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About WFSU
 

radio history

In May 1948, the concept WFSU radio began when the new Florida State University Men's Government Association allocated funds for a campus radio station.  January 21, 1949, with call letters approved by the FCC, WFSU aired its first program as WFSU - 660 (AM).  Broadcasts included 3 hours per evening, Monday through Friday, of campus news, drama, interviews and a disc jockey.

Initially WFSU was a student run and student oriented station - its FCC license only allowed it to broadcast within the confines of FSU's campus.  To encourage student listening, radios were put in each dormitory.

 old radio
radio2 Programming expanded and the station grew, but in April of 1953, complaints from the surrounding community had forced WFSU off the air temporarily.  The signal had been leaking off-campus and in the 1950s this was a 'no-no' for campus radio stations.  Campus advisors hoped the station would return for fall semester.

For fall of 1953, WFSU applied for a low-power FM educational license to broadcast within a fifteen-mile radius of the FSU campus.  The station, to feature cultural entertainment and music, was approved. Beginning in July of 1954, the new station, WFSU-FM 91.5, broadcast from 2 to 6 p.m. daily.  Soon after, WFSU moved to an 80 hour broadcast week and joined the National Association of Educational Broadcasters, gaining access to a national network of educational programming as well as the BBC and French Broadcasting Service.
The big break for WFSU-FM came in 1954 when station managers learned that no local commercial station would carry FSU football games.  WFSU then carried an exclusive broadcast and sports fans bought FM receivers to receive the station.

In 1970 the station became one of 90 charter members of National Public Radio and later carried the inaugural broadcasts of All Things Considered. However, during the 1970s, budget cuts and changes in local broadcasting caused WFSU to cut back from a now 24-hour station to 20 hours per day. This also inspired a change to an all-classical format, with mixed reaction from the community.

In March 1975 WFSU-FM inaugurated live coverage of the Tallahassee City Commission. In March 1976 it reactivated the Florida Public Radio network earlier headquartered in Jacksonville.  FPR, authorized under a contract granted by the Department of Education, still originates from the Tallahassee studios.

Throughout its history, WFSU occupied area across campus. From the top of the Longmire building in 1949, to the basement of the music building in 1954 to the fourth floor of Diffenbaugh Building from 1972, in 1982 WFSU-FM followed WFSU-TV to the new five and a half million dollar broadcast center near the FSU golf course.

By 1986, WFSU continued to grow, but with no back-up power for it's signal, broadcast suffered frequent outages and poor service for the hilly regions of NE Tallahassee.  A new tour NE of town became available, but WFSU was in competition for the 91.5 position on the dial with Georgia Public Radio.  To find a solution, the station made an application for 88.9 FM .  The new 88.9 signal would broadcast at 95,000 watts from a tower 1,248 feet high.  However, the lower power 91.5 was still in WFSU's possession.  By spring of 1991 news and information migrated to 88.9 and 91.5 held onto the classical music format. A half million citizens at this point in time could receive one of these stations.

Throughout its history, WFSU has been honored with numerous prestigious awards for journalism, professionalism, reporting, documentary and news, proof of which adorn its walls today. Additionally, WFSU proudly remembers the period from 1981-1991 when Red Barber, a regular Friday feature on NPR's Morning Addition, hosted directly from WFSU's studios in Tallahassee.  In 1993, a year after Barber's death, the entrance to WFSU was dedicated to Red Barber by Bob Edwards, Barber's NPR cohort.

In the early 1990s an informational program Capital Report, began to cover Florida legislative session. In 1994 radio began the Radio Reading Service for blind and physically handicapped persons in our local area, which continues today.
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