Radio's Futre — Up in the Airwaves? Page 4

A FAMILY AFFAIR

Bonded by their common devotion, students, alumni and volunteers at WFDU, as well as their loyal listeners, have formed a close-knit community. Volunteers have been entering the station doors multiple times a week for more than a decade. This year marks the 25th anniversary of Solá’s show, and she’s come to think of the station as a second home. “Having been associated with WFDU for so long, I’ve grown to think of everyone at the radio station — and all of my friends who come help me at fundraising time, and some of my loyal, longtime listeners who have become great friends — as family. WFDU has been part of my life for most of my adulthood — it’s been the one constant in my life!” she says.

Listeners are important members of the WFDU family as well. “Many of our listeners check in with us regularly and give us feedback on the station,” says Sheffield. In addition to providing verbal support, listeners play a big role in the financial success of the station. “Every fundraising season, the same names pop up on the list of supporters. It’s humbling to see the support group we have. It definitely makes us work even harder to make our listeners happy.”

WFDU also helps strengthen the sense of community across the University. The station broadcasts live Knights basketball games and organizes many special events on campus. “I remember we put on a live fundraising event one time, and there was a young fiddler there by the name of Alison Kraus,” recalls Doshi. “We also had an event where a young LeAnn Rimes performed. Both of those performers have gone on to be extremely successful and well-known.”

Thanks to Internet streaming on the station’s Web site, www.wfdu.fm, the campus community now has a global reach. “I teach an advanced radio class where students can come in and do one-hour shows while WFDU is off-air,” says Sheffield. “One of my international students had his parents in Israel tune in and listen to his shows on wfdu.fm.” Specialty programs also attract listeners who tune in regularly from around the world. “I get a real kick out of hearing from Latin-music fans from Puerto Rico, Mexico, Holland and Ireland who listen on our Web site,” says Solá.

This sense of community — along with WFDU’s high-quality, creative programming — has kept listeners tuning in for nearly 37 years. “One of the best aspects of radio is that it’s live and local,” says Kraus. “Satellite radio and iPods are great for some, but radio gives you traffic updates, weather, local news and community updates — in addition to personality and excellent music.”

THE FUTURE OF RADIO

So has WFDU discovered the secret to keeping radio alive? According to Barry Sheffield, not quite. “This is a very difficult industry to be in. I don’t want to give the impression that we’ve found the solution to all of radio’s troubles,” he says. “We’re doing the best we can, and thankfully, our model works for us and our listeners.”

The station is also minimizing the threat of new technology in part by keeping up with it in addition to streaming online. WFDU, like many other radio stations, features videos online and encourages its audience to take advantage of its Internet presence. Station management is considering the option of HD radio, which gives FM stations the option to broadcast three unique channels simultaneously. If the FCC decides to eventually make radio an “all digital world,” as they did with television, each station will be allowed to broadcast as many as seven channels with varying sound quality. “HD radio would be great for us, since our programs are so specialized,” says Sheffield. “Listeners who aren’t interested in one genre of programming could find another that fits their tastes.”

In Taormina’s opinion, an article by Holland Cooke in Talkers Magazine said it best: “New technologies are spending a bundle to engage consumers — our listeners. We already have our listeners. We need to use the new tech to keep ’em.” Taormina follows up, “If radio wants to survive, it will.”

What will radio be like in 10 years? As has been the case throughout the medium’s existence, opinions range from visions of enormous popularity to those of virtual non-existence. Whatever the future holds, radio has many years of survival experience under its belt, and it’s not ready to give up quite yet. To see how radio will fare, listeners will just have to stay tuned.

Do you have a comment about WFDU or thoughts on the past, present and future of radio? FDU Magazine has created a blog for readers to share their views. Go to myfdu.net/blog/fdumagazine.

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For a print copy of FDU Magazine, featuring this and other stories, contact Rebecca Maxon, editor,
201-692-7024 or maxon@fdu.edu.