Chicago Public Radio
Encyclopedia
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
. Financed primarily by listener contributions, the station is affiliated with both National Public Radio
NPR
NPR, formerly National Public Radio, is a privately and publicly funded non-profit membership media organization that serves as a national syndicator to a network of 900 public radio stations in the United States. NPR was created in 1970, following congressional passage of the Public Broadcasting...
and Public Radio International
Public Radio International
Public Radio International is a Minneapolis-based American public radio organization, with locations in Boston, New York, London and Beijing. PRI's tagline is "Hear a different voice." PRI is a major public media content creator and also distributes programs from many sources...
; they also broadcast content from American Public Media
American Public Media
American Public Media is the second largest producer of public radio programs in the United States of America after NPR. Its non-profit parent, American Public Media Group, also owns and operates radio stations in Minnesota, California, and Florida. Its station brands are Minnesota Public Radio,...
. The station and its parent organization used to be known as Chicago Public Radio; the parent company is now known as Chicago Public Media
Chicago Public Media
Chicago Public Media is a not-for-profit media company that operates as the primary National Public Radio member organization for Chicago. It owns 3 non-commercial educational FM broadcast stations and 1 FM translator, and produces the programs Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! for NPR stations, This...
. Some of the organization's output is branded as WBEZ and some as Chicago Public Media.
Stations and call signs
Chicago Public Media (CPM) broadcasts its primary service on three FM radio stationRadio station
Radio broadcasting is a one-way wireless transmission over radio waves intended to reach a wide audience. Stations can be linked in radio networks to broadcast a common radio format, either in broadcast syndication or simulcast or both...
s, with call sign
Call sign
In broadcasting and radio communications, a call sign is a unique designation for a transmitting station. In North America they are used as names for broadcasting stations...
s WBEZ (91.5 FM) in Chicago, WBEQ in Morris, Illinois
Morris, Illinois
Morris is a city in Grundy County, Illinois, United States. The population was 13,636 at the 2010 census.Morris is home to the Dresden Nuclear Power Plant, which provides a substantial portion of the electricity supply for the Chicago metropolitan area...
(90.7 FM), and W217BM (91.3 FM) in Elgin, Illinois
Elgin, Illinois
Elgin is a city in northern Illinois located roughly northwest of Chicago on the Fox River. Most of Elgin lies within Kane County, Illinois, with a portion in Cook County, Illinois...
. Listeners can also receive the broadcast online with streaming audio, MP3
MP3
MPEG-1 or MPEG-2 Audio Layer III, more commonly referred to as MP3, is a patented digital audio encoding format using a form of lossy data compression...
download or by podcast
Podcast
A podcast is a series of digital media files that are released episodically and often downloaded through web syndication...
. As of 2006, the station draws an estimated 600,000 listeners each week.
CPM also operates a web site and radio station named Vocalo.org
Vocalo.org
WBEW is a non-commercial educational public radio station on 89.5 MHz at Chesterton in Northwest Indiana. Since June 2007, the station has been the broadcast element of Vocalo, broadcasting primarily uploaded or e-mailed user-generated content; other Vocalo content is on the web but not...
which broadcasts on radio station WBEW (89.5 FM) in Chesterton, Indiana
Chesterton, Indiana
Chesterton is a town in Westchester, Jackson and Liberty townships, Porter County, Indiana, United States. The population was 13,068 at the 2010 census. The three towns of Chesterton, Burns Harbor, and Porter are known as the tri-towns or the Duneland area....
.
CPR also managed Loyola University of Chicago's WLUW
WLUW
WLUW is a college radio station owned and operated by Loyola University Chicago, serving Chicago, Illinois and its northern suburbs. WLUW was founded by Jim Wagner and Michael Russo in the 1970s and they ran the station until Loyola University offered more funding and support...
