WQAQ, Connecticut college station and one of a handful of remaining Class D licenses was shut down recently. The station went silent this summer on May 1, 2006. (as they often do) with the intention of returning in the fall. But this year they returned and found that
Quinnipiac University President, John. L. Lahey decided to have their transmitting tower torn down over the summer months. SURPRISE!
Their reasoning?
"The decision to remove the tower seems to have been an executive decision by Quinnipiac University President, John. L. Lahey. (picture left) "The University removed the tower, which primarily served as a Cingular cell tower, because it was an unsightly eyesore right in the center of campus..." In my experience Universities just airbrush towers out of promo photos. No real reason to tear them down. This appears to have been personal. www.wqaq.com
The decision appears to have been made without consultation of advisors, faculty, or student 
It's a shame that some stations get to grow under the capable hands of devoted staff like WVPH/RLC (who is currently raising money for a new tower) and some stations langish with Class D licenses without even the basic necessisty of a protected contour. Why do some grow and some wither? It's a question I've been asked and a question I've asked others. http://thecore.rutgers.edu/
I remember Colin helms fomer EIC of CMJ asking me Why WPUR shut down in 1998. (They were a cable station at Purchase college) I didn't have a good answer for him then. It's the collapse of a large support network that is organic and delicate. Why that support network collapses I dont know. Sometimes it's assasinated. Other times it dies of natural causes. Let see if this one pulls through.
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First of all, I want to thank you for writing about this. I do, however, want to clear something up.
ReplyDeleteThe official website for the station is wqaq.com, and it is maintained by the current WQAQ staff. wqaq.org was started by concerned alumni of the university and the radio station.
Thanks!
Glad people are bringing attention to this issue. However, it is not true that, "there is no student involvement" in WQUN. WQUN, while professionally run by a paid staff, also utilizes student interns and hires paid work study students.
ReplyDeleteWhile WQAQ is a valuable resource for students interested in the broadcast side of radio, WQUN is a valuable resource for students interested in the operations side of radio.
Allow me to be a tad snide: internships. wow. that sounds so involved.
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