Campus radio hopes to tune-in students
WGUR 88.9 FM "The Edge" is GCSU’s student run-radio station, offering many new radio sets, talk shows, and is even hoping to broadcast at a higher wattage in the near future.
Broadcasting Monday through Friday, there is a constant flow of radio shows and News talk on air. Students can listen at any time during the day at 88.9 FM or on Channel 58 on the GCSU cable network. This semester many new shows are being offered for all students. The biggest sports fanatic to the average GCSU student can be pleased with the wide selection of shows.
"I think that WGUR is a good way for students at GCSU to get involved and allow other students to listen to a local news station that they themselves can contribute toward in many ways. This helps the people who participate as DJ’s to gain vital experience in the field of broadcasting and radio," said Ben Elliot, a freshman mass communication major seeking a telecommunication concentration.
One new show for the semester is hosted by Caleb Rule and Beau Washburn. Beginning at 8 a.m. on Mondays and Wednesdays, they discuss a wide variety of topics centralized around sports and often talking about subjects like NFL football and GCSU sports.
"We know what we are talking about when it comes to sports. Beau and me have similar interests, but because we root for different teams we have good on-air chemistry," said Caleb Rule, a sophomore honors student.
Another new show this semester is done by Mike King, the WGUR Program Director. King is hosting "GIVE Center Hour" with Kendall Stiles, The GIVE Center director. Every Wednesday at 12 p.m. they will discuss all the volunteer events for the week, as well as future programs to be held. This is an opportunity for students to be more informed of what they can do to volunteer at GCSU and in the local community.
"We have a lot more programming going on early in the semester than in previous years," says Angela Criscoe, a mass communication instructor and WGUR’s advisor. WGUR also offers the Top 40 Countdown and Pop music from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Monday through Friday.
Different students come in to manage the selection and act as DJ’s at different times. For example, Ben Elliot and Justin Hand have an afternoon rock show entitled "Afternoon Alternative," from 6 to 7 p.m. They play music like Muse, Coheed and Cambria, AFI, Smashing Pumpkins, Brand New, and many others. During the show they also cover a variety of news from random, odd stories to breaking news stories.
One problem WGUR is trying to tackle is the lack of early-morning listeners, which they are trying to solve by getting more faculty and staff listeners at those times.
"A lot of times students are either in class or sleeping before twelve o’clock. So we wanted programming to target our faculty and staff, because we think if we can target them with news, events, and weather we can get their support in other ways," says Criscoe.
This semester there are also more plans for public promotional events. Every Spring there is an annual concert known as Fool’s Day Out. The folks at WGUR pride themselves in hosting independent and upcoming bands. A big move for the WGUR radio station is its recent application for getting more wattage. They currently have 37 watts, and they want to improve to 5,000 watts.
Their application is pending. WGUR has a lot to offer listeners, and also a lot to offer students wanted to get involved with the organization. Students can do the obvious-be a discussion leader in talk shows, control music selections, run the audio board or even DJ.
Yet, there is a still a lot of other jobs open to students. One prime example is AD sales. WGUR is always looking for those interested in advertising and selling banner space from their website. Overall, there are many opportunities available for those interested in the process of radio broadcasting.
Criscoe says, "It is a job you have to be committed to and stay committed to." Overall, WGUR is doing new and big things this semester. If students want to stay tuned into the activities on campus-this is an easy and entertaining way to do so.
For more information about the new schedule students can log on to http://www.gcsuradio.com/.
Posted by Colonnade Archives
on Jan 25 2008. Filed under Features.
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