The Tampa Bay community lost a champion of independent journalism and community radio this weekend with the passing of Rob Lorei, former WMNF News & Public Affairs Director and one of the station’s founding members. He was 70 years old and retired earlier this year due to cancer. 

Don’t miss a special edition of Community Speaks with Patro Mabili, dedicated to honoring the remarkable legacy of Rob Lorei. Mabili revisits some of Rob’s most memorable interviews and opens the phone lines for listeners to share their stories, gratitude, and admiration for Rob.

You can listen to the full show below

A Visionary Beginning 

In 1977, a young journalism graduate from Antioch College in Ohio, answered an advertisement that would change the media landscape of Tampa Bay forever. Rob Lorei responded to a call for people interested in starting a community radio station in Tampa, and with characteristic determination, he came to Florida to literally walk the streets of the Bay Area with others, raising money  in coffee cans to fund  what would become WMNF.  

This grassroots beginning embodied the community centered vision that would define Rob’s entire career. In addition to building a radio station, he was helping to create a platform where everyday people could have extraordinary conversations about the issues that mattered most to the community.  

The Voice of Radioactivity 

Rob Lorei programmed many music shows across multiple genres including the Blues, Bluegrass and the eclectic Morning Show. But he was best known for producing and hosting “Radioactivity,” WMNF’s influential midday public affairs program where his measured approach to respectful dialog was widely admired. For decades, this show served as Tampa Bay’s premier forum for substantive political discourse, where Rob fearlessly held local politicians accountable while providing platforms for voices that might otherwise go unheard.  

Rob understood that democratic media required amplifying diverse perspectives, so he regularly featured labor leaders, academics, and political activists. Perhaps most importantly, he opened the airwaves to live callers, ensuring that community members could directly engage with the leaders and decision makers who shaped their lives.  

A Legacy of Mentorship and Excellence 

Rob’s influence extended far beyond his own programming during his tenure at WMNF. As News Director for decades, he shaped the station’s journalistic standards and mentored countless colleagues. Seán Kinane, WMNF’s current News Director, reflected on their sixteen-year working relationship: “Rob was always eager to provide thoughtful feedback and conversations about journalism, radio programming and the future of media.” 

A Partnership That Built an Institution 

Randy Wynne, who worked alongside Rob for a 35 years, captured the collaborative spirit that made WMNF successful. As Program Director working with Rob as News Director, Wynne noted that while they “didn’t always agree” and “sometimes competed in our visions for the station,” “But we always respected each other and we worked together to make WMNF an exceptional and successful media organization.”  

Expanding His Reach 

Rob’s commitment to public affairs journalism continued beyond his time at WMNF. Most recently, he could be seen and heard on WEDU’s weekly program “Florida This Week,” where he brought the same incisive interviewing style and commitment to accountability journalism to statewide issues. On this local independent Tampa TV station, he continued his life’s work of creating spaces where community leaders, newsmakers, and journalists could engage in the kind of substantive dialogue that democracy requires.  

A Lasting Impact 

Rob Lorei’s passing marks the end of an era for Tampa Bay media, but his influence will endure in the institution he helped build and the countless lives he touched. From those early days walking the streets with coffee cans to his final broadcasts holding power accountable, Rob embodied the ideals of community journalism.  

He proved that local media could be both deeply rooted in community concerns and uncompromisingly professional. He demonstrated that giving people a voice doesn’t mean abandoning journalistic standards, it means applying those standards in service of everyone, not just the powerful.  

In a media landscape increasingly dominated by corporate interests and partisan echo chambers, Rob Lorei’s career stands as a reminder of what is possible when journalists commit themselves to serving their communities from the ground up rather than top down 

Many thanks to Rob Lorei, his determination, his dedication, and his service to community voices. Our heartfelt condolences go out to his family. May he rest in peace.