By Gene Galin
Pittsboro, NC – Chris O’Brien has spent most of his life behind microphones, inside studios and under deadlines. Now, after decades in commercial radio, voiceover production and major-market broadcasting, the longtime media professional is building something smaller, more personal and deeply local: Radio PBO, a Pittsboro-based streaming station designed to mix music, public-service messages, community interviews and hometown connection at a time when Chatham County is growing fast.
[Part 1 of a 2-part series]
A broadcaster turns toward home
Radio PBO is not just another playlist in the endless stream of online audio. On its own website, the station describes itself as “your hometown station” focused on “great music, local stories, and upcoming events,” with the motto, “Local Radio by Local People.” The site also frames the effort as “Radio for LOCALS by LOCALS,” a phrase that matches O’Brien’s explanation of why he launched the station in Pittsboro.
For O’Brien, the idea begins with a simple observation: Pittsboro is changing.
“This used to be a small town,” O’Brien said during my conversation with him earlier this month. “But now we’re exploding. And one of the things that happens to towns when they get bigger is community gets lost.”
That concern sits at the center of Radio PBO’s mission. O’Brien said the station is commercial enough to accept advertising, but local enough to make room for public-service announcements, nonprofit interviews and community voices that might otherwise struggle for airtime.
“We formed the station as being like a community station,” he said. “Of course, we are coin-operated. So we do take advertising, but you’ll hear on the station we have a lot of public service.”
From a storefront radio station to a lifetime obsession
O’Brien’s path into radio began with a moment so small it sounds almost scripted.
As a boy in Riverside, California, he was walking downtown with his mother and grandmother when he saw a storefront radio station. A broadcaster inside had a speaker outside and called out to him.
“Hey, kid,” the man said.
That was enough.
“From that moment on, I’ve been obsessed,” O’Brien said. “So, you know, a long time. Fifty-six years.”
He got his first experience in broadcasting while still in school. O’Brien attended Pinecrest High School in Southern Pines, where the school had a television station. Soon afterward, he moved into radio. By age 16 or 17, he was working on the air, handling shifts that included evenings and afternoon drive.
The work was different then. Music libraries were physical. Records filled rooms. Dust, vinyl and deadlines were part of the business.
“I remember I worked at some stations where their music library was the size of a double-wide trailer,” O’Brien said. “You just walk in there and it’s just, you know, if you have allergies, not a good idea.”
Today, Radio PBO’s library lives in the cloud. O’Brien said the station already had about 5,000 cuts in its music library, a far cry from the days of hauling vinyl or searching through shelves of compact discs.
A format built from memory, charts and instinct
Radio PBO’s sound is broad by design. O’Brien said the station’s music format reaches from 1970 into the mid-2000s — what he jokingly described as a “kitchen sink format.” That span gives him room to play major hits, familiar road-trip songs, deeper album cuts and songs he believes should have become hits but never did.
His process is part research and part radio instinct.
“I look at the charts from the years,” he said. “A lot of this time I was on the air. So I’m familiar with most of this music.”
That experience matters. O’Brien is not simply feeding songs into a digital scheduler. He is thinking about how one song blends into the next, how a record feels in context and how a listener might react to hearing something forgotten but still strong.
“Very often on the station, you’ll hear something you may not have heard before, but you like the song,” he said. “Or you may hear a deep cut from an artist you’ve never heard. But we start with the hits.”
One example he offered was Kate Bush’s “Running Up That Hill.” When the song first came out in the 1980s, O’Brien said he could not persuade a program director to play it. Decades later, the song reached a new generation after being featured in “Stranger Things.”
“I was so into this,” O’Brien recalled. “And then, of course, when ‘Stranger Things’ came out, it actually charted.”
That story captures part of O’Brien’s approach to Radio PBO: trust the hits, but leave room for discovery.
Major-market credentials behind a local station
Radio PBO may be rooted in Pittsboro, but O’Brien’s background is far from small-town only. He has worked in multiple markets and roles, including on-air shifts, programming, engineering, management, sales and production.
