What's New November 2010 Programming Notes by Katie Britton Giving Thanks by Alan Chartock WAMC’s New Weekly Segment: "Classical Music According to Yehuda" WAMC Joins State Association Virtual Career Fair WAMC Presents a New Radio Series About the Hudson River with Support from the New York Council for Humanities WAMC Northeast Public Radio Begins Broadcasts in HD RadioTM Technology - Static-Free Radio, with the Sound of a CD November 2010 Programming Notes by Katie Britton Gobble Gobble everyone! For me, November is a month of warm colors like auburn, ochre, and burgundy, with a countering feeling of crispness to air as the days grow shorter. I’ve already gone corn mazing in at Liberty Ridge Farm in Schaghticoke (plus I got to pet a mini donkey there!), my pumpkins have been chosen from Adams Fairacre Farms in Poughkeepsie, and my table centerpiece gourds are picked out from the Schenectady Farmer’s Market. Needless to say, the bounty of autumn is upon us. Each year around this time we’re asked to take a step back from the daily goings on in life, and think about what we’re thankful for; to really appreciate what we have, and to share with those who are in need. I’ve been lucky to say the least. My health is good, I have a job that I enjoy more than anything in the word, and I have a wonderful group of friends and family to support me. I do my best to share what I have with those who need it, and when I can’t, try to find someone who can. Acts of kindness don’t have to be grand gestures. They can be as simple as holding the door for the person behind you, or actually listening to someone when you ask how they are. I find a smile can bring one to the face of a stranger on the street. Those same smiles will get us through this volatile election season. (Like how I made the transition to programming?) When we’re considering the candidates and preparing for the mid-term elections, you can be sure to turn the dial to WAMC for a full night of live coverage. On November 2nd, the 112th Congress will be decided upon and hosts Brian Shields and Alan Chartock will be joined by several pollsters , analysts, and reporters to bring you the latest numbers and projections. Coverage will begin at 8pm and conclude locally at 11pm, when the ship will be turned over to national coverage from NPR in Washington. You can also keep an eye out for special programming on Thanksgiving. We’ll bring back more Beatles specials, and have a special one hour documentary on Bob Dylan. It will all be posted on our on-line schedule in mid-November. Warm wishes this Thanksgiving and pass the smiles please! Back to the Top Giving Thanks by Alan Chartock Dear friends, What a fund drive we had! It was the best ever. Our antenna on Mount Greylock had been hit by a huge piece of ice that we are told was big as a Volkswagen. Not only were several of the five bays of the antenna severely damaged, but so was the crucial transmission wire that brings the electricity up from the base of the tower to the antenna. When water and gunk (a technical term) get into that transmission wire, all hell breaks loose. That’s why so many of you have called us over the last several months complaining that you couldn’t get the station the way you used to. When we laid it all out for you, you came through, as always. After all, you can’t have a radio station unless you have a good working antenna. The problem is that it is very cold up there on top of Mount Greylock and the climbers who have to mount the new antenna up there have to get to it before the ice and snow hit. It’s sort of like the blacktopping of the roads. At some point when it gets too cold they close down the asphalt plants. That’s what we were up against in the drive. We had to get the money to repair the antenna and we didn’t have a moment to spare. Many people sent money to run the station and said, "Here's a little extra for the antenna." Some people wondered how, if our budget was as tight as we said it was, we could afford the tens of thousands of dollars the project would cost. It was a great question and the answer is that like everyone else, we just have to make do with less. When our wonderful David Galletly decided it was time to retire, we took one look at what he did in his job and we all gulped. Instead of hiring someone to do his work, everyone took a little more on their shoulders. Selma Kaplan did, Joe Donahue did, Katie Britton did, our business manager Darryl Straight did, Pat Cooney who runs our entire engineering operation did. In fact, everyone did, but when the dust cleared we saved his salary. It wasn’t only David. When others have moved on, we have doubled and even tripled up. So, when we made our goal the climbers got going and put the new antenna up there. This will be a much improved antenna. This time it has big