Internet radio was born more than 25 years ago, yet, according to Edison Research, only in the last month has the medium garnered just 10% of all broadcast listening time in the US. We might lay at least some blame on the commercial radio industry, which didn’t embrace it until well into the 2000s, long […]
Scholar Jocelyn Robinson says about one-third of Historically Black Colleges and Universities have radio stations. Her mission is to survey them and help preserve their histories and recorded legacies through the HBCU Radio Station Archival Survey Project, which she directs. On this episode Robinson tells us about this project, and explains why it’s important to […]
Some consider the late 1960s through the mid-1990s to be a “golden age” of college radio. History professor Katherine Rye Jewell, from Fitchburg State University, notes that the period begins with college stations taking to the FM dial, and concludes with the rise of the internet. During that time, college radio stations certainly at times […]
More than a month into serious social-distancing measures across the United States, college radio continues to readjust to broadcasting during a pandemic. I shared a flurry of posts during that first week of shelter-in-place in my neck of the woods here in San Francisco as many stations moved to automated programming and also brainstormed creative […]
On Thursday, March 19, more than 100 college radio participants and friends gathered virtually for a video meeting: “College Radio and Coronavirus: A National Zoom Meeting.” Organized by the College Radio Foundation, with assistance from College Broadcasters Inc. (CBI), the one-hour session was a forum for college radio stations seeking advice amid campus closures. College […]
On this week’s Radio Survivor show/podcast we take a close look at how community and college radio stations are adjusting to the ever-changing conditions of broadcasting during the coronavirus pandemic. The episode was recorded on March 13, 2020 as some campuses were just at the start of closures. San Francisco Bay Area Shelter in Place […]
Community and college radio stations are unique in broadcasting because in addition to being important community services, many are also a community crossroads, hosting dozens or hundreds of people in their studios and spaces in any given week. That means the novel coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic poses a specific challenge for these broadcasters. KPFA’s “UpFront” co-host […]
With more and more college campuses closing or moving classes online to help prevent the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, some college radio stations are taking a different approach to programming. Many continue to operate as usual, but are taking extra precautions to ensure the cleanliness of studios and prevent transmission of colds/flu/viruses. Some are […]
It’s a testament to the staying power of college radio, that student media organization Intercollegiate Broadcasting System, aka IBS, is hosting its 80th annual national convention in New York City. Taking place on Friday, March 6 and Saturday, March 7, the conference is packed with sessions of interest to high school and college radio participants. […]
This week I learned about college radio station WUTS-FM relinquishing its license, likely out of fear of receiving large FCC fines for public file violations. A letter dated December 24, 2019 from University of the South to the FCC states, “On behalf of the University of the South, Licensee of Radio Station WUTS-FM at Sewanee, […]