88.7 FM, heard on the North Side of Chicago and adjacent suburbs for a few years in the early 21st century. Although WLUW
WLUW
WLUW is a college radio station owned and operated by Loyola University Chicago, serving Chicago, Illinois and its northern suburbs. WLUW was founded by Jim Wagner and Michael Russo in the 1970s and they ran the station until Loyola University offered more funding and support...
receives equipment and legal assistance from CPR, it is now otherwise financially independent.
History
Chicago Public Radio began as an extension of the Chicago Board of Education and began broadcasting as WBEZ in 1943. For most of its early years, the station only broadcast instructional programs, operating during the school year on weekdays while Chicago Public Schools were in session. In 1972, WBEZ joined National Public Radio and began general programming outside of school hours, not completely dropping instructional programs until the early 1980s. Initially, most programming outside of the instructional programs and NPR programs was jazz music. The Board of Education sold the station to the current license holders, the not-for-profit WBEZ Alliance, Inc., in 1990. The corporate name was changed in 2010 to Chicago Public Media, Inc. The general manager since 1995 is Torey Malatia.Programming
Programming on Chicago Public Radio includes the usual world musicWorld music
World music is a term with widely varying definitions, often encompassing music which is primarily identified as another genre. This is evidenced by world music definitions such as "all of the music in the world" or "somebody else's local music"...
, quiz shows, and international and local news on a regular basis. It offers such staples as All Things Considered
All Things Considered
All Things Considered is the flagship news program on the American network National Public Radio. It was the first news program on NPR, and is broadcast live worldwide through several outlets...
, Car Talk
Car Talk
Car Talk is a radio talk show broadcast weekly on National Public Radio stations throughout the United States and elsewhere. Its subjects are automobiles and repair, and it often takes humorous turns...
, Marketplace
Marketplace (radio program)
Marketplace is a radio program that focuses on business, the economy, and events that influence them. Hosted by Kai Ryssdal, the show is produced and distributed by American Public Media, in association with the University of Southern California...
, Morning Edition
Morning Edition
Morning Edition is an American radio news program produced and distributed by National Public Radio . It airs weekday mornings and runs for two hours, and many stations repeat one or both hours. The show feeds live from 05:00 to 09:00 ET, with feeds and updates as required until noon...
and A Prairie Home Companion
A Prairie Home Companion
A Prairie Home Companion is a live radio variety show created and hosted by Garrison Keillor. The show runs on Saturdays from 5 to 7 p.m. Central Time, and usually originates from the Fitzgerald Theater in Saint Paul, Minnesota, although it is frequently taken on the road...
. Currently, Chicago Public Radio is best known nationally as the producers of This American Life
This American Life
This American Life is a weekly hour-long radio program produced by WBEZ and hosted by Ira Glass. It is distributed by Public Radio International on PRI affiliate stations and is also available as a free weekly podcast. Primarily a journalistic non-fiction program, it has also featured essays,...
through Public Radio International
Public Radio International
Public Radio International is a Minneapolis-based American public radio organization, with locations in Boston, New York, London and Beijing. PRI's tagline is "Hear a different voice." PRI is a major public media content creator and also distributes programs from many sources...
, and Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!
Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!
Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! is an hour-long weekly radio news panel game show produced by Chicago Public Radio and National Public Radio. It is distributed by NPR in the United States, internationally on NPR Worldwide and on the Internet via podcast, and typically broadcast on weekends by member...
through NPR. Generally, news and talk programming is heard during the day, with arts and culture programming on the weekends. Legendary jazz disc jockey Dick Buckley
Dick Buckley
Dick Buckley hosted the jazz program, Jazz with Dick Buckley, on Chicago Public Radio. His program, which was on WBEZ from 1977 through 2008, tended toward jazz of the 1930s and 1940s, or what he has called "Golden Era" jazz. In the early eighties, he also hosted a jazz program on WXFM...
had a time slot Sunday afternoons until mid-2008.