umbrella like radomes over each of the antenna bays to protect them from falling ice. Of course, the technology of the new antenna is much improved since, as always, we learn more over time. The problem is that it takes some time to tune the antenna. Just the slightest variation can mean that someone who used to get the signal will have worse signal or vice versa. So be sure to let our engineers know what your experience has been. By the time you read this, the new antenna should be up and running. There are other things that helped us get through this past drive. There are the thousands of testimonials that we read on the air about what WAMC means to each person who listens. There is the usual fun, the jokes, the cracking up, the kibbitzing from all the volunteers. The matching challenges always work during the fund drive. Frankly I’ve never really understood why they work so well but I think the answer is that when we all take a goal, everyone tries to meet it, and we make it, it enhances our sense of togetherness and community. The fund drive is our chance to listen to you. When you called and thanked us for putting Ward Stone back on the air, it meant a lot to us. We listened. When many of you said that you wanted "Le Show" back on its Sunday afternoon spot, we listened and put it back. Hey, it’s your station and that is the reason why we did the impossible. Each of us does what we can. I sat there on that last Saturday for fourteen and a half hours. When I got up, my sciatic nerve had taken quite a beating but, you know what? It was worth it. I always say that the apple pie tastes better if your labor is included. We thank you for everything you have done, once more, to keep this fragile experiment alive. Back to the Top WAMC Joins State Association Virtual Career Fair If you're interested in a career in broadcasting, click on NYSBroadcastersCareerFair.com now and check out the virtual career fair. You’ll find jobs listed from radio and television stations throughout New York. You can attend the virtual career fair right now…without ever leaving the privacy of your home or office! At NYSBroadcastersCareerFair.com, you’ll see available jobs, learn about the stations, post your resume, even apply for a broadcasting job online. Just click on NYSBroadcastersCareerFair.com right now. It's easy, convenient and free! Back to the Top WAMC Presents a New Radio Series About the Hudson River with Support from the New York Council for Humanities (ALBANY, NY OCTOBER 2009) – WAMC/Northeast Public Radio’s flagship morning program, The Roundtable, will broadcast a special series and take WAMC’s listeners on a cultural and historical audio road trip along the Hudson River to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Henry Hudson’s voyage. The Roundtable will interview historians, authors, artists, and organizational leaders about the Hudson's history and culture. This series will broadcast live on three days from three different locations from 9am to noon. President of WAMC Alan Chartock says, “WAMC is incredibly grateful to the New York Council for the Humanities for this opportunity to expand our reach and to be able to celebrate the Hudson River. WAMC has facilities up and down the river and our ability with the help of this grant to get experts to tell us about the history, polities, sociology, and art of the river is a dream come true.” The audio voyage will start on Thursday, October 15th in New York City at the New-York Historical Society in Manhattan. This broadcast will focus on the role of the Hudson River in New York City history. On Monday, October 19th the Roundtable will broadcast from the Olana Estate in Hudson, NY and will focus on the many historical and regional attractions in the Hudson Valley. The series will conclude on Tuesday, October 20th with a special open to the public live broadcast at the Albany Institute of History and Art in Albany, NY. This broadcast will explore the history of the City of Albany, highlighting the region’s Dutch heritage and concluding with a panel discussion that will take a broad look at the Hudson River’s history and Albany Institute of History and Art exhibition, Hudson River Panorama: 400 Years of History, Art, and Culture. This exhibit features hundreds of artworks and artifacts related to the agricultural, industrial, and cultural history of the river. Listeners will be able to attend this live broadcast and ask questions to the panel. Panelists will include: Historic Hudson River painter Len Tantillo; author and Hudson River Panorama consultant Tom Lewis; curator Doug McCombs; archeologist and Hudson River Panorama consultant Christopher Lindner; Curator, The Tang Teaching Museum and Art Gallery at Skidmore College and consultant on Hudson Panorama. Seating is limited. To reserve a