His most recent major-market radio work included time with WTOP in Washington, D.C., where he said he served as a senior sales executive, producer and programming consultant. WTOP has remained one of the strongest commercial radio brands in the country. BIA Advisory Services reported that WTOP-FM was the top-billing radio station in the United States in 2023, bringing in $66.3 million in over-the-air revenue and ranking No. 1 for the 13th time in 14 years.
For O’Brien, working around that kind of station meant being part of a tradition-heavy broadcasting environment. He spoke about the history of Washington radio, including stations connected to major moments in American broadcasting and public life.
He also worked at DC101, the legendary Washington rock station associated with Howard Stern’s early career. O’Brien recalled the station’s history with the Beatles and the kind of radio lore that still matters to people who view broadcasting as more than a business.
“History’s been pretty important in your career,” I noted during our conversation.
“Absolutely,” O’Brien replied.
Who Did That Media and the voiceover business
O’Brien’s professional life also includes Who Did That Media, the voiceover and production company he built after stepping away from full-time radio work years earlier. Who Did That Media provides audio and video production and creative services consulting for radio, television, advertising agencies and direct advertisers. The company was founded in 2007, with specialties including video production, audio production, script writing, creative consulting and new media.
O’Brien said the company has used dozens of voiceover artists and has worked on commercials airing on major platforms including SiriusXM, Fox TV and ESPN. He also pointed to Telly Awards and Emmy-related credits connected to production work done with client stations.
But when asked what memory from Who Did That Media meant the most to him, O’Brien did not start with trophies.
He told the story of a young man who left the company for a better job. About a week later, the man’s wife called O’Brien.
“She said, ‘I just wanted to tell you, you’re the difference between us having food and diapers on our kids every month,’” O’Brien recalled. “And there is no award in the world, no paycheck, no bonus that can ever top that.”
That answer reveals something important about his current project. Radio PBO is not being built by someone trying to break into media. It is being built by someone who has already experienced the national business and is now trying to use those skills locally.
Pittsboro at a crossroads
The timing of Radio PBO is central to O’Brien’s story.
Pittsboro and Chatham County are in a period of rapid transformation. New neighborhoods, commercial development, regional job growth and major infrastructure decisions are changing the way residents talk about identity, growth and community. O’Brien said he understands that some residents welcome growth while others fear losing what made the town special.
“We understand people who don’t want the growth,” he said. “We understand people who do want the growth. And we can find a consensus.”
That statement gives Radio PBO a civic purpose. The station is not presented as a political platform, but as a place where local information and local personalities can help residents recognize one another as neighbors. National platforms dominate attention, but local stations, newspapers, podcasts and community pages can still play a role in helping people understand what is happening where they live.
A station with music, service and civic ambition
Radio PBO’s website includes sections for weather, news, advertising, requests and “Radio PBO Cares.” It also promotes local events, including Mosaic-area concerts, and identifies Radio PBO as a sponsor of the Beach Music Series at Mosaic.
Those details matter because they show how O’Brien is positioning the station: not simply as an entertainment stream, but as a community connector.
During our conversation, Chris said the station interviews people and organizations, produces PSAs and makes room for local service content. That reflects an older radio tradition, when stations were expected to know the towns they served, announce school closings, promote fundraisers and recognize local milestones.
O’Brien knows that world well. He also knows how much the industry has changed.
“Radio has become very corporate,” he said. “They may have one guy doing shows in 20 markets.”
Radio PBO is, in part, a response to that consolidation. Streaming technology makes it possible for a local operator to build a station without owning a traditional broadcast tower. The challenge is not simply technical. The challenge is whether the station can become part of residents’ habits.
The discipline behind the microphone
O’Brien’s advice to young people interested in media is direct: learn everything.
That advice came from his father, a decorated Air Force pilot who initially struggled to see radio as a serious profession. O’Brien said his father once sent him advertisements for bartender school, suggesting he could make good money behind a bar. Over time, his father came to respect his son’s career, especially after seeing him win professional recognition.
But one piece of advice stuck.
“If you’re going to do this and not go to bartending school, you need to learn every job in the radio station,” O’Brien recalled his father saying.