Chicago Public Radio was at one time the flagship station of Steve Cushing's nationally distributed Saturday night blues music program Blues Before Sunrise, which started in 1979 and has been independently produced and distributed by Cushing since 1995; the program now airs locally on station WDCB
WDCB
WDCB is a radio station broadcasting a public radio and jazz format. Licensed to Glen Ellyn, Illinois, USA, the station serves the Chicago area. The station is currently owned by College of DuPage, District 502 and features programing from AP Radio and Public Radio International...
. The station is also the flagship station of The Annoying Music Show!, a 3-5 minute program (which airs during a station break) that showcases generally annoying songs. The program is produced by Nayder Communications, headed by former WBEZ program director Jim Nayder. (Nayder Communications also produces the somewhat more serious Magnificent Obsession, a program of interviews with persons who have overcome various addictions, which is carried by CPR.)
Its morning magazine program Eight Forty-Eight was named after the postal address of the station, 848 East Grand Avenue, though the name is sometimes misinterpreted as referring to its air time (originally 9:30am, currently 9:00am).
The other local program heard Monday-through-Friday is Worldview
Worldview (radio show)
Worldview is Chicago Public Media's daily international-affairs radio show, hosted by Jerome McDonnell. It features conversations about international issues as well as their local connections...
, an international news and analysis program that began in 1985 as Middday with Sondra Gair. After Gair's death in 1995, her producer Jerome McDonnell took over the program and has hosted since. It was heard nationally on Sirius Satellite Radio
Sirius Satellite Radio
Sirius Satellite Radio is a satellite radio service operating in North America, owned by Sirius XM Radio.Headquartered in New York City, with smaller studios in Los Angeles and Memphis, Sirius was officially launched on July 1, 2002 and currently provides 69 streams of music and 65 streams of...
's now-defunct PRI channel from Sirius' inception until 2006. Starting March 2007, Worldview
Worldview (radio show)
Worldview is Chicago Public Media's daily international-affairs radio show, hosted by Jerome McDonnell. It features conversations about international issues as well as their local connections...
is aired on the satellite XMPR channel nightly.
The local arts program, Hello, Beautiful!, formerly aired Sunday mornings, but has now been canceled. The rock music
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
talk show
Talk show
A talk show or chat show is a television program or radio program where one person discuss various topics put forth by a talk show host....
Sound Opinions
Sound Opinions
Sound Opinions is a radio talk show focusing on rock music. It airs Friday night at 8 PM CST and Saturday morning at 11 AM CST on Chicago Public Radio. The show is hosted by Jim DeRogatis and Greg Kot and features interviews with musicians and industry figures as well as featuring current music...
, which moved from WXRT
WXRT
WXRT, also known as WXRT 93.1, XRT, and 93-XRT is a AAA radio station in Chicago, Illinois. For many years their slogan has been "Chicago's Finest Rock". WXRT is a primary sponsor of the Chicago nonprofit Rock For Kids.-History:...
in 2005, is distributed nationally by American Public Media
American Public Media
American Public Media is the second largest producer of public radio programs in the United States of America after NPR. Its non-profit parent, American Public Media Group, also owns and operates radio stations in Minnesota, California, and Florida. Its station brands are Minnesota Public Radio,...
and airs in the prime spot between Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!
Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!
Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! is an hour-long weekly radio news panel game show produced by Chicago Public Radio and National Public Radio. It is distributed by NPR in the United States, internationally on NPR Worldwide and on the Internet via podcast, and typically broadcast on weekends by member...
and This American Life
This American Life
This American Life is a weekly hour-long radio program produced by WBEZ and hosted by Ira Glass. It is distributed by Public Radio International on PRI affiliate stations and is also available as a free weekly podcast. Primarily a journalistic non-fiction program, it has also featured essays,...
