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Real College Radio: KUOMcelebrates 100 YEARS of putting the R-A-Din radio

rom farm reports and football WMMR AM 730. Programming included The technology has changed, and program games broadcast in daily news and sport reports; campus content has varied, but throughout its to education for homebound kids event promotions; live play-by-play for history, Radio K has played a key role in Fduring the polio epidemic and from , football, and hockey; and the University community—and the ’s radio roots to being live music broadcasts. It switched to a outside community as a whole. “The one of the reasons Rolling Stone music format in the 1960s, while still world needs arts and cultural reporting, magazine thinks the U of M rocks… broadcasting the news. Garrison news reporting, curators of style Radio K (KUOM), the award-winning Keillor, the well-known host of (tastemakers), and portals to access this student-run radio station of the Public Radio’s “A information to educate and inspire,” says , has covered Home Companion,” began his radio Sara Miller, station manager at Radio K. a lot of ground in 100 years. career broadcasting on “College radio—Radio K—is in a unique at the University WMMR as a student in the early 1960s. position to be at the forefront of the began as an experiment in 1912. On In 1993 the two merged—the official changing media landscape.” January 13, 1922, the U received the first birth of Radio K (KUOM AM 770). The Timeline official radio broadcasting license issued “new” Radio K brought together a small, 1910s for the state of Minnesota (AM 770, call full-time staff working in conjunction Radio transmissions at the University sign WLB; changed to KUOM in 1945). with student employees who provided date to 1912, when a professor named Initially, programming featured agricultural much of the on-air talent. Programming F.W. Springer began experimenting with and weather reports, along with lectures, ran the gamut from ska, punk, funk, and broadcasts, though he probably just used concerts, and football games. In the indie rock, to news, current events, and a spark gap . Activities were 1930s, however, the station began adding sports coverage. suspended by World War I, though the first distance education to its repertoire— Today, the station continues its format U of M football games are broadcasted including the historic “Minnesota School of playing eclectic, independent music— in Morse code. By 1920, electrical of the Air.” both classic and new – and broadcasts engineering professor C.M. Jansky, Jr. In 1948, a second station emerged on the on 100.7 and 1004.5 FM, 24/7 (and online was doing broadcasting again. University campus—this one an entirely around the world). student-volunteer-run organization,

6 CCE Current 1920s programs by, for, and about disadvan- KUOM. A small full-time staff oversees The University received the first radio taged groups including “On the Black operations and provides a certain level of Real College Radio: broadcasting license in the state in 1922, Side,” “Echoes en Español,” “Indian News,” continuity, while students would provide for the WLB. The station is the and “Equal Voice: A Women’s Forum.” much of the on-air talent while going 10th oldest station still on the air, beating These programs lasted until 1984. through their radio studies. out WHA at the University of Wisconsin One of the veterans of that launch Madison by a few hours. That also makes WMMR period, MPR News director Steve Nelson, Radio K the oldest licensed non-commercial becomes an remembers: “The day Radio K launched… broadcast station in the country. important I was on my bike, racing across the national news Washington Avenue bridge when the KUOM source on station signed on the air for the very first The station time. Jim Musil cracked the mike, said, begins to campus strikes celebrates and protests ‘The oldest station in the state, is now the broadcast a newest, and launched into The Ramones considerable during the Vietnam War. 1970s ‘Do You Remember Rock N Roll Radio.’ amount of It was a new day for college radio and 100 YEARS educational KUOM begins “Scope,” the first hour-long noncommercial Minnesota music, and I couldn’t be material and prouder to have been a part of it.” of putting the was used for news program on Twin Cities radio. distance “Scope” continues until 1985 when the (now of The Current fame) learning format changes. joins the station as the program coach — a practice later in the decade. “After I joined,” he 1930s that continued says, “when people asked me what I did I into the 1990s. said I had the dream job! When I left the 1980s K in 2005 to help start MPR’s new project (The Current), I told the students that R-A-D what we were contemplating doing there 1940s was only possible because of the success of Radio K. I am hugely proud to be a part of Radio K’s illustrious history, carrying in radio on the great tradition of Minnesota radio…[It’s] the best state to be in for radio fans!” In 1981, WMMR is programmed as a Top 40 station. Listenership is on the 2000s rise. The students in charge go on to run commercial Top 40 station WLOL. Three In 2005, Rolling Stone’s “Schools that The station call letters are changed from Rock” article naming Radio K the reason WLB to KUOM. A polio epidemic in years later, WMMR format is changed to College/Alternative. Listenership that the University of Minnesota rocks 1946 that resulted in temporary school (one of many accolades the station would closings led the station to create award- plummets. In 1988, technical problems, including the main audio board catching receive). The station adopts a new slogan: winning programming for children who “Where Music Matters Most.” In 2009, were homebound. “Minnesota School of fire, knock WMMR temporarily off the air. KUOM adopts call-in format (shown) Radio K goes on FM 24 hours per day at the Air,” as it was called, designed with 104.5 FM and 100.7 FM the aid of teachers, substituted for the to make use of the expertise of University closed schools. faculty. This style of program continues until 1993. 2010s New U of M President 1960s appears on Radio K’s “Rock ‘n Roll Over” to celebrate back to school and his 2011 inauguration week. In honor of “100 years of cool,” Mayor R.T. Rybak declares September 21, 2012, In 1968, campus “sister station” WMMR 1990s as “Radio K Day” covers presidential elections as part of in . an eight-station organization, which U arranges exclusive rights to 770kHz included live coverage of the Democratic (previously shared with St. Olaf College National Convention in Chicago. In 1969, in Northfield, Minn.) and Radio K is born in 1993 with the merging of WMMR and KUOM introduces a whole series of Winter 2012 7