Have you ever wondered about what goes into producing the shows you hear on the radio? Turns out we have some of that magic here on campus at WVUM. It’s more than just clicking a button and playing a few songs that creates an award-winning station. WVUM is the school’s alternative radio station. From North Miami to Homestead, the WVUM family works hard to promote an air of creativity for listeners.
WVUM is UM’s award-winning, entirely student-run radio station played on 90.5 FM and is a nonprofit organization that runs entirely based on donations.
WVUM “reaches from North Miami all the way down to Homestead,” according to junior Silvia Silva.
The station was chosen as the Miami New Times’ “Editor’s Choice Best FM Radio Station” and “Reader’s Choice Best FM Radio Station” and has been given several other titles and awards. It was also awarded the “Woodie” award in 2011 by MTV and recognized as the “best college radio station in the country.”
WVUM was founded in 1968 by a group of engineering students who discovered how to start a pirated station and get on the air without an FCC license. From an underground station run from a dorm room, WVUM has grown into a formal station run through the school that has become a very distinct presence in the Miami community.
Each week, members pitch songs they discover, and the music staff and board members select what goes on air. As for specialty shows, anyone can pitch any idea to be created into a specialty show that’s unique with a story behind it. These have a more personal feel.
“We encourage people to find their groove, experiment a little bit, and we give a little bit of a history behind the artists or behind the song,” says sophomore and current news and public affairs director Emily Danzinger.
Danzinger also mentions that many of these shows are “some form of political statement and speak to the political ideologies of the day.” Though as an FCC-backed radio station, they are required to be nonpartisan.
“We give the facts only,” said Danzinger. These shows have a “rough script,” depending on which show and how the host decides to run the program.
Both Danzinger and Silva, WVUM’s current programming directors, run their specialty shows solo. Silva runs “Glitch” which is an alternative electronic music station. Danzinger runs “Studio 305” that’s inspired by the Studio 54 Nightclub in New York where many disco and funk creators paved their path. She aims to highlight disco and funk music that may have “fallen between the cracks during the ’70s and ’80s,” as she puts it.
Joanna Jara, famously known as DJ Spooky, was the former general manager who passed away in October 2019. In spite of her absence, her presence is still felt throughout the station because she was responsible for making the station what it is today.
Always keeping her in mind, it is clear that Jara’s heart beats through the station.
“Everything done at the station is dedicated to her as a means to honor her and all the work she did,” says Danzinger.
Spookathon is a week-long event dedicated to the memory of Jara, commemorating her and the work she did for the station. It’s a week in October devoted to “upholding all of these values that she had for the station and this passion that she had for it,” said Silva.
Another major event is Radiothon. This is a whole week at the end of each March with new merchandise and live 48-hour programming happening March 30 to 31.
“For 48 hours WVUM will have nonstop people on the air,” said Silva. “The first 24 hours will be specialty shows and the second half will consist of pure DJ sets. Radiothon is WVUM’s main fundraising week.”
On their website, you can listen live, read their blog, find schedules, listen to podcasts, buy merchandise, donate, read about Jara and learn more about WVUM.
If you’re interested in joining, don’t fret.
“The learning curve is basically straight up,” said Danzinger. If you’re interested in doing music, radio, writing, public relations or social media, you should absolutely take a shot at it. There’s a position for everyone.
You can walk into the station located at the entrance of the pool, and the team will be eager to get you started. It’s not hard to join, and they are always looking for new people. Give it a chance, as it might become your new passion.
*Even if you don’t have radio access, you can find WVUM at wvum.org
words_valeria barbaglio. photo_nina d’agostini. design_emily collins.
This article was published in Distraction’s Summer 2023 print issue.
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