WUMD (college radio)

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College Radio WUMD is the college radio station for the University of Michigan-Dearborn, based in Dearborn, Michigan. It is accessible via the internet at WUMD.org, and is also played in the University's student union, the University Center. College Radio WUMD is considered a low-power CaFM (Cable Frequency Modulation) radio station and is a long standing recognized member with both the IBS (Intercollegiate Broadcasting System) and MAEB (Michigan Association of Educational Broadcasters).

[edit] Programming

WUMD is the university funded, student-run campus radio station for the University of Michigan in Dearborn, Michigan, USA. The radio station is the largest student-run organization on campus and comprises about 50 individual student or alumni DJs, almost 15 staff officers, and 3 faculty members. Each DJ is trained in mixing and speaking on air to perform his or her own 1 to 2 hour show. WUMD is unique among college radio stations, in that the DJs select the music they play themselves. The officers of the station perform the business duties, including managing, music department (record label relations), and writing the news and production.

[edit] History

In 1979, WUMD was formed by a group consisting mainly of engineering majors that began borrowing music equipment from the science department in order to play vinyl records in the Recreational and Organizational Center (aka- R.O.C.). While the group was recognized on campus as a student organization, it would be sometime before the students would be based in an upper-level room to play music down to all of the rest of the students and be able to take requests. In the mean time, the radio station was an open body of students that would daily hang out together in between taking their courses.

During the early 1980s, WUMD moved to the tower studio in the University Mall, which was located opposite of the where the station would be moved again later on for a second time. This additional move would increase radio station expansion to three times the size of its' previous size. At one point, some members of the radio station were scrutinized heavily and almost resulted in expulsion by the student activities director for taking equipment and music to their homes for safe keeping in order to prevent WUMD from being forever lost as an entity for the university.

The radio station began holding program guide release parties, which were held in celebration of another semester for student members to input their reviews for concerts and music albums, along with any other material that is music and radio related. The very first recorded guide dates back to 1988 and the idea has been a bi-yearly tradition ever since. Usually, program guide releases parties consist of meeting at a venue in the metro-Detroit area to have a variety of bands play throughout the night.

As of 1992, WUMD would move a third time and could once again be heard in what used to be the University Mall through 2 large, white sphere-shaped speakers with 4 tweaters on each side, as well as on cable television in the cities of Dearborn (channel 18), Dearborn Heights and Westland (channel 23). More recently, lack of funding has prevented WUMD from cable-broadcasting and the University Mall has been rebuilt and renamed the University Center, which houses all of the central activities around campus.

The year 2000, the radio station began broadcasting via internet radio through Real One Player streaming software in Microsoft Windows Explorer program. This allowed WUMD to reaching listeners all over the nation and potentially the rest of the world.

Today, after moving all of the studio equipment and music collection a total of 4 times across campus, WUMD continues to be one of the largest student organizations on campus. In 2007, WUMD revived and gave life to broadcasting the campus' sporting events for their teams, collectively known as the Wolves. Sports broadcast include hockey, basketball (both men's and women's), and assorted other events, including but not limited to volleyball, soccer (both men's and women's), rugby union, lacrosse, and softball.

[edit] External links

• Official University of Michigan-Dearborn Website
• Official University of Michigan Website
• Henry Ford Estate, Fair Lane
• The Michigan Journal, UM-D student newspaper

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