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from the issue of March 10, 2005
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KRNU the launching point for many in 35 years
BY BRENT C. WAGNER, COLLEGE OF JOURNALISM AND MASS COMMUNICATIONS
As one of the music directors for KRNU radio station, Katie Hartman previews music sent to the station by labels and artists hoping for airtime.
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| | | In this World-Herald file photo from 1970, the KRNU announcers are Sue Limbo and Tim Fitzgerald. Photo from Omaha World-Herald Archives.
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If Hartman and other students at the station like the music and think KRNU listeners will, too, it gets played. Otherwise, it's out the door. That makes KRNU unique, Hartman said. And it's one of the things she loves best about UNL's student radio station.
Students like Hartman have been making decisions and helping run the station for 35 years. Since KRNU (90.3 FM) signed on Feb. 23, 1970, it has operated as a non-commercial station and training tool for students in the College of Journalism and Mass Communications. From its first studio in Nebraska Hall, KRNU has launched the careers of broadcasters; many say the experience was invaluable professional preparation.
Despite its musical bent, the station's strong news format was emphasized, said Charlie Brogan, who was at KRNU when it started and now works at KLIN. News and specialty programs still make up KRNU content, but playing music that can't be heard anywhere else is a station goal, said Neal Obermeyer, music director.
The 24-hour station plays mostly alternative and modern rock, although the play list is vast. KRNU, which broadcasts from the Roy W. Lenwell Studios on the second floor of Andersen Hall, also features local bands and programs ranging from sports talk to contemporary Christian music, British music to rap. News, sports, speakers and NU Regents' meetings are also a part of the mix.
| | Sarah Brockhoft announces a song during her shift on KRNU radio Feb. 21. Photo by Josh Fiedler.
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"No radio station will take the chances that we do musically, because no matter what they tell you, radio stations exist to get ratings and sell ads," Obermeyer said. "We challenge people with our music and expose people to new and local artists and different types of music. We have 2,000 CDs in our main library. Most classic rock stations play the same songs over and over."
About 50 students are involved with the station each semester, 20 of whom are paid student positions, said Rick Alloway, station general manager. Different classes contribute to KRNU, and the station is designed to be a training experience open only to majors in the college. The 100-watt station can be heard all over Lincoln. Alloway hopes KRNU will be streamlined to a Web page soon.
Alloway said the anniversary probably means little to current students and station alumni, but he hopes that people realize where the station has come from and how fortunate the students are to be able to work there.
"I do hope they would take pride in the fact that station has been around so long. There are a lot of colleges that don't have on-air programs and wish that they could," Alloway said.
From 1951 to 1969 the campus radio stations was a "carrier current radio station," said Larry Walklin, who managed the station from 1970 to 1994.That meant that the station could be heard only at certain places on campus by plugging a radio into the electrical system and tuning into the AM dial.
But the faculty felt students needed more on-air experience and believe an FM station would improve students' professional training. The faculty received an FM license, and the student-run station operated from 3 p.m. to midnight. Today, the station is on 24 hours through automation.
When the station signed on in 1970, it wasn't seen as a big deal, said Kent Pavelka, one of the original announcers. After all, they were running a station before but not many could listen in.
"I don't remember thinking there was much of a difference from my perspective," Pavelka said. "It was just low-frequency FM. It's not like we were all over Nebraska. I thought it was neat being on the air even when it was just in the dorms. I know Walklin was pretty excited about it, though."
A long-time announcer for Husker football, Pavelka now works for Lincoln's KLIN.
The list of KRNU alumni include many now familiar to Nebraska broadcasting including Pavelka, Brogan, Jon Vanderford, news anchor at KOLN/KGIN (10/11) television in Lincoln and Jim Rose, the voice of Nebraska football. Kevin Kugler, who co-hosts "Unsportsmanlike Conduct" on ESPN radio (1620) in Omaha, and John Bishop, who hosts "SportsNightly" on KLIN (1400), hosted a sports talk show together while they were at KRNU in 1994.
Pavelka believes UNL's radio station was unusual in allowing students to broadcast sports. It's one of the reasons the Lincoln Northeast graduate chose UNL.
"I don't know if it wasn't for the opportunities I got at KRNU if I would have ever gone into broadcasting," Pavelka said.
(Editor's Note: A version of this story, written for News 306, a class taught by Charlyne Berens and Susan Gage, ran in the college's Redweek publication Feb. 25.)
ned, she said.
Dam said she also hopes to implement a web-based survey for students, faculty and staff to solicit input.
GO TO: ISSUE OF MARCH 10
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