Dartmouth Broadcasting
Encyclopedia
Dartmouth Broadcasting began in 1920s with the ambitions of a few Dartmouth College
students that decided to give a new technology called radio
a try. The first broadcast occurred over copper wires linked in all the dorms. The station used the call letters WDBS (Dartmouth Broadcasting System). The name changed to WDCR (Dartmouth College Radio) when it became an officially licensed station of the Federal Communications Commission
and its first official broadcast at 1340 AM was in 1958. Dartmouth Broadcasting began officially operating WFRD (FM Radio at Dartmouth) 99.3 FM in 1976.
, although its studios are located on campus. (The FM transmitter is off-campus in the neighboring community of West Lebanon, New Hampshire
.) All money for operating expenses comes from local and national advertisers.
Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College is a private, Ivy League university in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States. The institution comprises a liberal arts college, Dartmouth Medical School, Thayer School of Engineering, and the Tuck School of Business, as well as 19 graduate programs in the arts and sciences...
students that decided to give a new technology called radio
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
a try. The first broadcast occurred over copper wires linked in all the dorms. The station used the call letters WDBS (Dartmouth Broadcasting System). The name changed to WDCR (Dartmouth College Radio) when it became an officially licensed station of the Federal Communications Commission
Federal Communications Commission
The Federal Communications Commission is an independent agency of the United States government, created, Congressional statute , and with the majority of its commissioners appointed by the current President. The FCC works towards six goals in the areas of broadband, competition, the spectrum, the...
and its first official broadcast at 1340 AM was in 1958. Dartmouth Broadcasting began officially operating WFRD (FM Radio at Dartmouth) 99.3 FM in 1976.
Student governance
The two stations have always been completely managed by students. The vast majority of the on-air personnel are students, although there are some exceptions (such as the football play-by-play announcers.) This is an unusual example of commercial college radio. The management of the stations is by the Directorate consisting of: General Manager, Finance Director, AM Program Director, FM Program Director, Technical Director, Marketing/Alumni Relations, FM Promotions Director, News Director, Sports Director, Internet Director, and Training Director.Current organization
- WFRDWFRDWFRD 99.3 FM is a radio station known as "99 Rock". It plays a modern rock format and is licensed as a commercial FM radio station to Hanover, New Hampshire, USA. The station serves the Lebanon-Rutland-White River Junction area...
is the FM half of Dartmouth's radio program, also known as 99 Rock. 99 Rock broadcasts across the entire Dartmouth-Lake Sunapee RegionDartmouth-Lake Sunapee RegionThe Dartmouth-Lake Sunapee area of the U.S. state of New Hampshire, ranges from Bradford northwest along Interstate 89 to New Hampshire's border with Vermont at the city of Lebanon....
(i.e., west-central New Hampshire), along with adjacent east-central VermontVermontVermont is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state ranks 43rd in land area, , and 45th in total area. Its population according to the 2010 census, 630,337, is the second smallest in the country, larger only than Wyoming. It is the only New England...
. Though a classic rockClassic rockClassic rock is a radio format which developed from the album-oriented rock format in the early 1980s. In the United States, the classic rock format features music ranging generally from the late 1960s to the late 1980s, primarily focusing on the hard rock genre that peaked in popularity in the...
format until the early 2000s, 99 Rock now runs modern rock music 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, showcasing bands like the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Green Day, Pearl Jam, and Sublime.
- Dartmouth Sports Network calls the play by play for several Dartmouth sports teams including: football, men and women's basketball, men and women's hockey, baseball, softball and recently lacrosse. Games are broadcast on WDCR or WFRD and are streamed over the internet.
- Dartmouth Election Network works with Dartmouth Broadcast News to provide election coverage year round. Every four years, it offers special election-night coverage during the famous New Hampshire primaryNew Hampshire primaryThe New Hampshire primary is the first in a series of nationwide political party primary elections held in the United States every four years , as part of the process of choosing the Democratic and Republican nominees for the presidential elections to be held the subsequent November.Although only a...
. In 1988, they made a legendary faux pas when they called the Primary for Dick GephardtDick GephardtRichard Andrew "Dick" Gephardt is a lobbyist and former prominent American politician of the Democratic Party. Gephardt served as a U.S. Representative from Missouri from January 3, 1977, until January 3, 2005, serving as House Majority Leader from 1989 to 1995, and as Minority Leader from 1995 to...
, based on stronger than expected early returns: Gephardt in fact lost to Michael S. Dukakis by 16 percentage points, 36% to 20%. However, the coverage is of high quality and is sometimes syndicated to conventional radio stations. Dartmouth Broadcasting also covers other major elections as well as the two major parties' quadrennial conventions.
- Dartmouth Broadcast News has several news programs running on WDCR and WFRD. The news department works to provide listeners with timely updates of relevant news.
Former facilities
- WDCR was the College's AM station and broadcast a wide variety of music, news, and sports. Having at different times been a talkTalk radioTalk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues. Most shows are regularly hosted by a single individual, and often feature interviews with a number of different guests. Talk radio typically includes an element of listener participation, usually by broadcasting live...
, Top 40, and alternative rockAlternative rockAlternative rock is a genre of rock music and a term used to describe a diverse musical movement that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1980s and became widely popular by the 1990s...
station. Its signal usually only reached the immediate HanoverHanover, New HampshireHanover is a town along the Connecticut River in Grafton County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 11,260 at the 2010 census. CNN and Money magazine rated Hanover the sixth best place to live in America in 2011, and the second best in 2007....
-LebanonLebanon, New HampshireAs of the census of 2000, there were 12,568 people, 5,500 households, and 3,178 families residing in the city. The population density was 311.4 people per square mile . There were 5,707 housing units at an average density of 141.4 per square mile...
-White River JunctionWhite River Junction, VermontWhite River Junction is an unincorporated village and census-designated place in the town of Hartford in Windsor County, Vermont, United States...
area. In October 2008, WDCR ceased over the air broadcasting, having established streaming over the internet. In September 2010, WDCR's license was returned to the F.C.C..
Finances
Dartmouth Broadcasting is an independent student organization. Dartmouth Broadcasting receives no direct funding from Dartmouth CollegeDartmouth College
Dartmouth College is a private, Ivy League university in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States. The institution comprises a liberal arts college, Dartmouth Medical School, Thayer School of Engineering, and the Tuck School of Business, as well as 19 graduate programs in the arts and sciences...
, although its studios are located on campus. (The FM transmitter is off-campus in the neighboring community of West Lebanon, New Hampshire
West Lebanon, New Hampshire
West Lebanon, New Hampshire, is a district within the city of Lebanon on the Connecticut River. The area contains a major shopping plaza strip along New Hampshire Route 12A, serving the Upper Valley communities along Interstates 89 and 91...
.) All money for operating expenses comes from local and national advertisers.