O’Brien took that seriously. He learned on-air performance, programming, engineering, production, sales and management. That range made him valuable when problems arose.
“Many times I’ve been in places when I was a suit and the station went off the air and I knew how to get it back on the air,” he said.
For O’Brien, that kind of versatility remains essential in modern media. Whether someone is entering podcasting, streaming, video, satellite, social media or traditional broadcasting, he said, the people who last are the ones who understand the full operation.
“You need to learn every single element of that job,” he said. “That only makes you a good performer, a good producer, but it also makes you dependable.”
Living by deadlines
Our conversation also turned to a trait familiar to anyone in journalism, broadcasting or production: dependability under deadline.
“We live our lives on deadlines,” O’Brien said. “I’ve been on deadlines since I was 17 years old.”
That discipline shows up in Radio PBO’s morning-show routine and in the station’s broader operations. Media work may sound glamorous to outsiders, but O’Brien described it as demanding, repetitive and creative at the same time. A show must be ready. A client spot must be produced. A voice track must be delivered. A technical problem must be fixed.
“Media is different from office work because you’re not just exercising a function,” he said. “You’re actually creating, and that’s exhausting sometimes.”
That line helps explain the difference between running a playlist and running a station. Radio PBO depends not only on music selection but on preparation, judgment and consistency.
Family, flight and the road not taken
O’Brien’s life story is also shaped by aviation and military service.
His father was a B-52 pilot and wing commander at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base in Goldsboro. His brother flew F-15s. O’Brien grew up in a military family, moved around the country and spent time in North Carolina, California and Massachusetts.
He once wanted to become a pilot like his father. Instead, he became a broadcaster.
“I became the DJ,” he said.
That choice made him something of a contrast in a family of aviators. But the family influence remained. O’Brien is an aviation enthusiast, with a deep interest in Apollo missions and military aircraft. He recalled watching the first moon landing on a 25-inch color television his father brought home so the family could see history together — only to discover that the live pictures from the moon were in black and white.
The story is funny, but it also reveals the roots of O’Brien’s fascination with media: sound, image, history and shared experience. A family gathered around a television. A boy hearing a radio host call out from a storefront. A broadcaster remembering the feel of old studios and the weight of old microphones.
A health crisis and a renewed purpose
The conversation also touched on a deeply personal chapter. O’Brien said he suffered from long-haul COVID-19, which he described as a dark period that affected his health and left him with a stammer.
“For a radio guy to have a stammer is tough,” he said.
He described the stammer as something he continues to work through. At times, he said, a word catches, and he has to stop and think internally before continuing. He also said the illness forced him to confront his weight and overall health.
At one point, O’Brien said, a nurse practitioner gave him a blunt warning: “You’re going to die” if he did not lose weight.
He took the warning seriously. Over roughly two and a half to three years, he lost about 130 pounds through diet, exercise changes and medical treatment, including the use of a GLP-1 medication. He said he no longer focuses only on the number on the scale.
“It’s how I feel,” he said. “I don’t feel 61. I feel like I did back in my 30s.”
That recovery is not a side note. It is part of the reason Radio PBO feels like a second act. O’Brien is not returning to radio because he has to start over. He is returning because he still wants to create, connect and serve.
The old radio craft in a new digital shell
Radio PBO is digital, but O’Brien’s instincts are old-school.
He cares about sequencing songs. He cares about the difference between a morning show and a late-night shift. He remembers when listeners called to request songs and when school closings could dominate a shift. He knows the sound of a station that is alive versus one that is merely automated.
He also knows the economic reality. Advertising matters. Sponsorship matters. Local businesses need affordable ways to reach local customers. Radio PBO’s advertising page sits alongside its local-service messaging, reflecting O’Brien’s belief that a station can be both commercial and community-minded.
That balance will likely determine whether Radio PBO can grow. The station needs listeners, advertisers, community partners and consistent programming. But O’Brien begins with advantages many new media startups lack: decades of experience, production skill, industry contacts and a clear sense of what he wants the station to be.
Why Radio PBO matters now
The most revealing part of O’Brien’s interview may be his reason for choosing Pittsboro.
