As of noon on Monday, WESU is officially back on the air after a short hiatus. With live programming, changes to the station’s programming and organization are also now finalized.
WESU will now be broadcasting nine hours of National Public Radio (NPR) feeds during weekdays, from 5 am. to 12 p.m., and from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m., plus three hours on Saturdays and two hours on Sundays, according to Jesse Sommer ’05, WESU President. The feeds are provided by Connecticut-based WSHU, not NPR directly. The station may also use BBC feeds during dead air time late at night. The NPR feed is not yet hooked up, but the station anticipates that will happen by the end of the week. It is still unclear whether a DJ will be in the station while NPR feeds are being used, or whether it will be a fully automated system.
The station has also installed a significant amount of new equipment, including four new computers, four new microphones to accommodate new talk shows, and a delay machine to put a seven-second delay between what happens in the studio and what gets broadcasted. According to Sommer, the delay-machine will help the station operate according to FCC standards, so that profanities do not get broadcasted.
“All of our board members have really stepped up to the plate, and I’m seeing a lot of positive energy and enthusiasm,” Sommer said. “I don’t think there are problems we can’t overcome, as long as the university continues to support our efforts, and doesn’t short change us in our requests for specific security measures.”
Ben Michael, a long-time community volunteer, has been officially named the station’s new General Manager.
According to Sommer, he feels that President Bennet demonstrated his respect for the station manager by agreeing to their first choice as a General Manager.
“My responsibilities as the general manager is to be the chief operator of the station,” Michaels said. “I will mostly be making sure that the needs of the [station’s license holders] are met, and to make sure the programming meets their goal.”
All staff members who work on-air have also undergone a rigorous DJ training course to ensure they are able to operate the station’s new equipment, according to Sommer.
The Board of Directors has also been restructured to ensure better managerial capabilities, according to Sommer.
“We are now finally able to actually teach students and community members how to produce a show and be successful in the non-commercial radio industry,” Sommer said.
All DJ’s had to reapply for their shows, but the vast majority of former DJ’s have been welcomed back. The station has also managed to maintain its half and half student to community volunteer ratio, according to Sommer.
“I think that is our biggest success, that we saved that community-student dichotomy, and demonstrated to the University how important it is to embrace community members,” Sommer said.
NPR’s presence is still unpopular at the station, but staff members agree that NPR funding is crucial right now in order for the station to maintain independence from the Wesleyan administration, according to Sommer.
“What is yet to be seen is if the station will raise enough to sustain itself,” Michaels said. “We won’t be able to tell anytime soon.”
WESU plans on having live radio feeds linked to their website set up by the end of the week.
The line-up of NPR shows will also be posted on their website by next week.