On a recent Thanksgiving drive from Cleveland to the East Coast, I realized just how crucial college radio, and especially WCSB, is to our community and culture. I set off for Peckville, PA, along Interstate Route 80, ready for a smooth ride with comfortable heated seats, cruise control, and a decent sound system, features missing from my former 2012 Toyota Prius C, which I traded in a few weeks earlier for a new used Subaru.
I went to the local library to borrow a few audio CDs and came away with The Women by Kristin Hannah. Listening to audiobooks was something I did with my late wife on long trips to visit my family. We admired the lush Allegheny Mountains while dodging commercial trucks on Route 80, a major highway leading to New York City, Philadelphia and Boston. The combined population of these metropolitan areas is over 35 million. Traffic is almost always heavy.
Frances “Frankie” McGrath, in the first chapter, gets introduced at a farewell party in May 1966 for her brother Finley, who was leaving for the Vietnam War. In a key moment, Frankie explores the “heroes’ wall” in her father’s office. Rye, Finley’s best friend, questions her about the absence of women. Hannah’s fictional story is about devastating loss, epic love, and the power of female friendship.
I exited for gas, and when I got back into my car, WZIP (88.1 FM) was on the radio. WZIP, which is affiliated with the University of Akron, is a commercial-free radio station operated by students on the campus of the University of Akron, where it has been since 1962. It highlights specialty programming, like the “Saturday Morning Polkas” show. Every Monday from 10 to 11pm, they play late-night punk rock and alternative local music.
WZIP is one of the most listened-to student-run radio stations in the country, according to the University of Akron website, recognized for excellence by regional and national trade organizations, and heard by 125,000 people, a stepping stone to professional employment. Students get experience in music programming, news, production, promotions, sports and underwriting. They play music by SZA, 2Pac, Beyoncé, Lauryn Hill, and Akron punk bands Alomar, Glass Bones, I Hate It Too and Inpatient.
Further along, across the Pennsylvania state line, I found WCUC-FM 91.7, a college radio station for Pennsylvania Western University, Clarion (formerly Clarion University of Pennsylvania), known as “The Clutch.” WCUC-FM is an FCC-licensed, non-commercial educational station that operates as a student learning lab within the Department of Communication. The station allows student DJs complete control over their playlists, which typically feature alternative and adult contemporary music. It is entirely student-run and broadcasts 24 hours a day. Genres range from alternative, rock, R&B, pop and country, with songs by Bad Brains, Trouble Funk, The Inspector Clues, The Steel Woods, Joey Cool x Y2, Thundercat, T-Rell, DJ Snake and Galimatias.
I tuned into WKPS (90.7 FM) around Bellefonte and Penn State University. It has two primary college-run radio stations: WKPS, a student-run station broadcasting from the HUB-Robeson Center, and CommRadio, the official streaming and podcast network for the Bellisario College of Communications. WKPS has remained active despite internal and external challenges, thanks to sustained student interest and alumni engagement.
I listened to the low, steady beat of reggae and funky reggae with themes of love, freedom and empowerment while cruising the highway, with music by Half Pint, Symaryp, Wailing Souls, Coeima, Mighty Diamonds, Tribal Seeds, Fantan Mojave, Lucky Dube and Jimmy Cliff.
WRLC (91.7 FM, Lycoming College, Williamsport) and WBUQ (91.1 FM, Bloomsburg University, Bloomsburg), near Williamsport, played the Harvey Averne Barrio Band, Richie & the PS 54 Schoolyard, Los Africanos, and Naoyo Matsouka & His All Stars. The Revolution program broadcasts live from Bloomsburg University.
“Ignorance,” a song by the American alternative rock band Paramore, was playing on college radio station WCLH (90.7 FM) in Wilkes-Barre. Hayley Williams’ vocals and lyrics about conflict and personal change are a searing, hard-driven rhythm. Critics have called her voice muscular. It was college radio at its best:
Don’t wanna hear your sad songs
I don’t wanna feel your pain
When you swear it’s all my fault
‘Cause you know we’re not the same (no)
We’re not the same
(No)
Oh, we’re not the same
You treat me just like another stranger
Well, it’s nice to meet you, sir
I guess I’ll go
I best be on my way out
Ignorance is your new best friend
For the college radio audience, her lyrics express emotional experiences that many young students often face. Hayley’s versatile soprano voice, characterized by a wide range and emotive power, sends a worthwhile message: “You treat me just like another stranger; ignorance is your new best friend.” The song could be a forewarning to be careful in personal relationships and not to be afraid of walking away, a cautionary alarm, or an active political commentary.
Here is the real value of college radio—subculture messaging in a defined set of demographics. College students express their freedom from tyranny and authoritarianism through cultural codes and metalanguage, in their musical selections or on-air commentary, and certainly in their social networks. It is always different from the language used by the administrators. This is an important social skill.
Fostering college students’ metalanguage provides a set of tools to analyze, understand and strategically use language, enhancing their academic performance by improving critical analysis of texts and enabling them to make more informed choices in writing and oral communication, ultimately strengthening their ability to express complex ideas in various contexts. This is the same generation that will drive our culture forward with a new metalanguage, understanding concepts like genre, syntax and stylistic techniques that will help shape new meaning, if we are lucky.
Cleveland State University President Laura Bloomberg recently said she continues to believe the decision to transfer day-to-day operations of WCSB 89.3 to Ideastream was correct, despite ongoing protests from students and community members. She is wrong.
Bloomberg lit the match that burned the house of college radio WCSB to the ground. She should take responsibility for the failure. Our future may well depend on it.
Bruce Checefsky is a filmmaker and photographer, and published writer. He is the recipient of three Ohio Arts Council Individual Excellence Awards, a Creative Workforce Fellowship, and four CEC ArtsLink Fellowships.