seat, please call 1-800-323-9262 or by emailing hudsonriver@wamc.org. Joe Donahue, host of the Roundtable says, “I am thrilled that with the assistance of the New York Council for the Humanities, we are once again able to dig deep and provide an audio portrait of such a multi-faceted subject. We have an incredible line-up of intelligent, wise, witty people to tell us the amazing history of the Hudson and the people that live along it. We very much look forward to traveling the river and speaking with each of them.” To hear this special broadcast, tune in to WAMC or listen online at wamc.org. Broadcast and guests schedule about the New York’s Hudson River series can be found at: http://www.wamc.org/roundtablehudsonriver.html. The Roundtable, featuring award-winning journalist Joe Donahue, blends news, arts, culture, and live music. Whether reporting the day’s news, interviewing local and national authors, or chatting with fascinating people from around the corner and around the world, The Roundtable has something for everyone as it covers issues ranging from politics, arts, culture, history, the environment and everything in between. This programming made possible through the support of the New York Council for the Humanities. Back to the Top WAMC Northeast Public Radio Begins Broadcasts in HD RadioTM Technology - Static-Free Radio, with the Sound of a CD (Albany, NY- December 9, 2004) - Radio broadcasting has taken a giant leap into the 21st century. WAMC Northeast Public Radio has begun HD (for High Definition) Radio digital broadcasts from stations WAMC-FM, 90.3, Albany, WOSR(FM), 91.7, Middletown and WANC(FM), 103.9, Ticonderoga NY. These three are the first FM stations in the Capital Region, Hudson Valley and North Country to adopt the new technology. The noise and interference that cause the static, hiss, pops and fades heard on today's analog radios is virtually eliminated with HD Radio digital broadcasting. In addition to crystal clear reception, HD Radio technology will dramatically enhance sound fidelity - AM will have the clarity of FM, and FM will have the clarity of compact discs. Equally impressive to the digital sound quality is that HD Radio technology allows for new wireless data services to be delivered from AM and FM radio stations. Pending Federal approval, this technology will also make possible additional programming on the same FM channel. According to Alan Chartock, President & CEO of WAMC, "We're proud and excited to be in the forefront of bringing this new technology to our listeners. It will allow us to provide even better service and a stronger commitment to listeners - not to mention significantly improved sound." After 80 years of analog transmissions, radio is poised for its digital migration to HD Radio technology. Soon, home audio receivers and after market auto receivers will be widely available to consumers through consumer electronics retailers. Some auto receivers are now sold as HD Radio ready. Conversion of WAMC-FM and WOSR(FM) to HD Radio was made possible by grants from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) which is assisting public radio stations across the country to use this new technology. The Albany and Middletown stations commenced broadcasts in HD in the past week. WANC(FM), Ticonderoga was equipped with HD Radio during the Spring under a grant from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA). WAMC Northeast Public Radio is pursuing additional grants to fund the "phase two" conversion of its remaining FM and AM stations in eastern New York and Western New England. HD Radio technology was developed by iBiquity Digital and approved in October 2002 by the Federal Communications Commission. HD Radio allows AM/FM broadcasters to seamlessly transmit digital quality audio alongside today's analog-based broadcasts. Little or no change in listener behavior will be required since all local radio station dial positions will remain the same. Listeners will simply tune to their favorite programs and stations and receive them in either a digital or analog format depending on their radio. Because stations will begin digital broadcasting using a "hybrid mode," transmitting digital and analog signals simultaneously, listeners with analog receivers will still be able to pick up the broadcast and will be able to seamlessly upgrade to digital at their own pace. WAMC Northeast Public Radio transmits over the following stations: WAMC 90.3 FM, Albany*; WAMC 1400 AM, Albany, WAMK 90.9 FM, Kingston; WOSR 91.7 FM, Middletown*; WCEL 91.9 FM, Plattsburgh; WCAN 93.3 FM, Canajoharie; WANC 103.9 FM, Ticonderoga*; WAMQ 105.1 FM, Great Barrington, MA; 93.1 FM, Troy; 88.9 FM, Oneonta; 107.7 FM, Newburgh, NY; and 91.9 Southington, CT. It can be heard on-line at www.wamc.org. (* now in HD Radio) Back to the Top