WDUQ
Encyclopedia
- For the current station on 90.5 FM in Pittsburgh, see WESAWESAWESA is a public radio and news radio station based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The station broadcasted at 90.5 MHz with an ERP of 25 kW. WESA is a full member station of National Public Radio and is also affiliated with Public Radio International and American Public Media...
WDUQ was a public radio jazz and news radio station
Radio 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...
based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh is the second-largest city in the US Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Allegheny County. Regionally, it anchors the largest urban area of Appalachia and the Ohio River Valley, and nationally, it is the 22nd-largest urban area in the United States...
. The station broadcasted at 90.5 MHz with an ERP of 25kW. WDUQ was a full member station of National Public Radio and was also affiliated with 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 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,...
. As of fall 2001, WDUQ was the most listened-to public radio outlet in Pittsburgh.
WDUQ began broadcasting on December 15, 1949 as a student laboratory on the Duquesne University campus, exposing students to new technology and giving local audiences access to cultural programs and information. As each decade passed, WDUQ evolved as public radio grew and changed across the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
WDUQ was the home of the popular NPR
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...
news programs such as 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 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...
as well as 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...
and other programs. The station also had a significant local and regional news effort, including in-depth coverage of a variety of issues. The station also produced and distributed programming heard on public radio stations nationwide.
The station began carrying the programming of the newly formed Radio Information Service
Radio Information Service
The Radio Information Service or RIS is a reading service for the blind in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It is carried via subcarrier on WDUQ-FM in Pittsburgh.The RIS weekly audience is 1,200 listeners with two-thirds of the audience over 60 years of age...
in 1976, a reading service for the visually impaired and print-handicapped on a sub-carrier channel. WDUQ entered into a management agreement to handle RIS's day-to-day business operations in late 2005.
In 2006, WDUQ began to improve its signal strength to several distant communities. A broadcast translator relays a signal to FM 100.5 in Johnstown, Pennsylvania
Johnstown, Pennsylvania
Johnstown is a city in Cambria County, Pennsylvania, United States, west-southwest of Altoona, Pennsylvania and east of Pittsburgh. The population was 20,978 at the 2010 census. It is the principal city of the Johnstown, Pennsylvania, Metropolitan Statistical Area, which includes Cambria County...
, FM 104.1 in Somerset, Pennsylvania
Somerset, Pennsylvania
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 6,762 people, 3,035 households, and 1,717 families residing in the borough. The population density was 2,466.0 people per square mile . There were 3,313 housing units at an average density of 1,208.2 per square mile...
, FM 92.3 in New Baltimore, Pennsylvania
New Baltimore, Pennsylvania
New Baltimore is a borough in Somerset County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 168 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Johnstown, Pennsylvania Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:New Baltimore is located at ....
serving the Pennsylvania Turnpike
Pennsylvania Turnpike
The Pennsylvania Turnpike is a toll highway system operated by the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States. The three sections of the turnpike system total . The main section extends from Ohio to New Jersey and is long...
, and FM 104.1 in Ligonier, Pennsylvania
Ligonier, Pennsylvania
Ligonier is a borough in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 1,695 at the 2000 census. Ligonier was settled in the 1760s. The borough is well known for nearby Idlewild Park, one of the oldest amusement parks in the country, and nearby Seven Springs Mountain Resort...
.
Recent history and relationship with Duquesne University
In October, 2007, WDUQ engendered controversy relative to corporate underwriting it received from Planned ParenthoodPlanned Parenthood
Planned Parenthood Federation of America , commonly shortened to Planned Parenthood, is the U.S. affiliate of the International Planned Parenthood Federation and one of its larger members. PPFA is a non-profit organization providing reproductive health and maternal and child health services. The...
of Western Pennsylvania. In exchange for a gift in excess of $5000, WDUQ began airing a series of ads for Planned Parenthood on October 8, 2007 that focused on breast
Breast cancer
Breast cancer is cancer originating from breast tissue, most commonly from the inner lining of milk ducts or the lobules that supply the ducts with milk. Cancers originating from ducts are known as ductal carcinomas; those originating from lobules are known as lobular carcinomas...
and cervical cancer
Cervical cancer
Cervical cancer is malignant neoplasm of the cervix uteri or cervical area. One of the most common symptoms is abnormal vaginal bleeding, but in some cases there may be no obvious symptoms until the cancer is in its advanced stages...
screening, STD treatment, and abstinence education, and which did not mention abortion-related services; Planned Parenthood, however, is the largest provider of abortions in the United States. On October 10, Duquesne University President Dr. Charles J. Dougherty
Charles J. Dougherty
Charles J. Dougherty is the current President of Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. An expert in the field of health care ethics, Dougherty has published two books on the subject.-Personal life:...
ordered the station to return the money and cease airing the ads, citing conflict with the university's Catholic identity.
Duquesne University announced in January 2010 that it would be searching for options to sell WDUQ. According to a spokesperson for the university, "Over the years, DUQ has evolved into a station that is virtually independent of the university. This could be an opportunity for Duquesne to reallocate assets for the enhancement of our educational enterprise and for the station to thrive on its own". On January 14, 2011, it was announced that the university had accepted an offer from Essential Public Media
WESA
WESA is a public radio and news radio station based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The station broadcasted at 90.5 MHz with an ERP of 25 kW. WESA is a full member station of National Public Radio and is also affiliated with Public Radio International and American Public Media...
, a joint venture between WYEP and Public Media Company, with proceeds going to support new endowed chairs in African Studies and Mission Studies and endowments for stipends for graduate students and "scholarships to increase diversity in the student body". The station's production facility was to move to WYEP's Community Broadcast Center on the South Side and certain back-office functions were to be combined, but when asked whether the station's music format would change, WYEP board president Marco Cardamone replied, "We don't really have specifics. We understand the legacy that jazz represents in Pittsburgh." WDUQ will adopt a new call sign upon the completion of the sale.
On July 1, 2011, the new management implemented its new format which switched to mostly news and talk. WDUQ used to air 100 hours of jazz, but now has reduced that programming to 6 hours. This has created some controversy in Western Pennsylvania since there is no outlet for listening to jazz on the radio.
On September 15, 2011 the sale was finalized. The new station call letters are WESA
WESA
WESA is a public radio and news radio station based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The station broadcasted at 90.5 MHz with an ERP of 25 kW. WESA is a full member station of National Public Radio and is also affiliated with Public Radio International and American Public Media...
.