WZRD (FM)

WZRD
City	Chicago, Illinois
Broadcast area	Chicago area
Branding	The Wizard
Frequency	88.3 MHz
First air date	1974[1]
Format	Freeform
ERP	100 watts
HAAT	22 meters (72 ft)
Class	A
Facility ID	49444
Transmitter coordinates	41°58′56.00″N 87°43′7.00″W / 41.9822222°N 87.7186111°W
Callsign meaning	WiZaRD
Owner	Northeastern Illinois University
Webcast	Listen live
Website	wzrdchicago.org

WZRD (88.3 FM) is the student-run radio station at Northeastern Illinois University, Chicago, Illinois, US, founded in 1974. The station serves the Chicago area. The station is licensed by the FCC to Northeastern Illinois University.^[2] WZRD broadcasts on a freeform radio format.

Live performances

WZRD has hosted live in-studio performances over the years and many artists that played and continue to play in-studio during WZRD's "Thursday Night Live" program—a long running weekly live performance show featuring local, national, and international acts.^[3]

Importance in the Chicago Punk scene (1980s)

WZRD was a hotbed for local and touring punk, hardcore, and post-punk groups in the 1980s. Steve Bjorklund, an early figure in Chicago's punk scene writes in the liner notes of The Effigies album "Remains Nonviewable":

It was the early spring of 1980, and the occasion was a free show by a shitty band called A Minimal Graphic in the auditorium at Northeastern Illinois University on the northwest side. Northeastern Illinois University was significant because it housed the only radio station in Chicago that wasn't afraid to play punk rock.^[4]

Prominent figure in Chicago music, Steve Albini, states in Naked Raygun's Basement Screams reissue's liner notes that "Sunday Morning Nightmare" on WZRD was the "one radio program" for Chicago punk in the early 1980s. WZRD's role in the Chicago Punk scene was discussed in You Weren't There, a 2007 film that documents the Chicago Punk scene from 1977 through 1984.

2012 temporary closure

On June 29, 2012, Northeastern Illinois University temporarily closed down operations of WZRD due to issues of mismanagement. For instance, WZRD's broadcast license had expired, resulting in NEIU itself paying a $7,000 fine for failure to apply for renewal and for operating while no longer having a broadcast license, and having to ask for special temporary authority from the FCC to keep the station on the air.^[5] Northeastern Illinois University Director of Student Leadership Development declared that the future of the radio club—and possibly the re-purposing of the radio station—would be decided following a search for a different programming format. In the meantime, WZRD would continue broadcasting using a "skeleton team", under the strict control of the university. The on-air programming was mostly provided by an automated DJ system.

On Tuesday, November 13, 2012, NEIU's newspaper the Independent headline story was "WZRD 88.3 Back in Business." Based on what the administration handed down to the collective, it did not reflect the Exiler's intentions. "The Participants will be expected to abide by standards of conduct compatible with Northeastern Illinois University standards...Wizard will be overseen by the Office of Student Leadership" and furthermore it said that although the students would retain their autonomy "the organization's bylaws, constitution, and powers of the program manager require revision and the addition of a 'statement of civility and decorum on how the actions of Djs will be treated'" Administration further expected the hiring of an administrator to act as a manager of the station. In 2014, however, WZRD was fined again by the FCC for not having 4 years worth of records detailing functions of the station.^[6]

References

↑ History Cards for WZRD, fcc.gov. Retrieved August 28, 2018.
↑ "WZRD Facility Record". United States Federal Communications Commission, audio division.
↑ "WZRD Official Website". WZRD.
↑ "Effigies' Remains Liner Notes".
↑ http://www.neiuindependent.com/news/view.php/548175/University-to-pay-7000-fine-to-FCC
↑ http://lsglegal.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=271&Itemid=60

External links

Official Website/Blog

Query the FCC's FM station database for WZRD

Radio-Locator information on WZRD

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.

[1] History Cards for WZRD, fcc.gov. Retrieved August 28, 2018.

[2] "WZRD Facility Record". United States Federal Communications Commission, audio division.

[3] "WZRD Official Website". WZRD.

[4] "Effigies' Remains Liner Notes".