He and his wife have lived around the country, but he said Chatham County feels like home. They are “dug in,” he said. This is where they want to stay.
That statement gives Radio PBO a different tone from many digital ventures. It is not a remote brand chasing a market. It is a local resident using a lifetime of professional experience to build a platform in the place he has chosen as home.
The station arrives at a time when many communities are trying to preserve identity amid growth. Pittsboro’s challenge is not only how many homes will be built or how roads and utilities will keep up. It is also how residents will continue to know one another, hear one another and share information that is not filtered only through national platforms.
O’Brien believes radio — even internet radio — still has a role to play in that work.
A familiar voice for a changing town
Chris O’Brien’s story is not simply the story of a radio man launching a streaming station. It is the story of a broadcaster who has worked in major markets, built a national production business, survived a health crisis and returned to the most basic promise of local media: helping people feel connected to the place they live.
Radio PBO’s future will depend on whether Pittsboro residents make it part of their daily routine — listening to the music, submitting requests, supporting advertisers, sharing announcements and using the station as one more place to hear local voices.
For readers who want to learn more, Radio PBO can be found online at RadioPBO.com, where listeners can stream the station, make requests, view local information and learn about community programming.
As O’Brien put it, the goal is simple: keep community from getting lost as Pittsboro grows.
Watch on YouTube – Chris O’Brien: the real story behind Radio PBO
Exploring Chris O’Brien’s new community-focused radio initiative in Pittsboro and the role of local media in town growth.
00:16 Chris O’Brien discusses his new community radio initiative in Pittsboro.
- O’Brien highlights his extensive radio experience and commitment to serving the Pittsboro community.
- He emphasizes Pittsboro’s growth and the need for local voices in an expanding town.
03:02 Chris O’Brien discusses community building and his passion for radio broadcasting.
- Emphasizes the importance of a strong community for growth, acknowledging differing views on progress.
- Shares his journey from childhood inspiration at a radio station to starting his broadcasting career at 16.
07:12 Chris O’Brien shares his radio career journey and experiences.
- O’Brien worked full-time in radio while attending UNCW, starting with various shifts including morning shows.
- He concluded his career with a senior role at WTO in Washington DC, a leading news format station.
09:34 Chris O’Brien shares his experiences in radio and personal health journey.
- He produced a show called ‘The Big Bands Are Back’ and collaborated with legendary broadcasters.
- O’Brien discusses his weight loss journey of 130 lbs after experiencing health issues from long COVID.
13:50 Chris shares his journey from radio to reconnecting with family values.
- Chris’s passion for aviation is rooted in his family’s Air Force legacy with both his dad and brother being pilots.
- His father’s initial skepticism about Chris’s radio career transformed into pride after a significant award recognition.
15:53 Chris O’Brien shares cherished memories of his dad’s humor and Apollo landing.
- O’Brien recalls his father’s excitement about bringing home a color TV for the moon landing, intending to enhance the experience for his children.
- He humorously recounts the letdown when the historic moon landing was broadcast in black and white, leading to his mother’s witty remark.
20:13 Chris O’Brien emphasizes the importance of adaptability in a changing media landscape.
- He shares a personal story highlighting the impact of his work on people’s lives, indicating the significance of finding purpose in media.
- O’Brien advises aspiring media professionals to learn various roles within the industry to enhance their value and effectiveness.
22:29 Dependability and deadlines are crucial in media production.
- Working in media revolves around strict deadlines, requiring professionals to deliver content on time to maintain credibility.
- Creativity under pressure can be exhausting, and clients expect timely results without excuses, emphasizing the competitive nature of the industry.
26:38 Importance of historical connections in radio and music.
- The Beatles’ influence led to interviews and recognition within the music industry, highlighting the role of key figures.
- Personal anecdotes about historical microphones and interviews with notable personalities enrich the narrative of radio history.
28:59 Discussion about Chris’s engagement with Pittsburgh PBO.
- Chris expresses his passion for creativity and his commitment to ongoing projects.
- The conversation hints at potential collaboration between Chris O’Brien and the Chatham Journal.