 25,136 in the 2000 census. Fort Dodge is a major commercial center for North Central and Northwest Iowa. It is located on U.S...
, the son of lay preacher, Oscar C. Eliason
Oscar C. Eliason
Oscar C. Eliason was a Swedish American clergyman, who served as a pastor and evangelist in the Assemblies of God, and was a prolific poet and composer, who composed over 50 hymns and gospel songs, including A Name I Highly Treasure and the popular Got Any Rivers, which influenced another song,...
, who served with the Swedish Baptist Church and the Assemblies of God
Assemblies of God
The Assemblies of God , officially the World Assemblies of God Fellowship, is a group of over 140 autonomous but loosely-associated national groupings of churches which together form the world's largest Pentecostal denomination...
, and Norma Olson (born 1911). Eliason attended Open Bible College
Open Bible Standard Churches
right|thumb | OBSC Pacific Office in [[Eugene, Oregon]]The Open Bible Standard Churches or Open Bible Churches is an association of Pentecostal churches with headquarters in Des Moines, Iowa, United States. Open Bible Churches is affiliated with , an accredited Bible college in Eugene, Oregon...
, in Des Moines, Iowa
Iowa
Iowa is a state located in the Midwestern United States, an area often referred to as the "American Heartland". It derives its name from the Ioway people, one of the many American Indian tribes that occupied the state at the time of European exploration. Iowa was a part of the French colony of New...
. After serving as an associate pastor in Des Moines, Iowa, Eliason was ordained in a non-denominational church, in October 1957.
Career
in 1959 Eliason and his wife, Freda (born 13 February 1935), moved to MilwaukeeMilwaukee, Wisconsin
Milwaukee is the largest city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin, the 28th most populous city in the United States and 39th most populous region in the United States. It is the county seat of Milwaukee County and is located on the southwestern shore of Lake Michigan. According to 2010 census data, the...
, Wisconsin
Wisconsin
Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...
. In 1960 Eliason became interim director of the Milwaukee, Wisconsin chapter of Youth for Christ
Youth for Christ
Youth for Christ is the name of a number of previously unaffiliated evangelical Protestant religious campaigns which led to the creation of Youth for Christ International in 1946....
. In May 1961 Eliason went on the air with Voice of Christian Youth, a 30-minute youth-oriented radio show over WBON-FM
WVCY-FM
WVCY-FM is a radio station located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. They are owned by VCY America and serve as the flagship affiliate of their Milwaukee-based radio network, airing a general fundamentalist Christian-based format...
in Milwaukee. Soon after the ministry had expanded to a full broadcast day, resulting in 1970 in Eliason purchasing WBON for $315,000 and renaming it WVCY. In 1976 Eliason started Crosstalk, a radio talk show with himself as host.
Eliason founded Voice of Christian Youth, later renamed the VCY America Radio Network, a conservative Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
broadcasting
Broadcasting
Broadcasting is the distribution of audio and video content to a dispersed audience via any audio visual medium. Receiving parties may include the general public or a relatively large subset of thereof...
ministry
Christian ministry
In Christianity, ministry is an activity carried out by Christians to express or spread their faith. 2003's Encyclopedia of Christianity defines it as "carrying forth Christ's mission in the world", indicating that it is "conferred on each Christian in baptism." It is performed by all Christians...
, based in Milwaukee. VCY currently oversees 15-20 stations mostly across the Upper Midwest, depending on the source, not including its Internet site, a 24-hour a day, seven days a week, television station in Milwaukee, which is WVCY-TV
WVCY-TV
WVCY-TV is a conservative Christian television station in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. It broadcasts digitally on Channel 22, but maps on a virtual channel via PSIP to their former analog channel position, Channel 30.-Sister Stations:...
30, began in 1982, as well as several "translator" and "satellator" stations. VCY America also provides programming via satellite
Satellite
In the context of spaceflight, a satellite is an object which has been placed into orbit by human endeavour. Such objects are sometimes called artificial satellites to distinguish them from natural satellites such as the Moon....
to stations around the country. The ministry is 100 percent funded through listeners' and supporters' donations.