. The "radio comic strip" 11 Central Avenue airs on Friday mornings during Morning Edition
Morning Edition
Morning Edition is an American radio news program produced and distributed by National Public Radio . It airs weekday mornings and runs for two hours, and many stations repeat one or both hours. The show feeds live from 05:00 to 09:00 ET, with feeds and updates as required until noon...
and is distributed nationally through the Public Radio Exchange
Public Radio Exchange
The Public Radio Exchange is a nonprofit web-based platform for digital distribution, review, and licensing of radio programs. The organization claims to be the largest on-demand catalog of public radio programs available for broadcast and Internet use.-Mission:According to PRX's site, its mission...
.
In addition, Chicago Public Radio founded Third Coast International Audio Festival
Third Coast International Audio Festival
The Third Coast International Audio Festival is a festival based in Chicago showcasing feature and documentary audio work...
, a showcase for independent radio producers, and the producer of the weekly program Re:sound. Also, CPR is a founding member of the Public Radio Exchange
Public Radio Exchange
The Public Radio Exchange is a nonprofit web-based platform for digital distribution, review, and licensing of radio programs. The organization claims to be the largest on-demand catalog of public radio programs available for broadcast and Internet use.-Mission:According to PRX's site, its mission...
, a programming cooperative for public radio stations and independent producers.
Programming changes
As of January 8, 2007, overnight music programming has been dropped. The new schedule was posted on the station's website. In its place on weeknights are repeats of the daytime local programming and Fresh AirFresh Air
Fresh Air is an American radio talk show broadcast on National Public Radio stations across the United States. The show is produced by WHYY-FM in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Its longtime host is Terry Gross. , the show was syndicated to 450 stations and claimed 4.5 million listeners. The show...
, the BBC World Service
BBC World Service
The BBC World Service is the world's largest international broadcaster, broadcasting in 27 languages to many parts of the world via analogue and digital shortwave, internet streaming and podcasting, satellite, FM and MW relays...
program Outlook, and newscasts from the World Radio Network
WRN Broadcast
WRN Broadcast, formerly known as WRN, is an international broadcast services company that works with television channels and radio broadcasters, media owners and brands enabling them to deliver content to target audiences worldwide....
. Malatia has stated on the CPR message boards that more local programming will be added in time, when proper funding is received.
The music programs remaining on the schedule are the world music program Radio M (formerly Passport) and PRI's Afropop Worldwide on Friday nights and PRI's American Routes
American Routes
American Routes is a weekly two-hour public radio program that presents the breadth and depth of the American musical and cultural landscape. Hosted by Nick Spitzer, American Routes is syndicated by 225 stations, with over half a million listeners. It is produced out of New Orleans and distributed...
on Saturday evenings. All other music hosts are being reassigned to other positions at the station, according to a March 2006 article in the Chicago Reader.
The replacement of music programming, which management said is caused by the prevalence and popularity of other music delivery systems, has caused controversy amongst many music buffs. Protest web sites were established; none remain active at this time.
A Time Out Chicago article from August 2006 describes the format as hosts in two-hour shifts programming what fits their fancy, be it interviews, pre-produced pieces, music or commentary. The general on-air tone of the hosts is to be more informal and personable than the usual public radio host, which is often perceived to be detached and stodgy. In line from this, Vocalo.org will not be marketed as a public radio station, will not broadcast any nationally-produced public radio programs and will not use on-air pledge drives as a funding source. Listener-supplied material will be culled from material uploaded to the station web site and recorded in neighborhood satellite studios and mobile recording stations at libraries, stores and events, similar to the "StoryBooths" of David Isay's StoryCorps
StoryCorps
StoryCorps is an American non-profit organization whose mission is to record, preserve, and share the stories of Americans from all backgrounds and beliefs. StoryCorps grew out of Sound Portraits Productions as a project founded in 2003 by radio producer David Isay...
project. Material will be posted on the web site for public listening and comment before broadcast.
A website was initially established at www.secretradioproject.com to gather people interested in participating in the new programming. The actual vocalo.org website is now in operation and streaming daily programs.
External links
- WBEZ 91.5 — official website
- Third Coast International Audio Festival
- "The Business: All Talk,", Chicago Reader, April 14, 2006, Section 2, pg. 2