WBRU
| File:Wbru.jpg | |
| Broadcast area | Providence, Rhode Island |
|---|---|
| Frequency | 95.5 (MHz) |
| Programming | |
| Format | Alternative Rock, Jazz, Hip Hop |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | Brown Broadcasting Service, Inc. |
| History | |
First air date | 1962 |
Call sign meaning | WBRU = Brown University |
| Technical information | |
| Class | B |
| ERP | 18,500 watts |
| Links | |
| Website | www.wbru.com |
WBRU is a commercial radio station in Providence, Rhode Island that broadcasts at 95.5 FM. It was the first student-owned-and-operated college radio station in the United States when it started as the Brown Network at Brown University in 1936.[1][2] Its slogan is "95.5 WBRU, The Original Alt Rock."
History
Founded by two freshmen at Brown, David Borst and George Abraham, the first broadcast of the Brown Network was transmitted on November 30, 1936, from George Abraham’s room, who originally conceived of the idea as a way to share his record collection and serve as a personal disk jockey for his friends. By the next year, he had installed wires through the trees on campus, assigning students in Slater, Sayles, Brunonia Hall, Littlefield, Caswell, and Hegeman to act as “section managers” who would receive the signal on their receiver and transmit it to the rest of the dorm. The equipment in his room expanded and he made his roommate move into the smaller of the two rooms in Slater, and Abraham moved his studying to the basement.
The New England Hurricane of 1938 destroyed most of the wires in the trees and Borst and Abraham were forced to move the wires into the steam tunnels beneath the campus. In February 1940, the Intercollegiate Broadcasting System was formed by 13 colleges, and it held its first meeting at Brown.
In 1962, the Brown Broadcasting Service (BBS) was established as a separate entity from the University and in 1965, the BBS purchased the FM license from WPFM, and split into two stations: WBRU-AM and WBRU-FM. WBRU-AM continued to broadcast locally as a carrier-current station (distributed through Brown's electrical system) and operated as the training station for WBRU-FM. Later, in 1997, it became known as BSR (Brown Student Radio) and began broadcasting on 88.1 FM. During the 1970s, WBRU-FM broadcast at 20,000 watts on 95.5 FM and established itself as the principal progressive rock station in Rhode Island and southern New England. Attempts to boost the signal to 50,000 watts with a transmitter on the Sciences Library failed because of the interference it caused to sensitive scientific equipment.
In the 70's, the station's format was known as AOR - Album Oriented Rock. Playlists included music by emerging bands like The Talking Heads. In 1988, the station began to identify itself as "alternative," and it has maintained that identity since. WBRU was also frequently named one of the best radio stations in the country by numerous trade magazines such as Billboard and Rolling Stone (which named it best radio station in the country in a medium size market three years in a row, the only radio station ever to achieve that).
The station is a huge part of the Providence music scene, and has been instrumental in introducing to the area alternative bands such as Nirvana, Pearl Jam and countless other important bands. It was the first radio station in the United States to play Ben Folds Five and Talking Heads. The band Radiohead found their name after playing at a WBRU Summer Concert Series. Kurt Cobain's last radio interview ever was on WBRU.
On March 31, 2006, WBRU claimed to be sold for two million dollars to Buddy FM, and changed the format of the station from alternative rock to mainstream popular music. It was later found out to be an April fools joke, and, as of noon on April 1, 2006, WBRU had "regained" control of their radio station and began playing their normal playlist once again. Later that day, they confirmed that they were back to being WBRU, and that Buddy FM was no longer functioning.
Timeline of notable events
- 1962 - Brown Broadcasting Service (BBS) is established as a corporation independant from Brown University
- 1963 - The first BBS/WBRU constitution is written
- 1966 - WBRU-FM broadcasts at 20,000 watts
- 1969 - WBRU is the first progressive rock station in the market
- 1971 - Attempts to broadcast as 50,000 watts failed due to interference with sensitive scientific equipment
- 1974 - WBRU is granted tax-exempt status
- 1975 - First paid professions are hired
- 1979 - WBRU moves its studio to 88 Benevolent Street, its current location
- 1980 - Competitor WHJY signs on
- 1988 - WBRU adopts a modern-rock format, called "The Cutting Edge of Rock"
- 1991 - WBRU hires its first professions program director
- 1992 - Student station members reverse a decision which would turn WBRU into an NPR affiliate
- 1993 - WBRU wins first place in the Rolling Stones Readers' Poll, for best medium sized market
- 1994 - WBRU wins first place again, in the Rolling Stones Readers' Poll
- 1995 - WDGE signs on and becomes a direct competitor with WBRU
- 1995 - WBRU wins first place again, in the Rolling Stones Readers' Poll
- 1999 - WDGE officially signs off (due to WBRU's dominance in the market) and is replaced by WHKK
- 1999 - Station members votes unanimously against a joint sales agreement with Capstar Broadcasting Company
- 2000 - WFNX, a Boston station, extends into Providence
- 2004 - WFNX signs off in Providence
- 2006 - WBRU is supposedly bought-out by Buddy FM, prompting mass attention from the Southern New England area and speculation of an April Fool's Day prank
Today and governance
WBRU-FM is one of the few college radio stations that operates on a commercial basis. WBRU receives no funding from Brown University, while still being staffed by Brown students. There are several professional staff members who work with the students, but the station is jointly governed by a body called the Station Membership, which consists only of student members, and a Board of Directors, chiefly made up of station alumni along with the student General Manager.
Today, WBRU is known for playing alternative rock, hip-hop and jazz music, and skews younger demographically than some of its competitors. Jazz is played in the early hours of every morning, hip-hop is played all Sunday, and the rest of the time is devoted to alternative rock. In 2003 the winner of WBRU's Annual Rock Hunt was Zox. Through 95.5, Zox was signed to a record label that debuted in Rhode Island at number 1.
Famous alumni
WBRU staff members have gone on to excel in a variety of areas. They include:
- Christiane Amanpour, CNN Foreign Correspondent
- Ralph Begleiter, former CNN correspondent and Distinguished Journalist in Residence, University of Delaware
- Chris Berman, anchor, ESPN and ABC Sports
- Lisa Birnbach, author
- Andy Fisher, president of Cox Television
- Ira Glass, This American Life public radio show
- Ben Harvey, former 92.3 KROCK DJ
- Stephen Hill, executive VP of programming at BET
- Tom Hunter, former president, MTV, Latin America
- George Hyde, RAB Executive Vice President
- Nancy Joespehson, Co-President of International Creative Management
- Jonathan Klein, president, CNN/U.S.
- Bill Lichtenstein, journalist, filmmaker and president, Lichtenstein Creative Media
- Alison Stewart, daytime anchor for MSNBC
- Peter Tannenwald, attorney
- Matt Wald, reporter, New York Times
- Ben Weiser, reporter, New York Times
Notes
- ^ Mitchell, Martha. (2003). "WBRU." Encyclopedia Brunoniana.
- ^ Schwartzapfel, Beth. (January/February 2006). "Radio Heads." Brown Alumni Magazine.