Eliason is a prominent on-air personality for the network, with duties including being one of the regular hosts for the network's morning public affairs program, VCY Today. He also sits in on various days for the network's nationally broadcast weekday afternoon public affairs program, Crosstalk, which is taped and rebroadcast every weekday evening; one of those broadcasts is also replayed at noon (CDT) on Saturday as Best of Crosstalk. Eliason also provides the voiceover
VoiceOver
VoiceOver is a screen reader built into Apple Inc.'s Mac OS X, iOS and iPod operating systems. By using VoiceOver, the user can access their Macintosh or iOS device based on spoken descriptions and, in the case of the Mac, the keyboard. The feature is designed to increase accessibility for blind...
s for the network’s overnight music program, Music 'Til Dawn, which features "mostly conservative, ministry-oriented inspirational music", where tunes are interspersed with verses from the Bible and life-affirming comments.
In 1978 Eliason established the Voice of Christian Youth school, a private Christian K-12 School at 3434 W. Kilbourn Avenue, Milwaukee. In the early 1990's, the Voice of Christian Youth School merged with Faith Christian Academy and the name of the school was formally changed to Badger State Baptist School, and was relocated to 1170 W. Windlake Ave, Milwaukee.
In 1983 Eliason started WVCY-TV
WVCY-TV
WVCY-TV is a conservative Christian television station in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. It broadcasts digitally on Channel 22, but maps on a virtual channel via PSIP to their former analog channel position, Channel 30.-Sister Stations:...
on Channel 30 in Milwaukee. In September 1994 the WVCY-TV board rejected a purchase offer of $10 million from CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
.
Julia Brienza
After discovering UPI Supreme CourtSupreme Court of the United States
The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest court in the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all state and federal courts, and original jurisdiction over a small range of cases...
reporter Julia Brienza (born 1962) was a lesbian and had written a free-lance article on "hate radio" for The Washington Blade
The Washington Blade
The Washington Blade is a lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender newspaper in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. The Blade is the oldest LGBT newspaper in the United States and second largest by circulation, behind Gay City News of New York City...
, a gay newspaper in Washington, DC., Eliason began a national campaign that resulted in Brienza's employment being terminated in April 1990. After Brienza was fired, Eliason stated during his radio show that "'Christianity has triumphed". Later in 1990 Brienza filed a US$12.75 million lawsuit against UPI and Elison for "unlawful job termination" based on her sexual orientation. To settle the case, in April 1995 Eliason agreed to pay Brienza $255,000 and to issue a statement that Gays and Lesbians have the right to work in the media.
Rembert Weakland
Eliason was vociferous in his opposition to Rembert WeaklandRembert Weakland
Rembert George Weakland was an American prelate of the Catholic Church. He served as Archbishop of Milwaukee from 1977 to 2002. He is the author of A Pilgrim in a Pilgrim Church: Memoirs of a Catholic Archbishop, which explores Church reform issues, his homosexuality, and the child abuse crisis....
, the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Milwaukee, "whom Eliason regarded as a "liberal" for his views on homosexuality and sex education".
Personal
Eliason is married to Freda M. Eliason (born 1935), and the father of three adult children - Andrew Carl Eliason (born about 1964), who is employed as an engineer at VCY; Ingrid J. Schlueter (born about 1966), former producer and co-host of the Crosstalk Radio Talk Show on the VCY America Radio Network (resigned from VCY America in May, 2011) ; and Lisa C. Turner (born about 1968), two of whom work at the radio ministry.Eliason is the recipient of an honorary Doctorate of Laws degree given at the 74th Annual Commencement exercises of Bob Jones University
Bob Jones University
Bob Jones University is a private, for-profit, non-denominational Protestant university in Greenville, South Carolina.The university was founded in 1927 by Bob Jones, Sr. , an evangelist and contemporary of Billy Sunday...
in May 2001. Eliason is also a licensed pilot
Aviator
An aviator is a person who flies an aircraft. The first recorded use of the term was in 1887, as a variation of 'aviation', from the Latin avis , coined in 1863 by G. de la Landelle in Aviation Ou Navigation Aérienne...
.