[5] ttp://www.neiuindependent.com/news/view.php/548175/University-to-pay-7000-fine-to-FCC

[6] ttp://lsglegal.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=271&Itemid=60

Radio stations in the Chicago market
By AM frequency	560 640 670¹ 720¹ 750 780¹ 820 850 890¹ 930 950 1000¹ 1030 1050 1080 1110 1160 1200 1220 1230 1240 1270 1280 1300 1330 1340 1370 1390 1410 1420 1430 1450 1450 1480 1490 1500 1500 1510 1530 1570 1590 1690
By FM frequency	87.7² 88.1 88.1 88.1 88.1 88.1 88.1 88.1 88.1 88.3 88.3 88.3 88.5 88.5 88.5 88.7 88.7 88.7 88.7 88.9 88.9 88.9 89.1 89.1 89.3 89.3 89.5 89.7 90.1 90.5 90.7 90.7 90.9 91.5 91.7 91.9 92.3 92.5 92.7 93.1 93.5 93.9 94.3 94.7 95.1 95.5 95.9 95.9 96.3 96.7 96.7 96.9 97.1 97.5 97.9 98.3 98.3 98.7 99.5 99.9 99.9 100.3 100.7 100.7 101.1 101.5 101.9 102.3 102.3 102.7 103.1 103.1 103.5 103.9 103.9 103.9 104.3 104.7 104.7 104.7 105.1 105.5 105.5 105.5 105.9 106.3 106.7 107.1 107.1 107.5 107.9
NOAA Weather Radio frequency	162.400 162.425 162.500 162.550
Digital radio	780 1300 1390 1690 89.3-1 89.3-2 89.5-1 89.5-2 90.1-1 90.1-2 90.1-3 90.7-1 90.7-1 90.9-1 90.9-2 90.9-3 91.5-1 91.5-2 91.7 92.3-1 92.3-2 93.1-1 93.1-2 93.1-3 93.9-1 93.9-2 94.7-1 94.7-2 95.5-1 95.5-2 95.9-1 95.9-2 96.3-1 96.3-2 96.7-1 97.1-1 97.1-2 97.9-1 98.7-1 99.5-1 99.5-2 100.3-1 100.3-2 101.1-1 101.1-2 101.9-1 101.9-2 102.3-1 102.7-1 102.7-2 103.5-1 103.5-2 104.3-1 104.3-2 105.1-1 105.1-2 105.1-3 105.5-1 105.9-1 105.9-2 106.3-1 106.7-1 106.7-2 107.5-1 107.5-2
By callsign	KWO39 KXI41 KXI58 KZZ81 W219CD W244BQ W248BB W264BF W268AY W280EM W284DA WAES WAIT WAIW WAKE WBBM¹ WBBM-FM WBEQ WBEW WBEZ WBGX WBIG WBMF WBMX WCCQ WCEV WCFL WCFS-FM WCGO WCKG WCKL-FM WCPT WCPT-FM WCPY WCRX WCSJ-FM WDCB WDGC-FM WDRV WEDC WEEF WEFM WEBG WERV-FM WFEL-LP WFMT WFXF WGCI-FM WGEN-FM WGN¹ WGRB WGVE-FM WHFH WHPK WHSD WIIL WIIT WIMS WIND WJCH WJKL WJOB WJOL WKBM WKKC WKQX WKRS WKSC-FM WKTA WLEY-FM WLIT-FM WLJE WLPN-LP WLPR-FM WLS¹ WLS-FM WLTH WLTL WLRA WLIP WLUW WMBI WMBI-FM WMFN WMVP¹ WNDZ WNTD WNUR-FM WNVR WNWI WOJO WONC WONU WPJX WPNA WPNA-FM WPPN WPWX WRDZ WRLL WRME-LP² WRMN WRLR-LP WRSE WRTE WRTW WRTO WRXQ WSBC WSCR¹ WSHE-FM WSPY WSPY-FM WSRB WSRI WSSR WTMX WTZI WUSN WVAZ WVIV-FM WVON WWCA WWDV WWHN WWHN-FM WWTG WXAV WXLC WXRD WXRT WYCA WYHI WYLL WZRD WZSR WZVN
Internet stations	WGN Plus Q101 Chicago
Defunct stations	WCFJ WCFL WCGO WCRW WEDC WENR WHCD WKKD WMAQ WMCW WNIB WRLL
Satellite radio local traffic/weather XM Channel 217 Sirius Channel 151 Nearby radio markets Benton Harbor-St. Joseph Kankakee LaSalle–Peru Milwaukee-Racine Rockford South Bend See also List of radio stations in Illinois List of radio stations in Indiana ¹ = Clear-channel stations with extended nighttime coverage ² = Audio signal of WRME-LP (oldies audio, with video of traffic conditions)