University of New Orleans ScholarWorks@UNO Arts Administration Master's Reports Arts Administration Program 12-2013 89.9FM WWNO - New Orleans Public Radio: An Internship Report Hallie Sheck University of New Orleans, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.uno.edu/aa_rpts Part of the Arts Management Commons Recommended Citation Sheck, Hallie, "89.9FM WWNO - New Orleans Public Radio: An Internship Report" (2013). Arts Administration Master's Reports. 152. https://scholarworks.uno.edu/aa_rpts/152 This Master's Report is protected by copyright and/or related rights. It has been brought to you by ScholarWorks@UNO with permission from the rights-holder(s). You are free to use this Master's Report in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s) directly, unless additional rights are indicated by a Creative Commons license in the record and/or on the work itself. This Master's Report has been accepted for inclusion in Arts Administration Master's Reports by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks@UNO. For more information, please contact [email protected]. 89.9FM WWNO – New Orleans Public Radio An Internship Report Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of the University of New Orleans in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the deGree of Master of Arts in Arts Administration by Hallie Sheck B.F.A. WriGht State University, 2006 December 2013 TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT....................................................................................................................................... iii CHAPTER 1: An Introduction to 89.9FM WWNO – New Orleans Public Radio ....................1 WWNO at a Glance.............................................................................................................................................1 1972-2013: 41 Years of Broadcast.............................................................................................................1 July 2012: The Format ChanGe.....................................................................................................................5 An Overview of the OrGanization: ManaGement Structure, and Revenue.................................9 An Evolution from Intern to Contractor: My Position at WWNO...............................................11 Specific Duties as Intern and Contractor ...............................................................................11 CHAPTER 2: Analysis of WWNO: Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats ...13 Strengths.............................................................................................................................................................13 Weaknesses.......................................................................................................................................................16 Opportunities....................................................................................................................................................20 Threats.................................................................................................................................................................24 CHAPTER 3: Best Practices in Public Media Fundraising .....................................................27 Ethics, Laws, and CampaiGns ....................................................................................................................27 WWOZ 90.7FM, the operations of another New Orleans public radio station.....................32 CHAPTER 4: Conclusion & Recommendations ........................................................................35 Conclusion & Recommendations .............................................................................................................35 Recommendations..........................................................................................................................................36 LIST OF APPENDICIES..............................................................................................................39 WORKS CITED..............................................................................................................................61 VITA ..................................................................................................................................................62 ii ABSTRACT This report is the result of multiple positions I held durinG a period of time with WWNO 89.9 FM, New Orleans Public Radio. The bulk of the information that lent to the analysis of this orGanization was Gathered durinG a six month lonG internship, from January 2013 until June of the same year, totalinG 480 hours. Before beginninG this internship, however, I was hired by the station to be a student worker, and since the completion of the internship, have continued my work as a contracted development and membership assistant. Thus, the scope of this report spans more than two years. The station underwent important chanGes durinG these years, which warrants includinG information acquired outside the capacity of just the internship. iii CHAPTER 1 AN INTRODUCTION TO 89.9FM WWNO – NEW ORLEANS PUBLIC RADIO WWNO At a Glance For over 40 years 89.9FM WWNO has been a public service fixture in New Orleans, providing the region with non-commercial, listener-supported radio. The station broadcasts on three channels: one FM signal and 2HD signals, each with its own format. 89.9FM is dedicated to news, culture, and information, HD2 plays 24-hour uninterrupted classical music, and HD3 broadcasts continuous 24-hour jazz. Almost 100,000 listeners tune in to WWNO’s main siGnal each week. WWNO’s mission reads as follows: To serve our communities by broadcasting NPR news, information, classical music, jazz, variety programs, and unique local content.1 Of its nine stated values, a few key ones include: “We employ the latest technoloGies to ensure the hiGhest quality, uninterrupted proGramminG on our multi- cast HD and Internet broadcasts,” “We strive to be wise stewards of the member and community support that we receive,” and “We welcome partners who want to enrich the culture, enhance the education and renew the Gulf South.”2 From 1972-2013: 41 Years of Broadcast In February 1972 a new FM radio station hit the airwaves. WWNO, licensed and operated by the University of New Orleans since its first transmission, beGan broadcastinG to an audience of under 10,000 weekly listeners. Today weekly listenership has been measured at almost 100,000. With a siGnal that reaches over 1.6 million people in 1 “About Us” http://wwno.org/about 2 Ibid. 1 Southeast Louisiana and parts of Mississippi, 89.9FM has steadily Grown in many ways: frequency power, proGramminG, membership, revenue, and the orGanizational capacity (number of employees, increased office space, a broadcastinG day of 16 hours to 24 hours, and advancinG technoloGy that has come to include HD siGnals and a prominent online/mobile presence). Back when UNO was still LSUNO (Louisiana State University in New Orleans), WWNO was operated by the Audio-Visual Center and located in the Liberal Arts buildinG spanninG two floors, one for the studios, and the other for the administrative offices. A decade later, WWNO relocated to a facility in the newly built fourth floor of the Earl K. Long Library. While renovations and additions have been made to the space over time (notably in 1983 when the square-footage was nearly doubled), WWNO has remained in the mostly desolate, unused area of the library for over 30 years. A majority of the University’s students don’t even realize there is a station on campus. Those that do often do not know where. The space is shared with spillover storaGe from the library, empty metal bookshelves, carts, and on the far side, the offices for UNO’s archives. Since the construction of the fourth floor, nothing else has occupied it. Plans to once again relocate the station have been discussed for the last five years with hopes that under new University manaGement and with the support its first President, the upGrade in facilities will become a reality. After all, WWNO has historically found success when backed by the University’s leadership, as it was UNO’s first Chancellor who is the very reason the station exists. WantinG to come up with ways to celebrate UNO’s ten-year anniversary, Founding Chancellor Homer Hitt was first to suGGest the idea of beGinninG a University-run radio 2 station. With the aid of several administrators, professors, and ConGressman T. Hale BoGGs who pushed through the FCC license, WWNO went on the air in February 1972. When WWNO was first introduced to the New Orleans metro-area, its on-air schedule boasted a wide variety of proGramminG ranGinG from syndicated classical shows, locally hosted jazz proGrams, and the very first NPR-produced newscast “All ThinGs Considered.” Listeners became attached to WWNO’s extensive opera broadcasts alonGside up-to-date headlines provided by a young National Public Radio. A dedicated Group of members callinG themselves “Les Amis” beGan donatinG dollars to this University-run public service, and producinG a monthly proGram Guide. AccordinG to former General ManaGer John Batson, the cumulative audience ratinGs surged in the early 1990’s when NPR prevailed as a mainstream news source for coveraGe of The Gulf War. While FM receivers in cars had become more popular in the 1970’s, and 1980’s, WWNO’s