WICN (90.5 FM) is a

NPR National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other ...

member

radio station Radio broadcasting is transmission of audio (sound), sometimes with related metadata, by radio waves to radio receivers belonging to a public audience. In terrestrial radio broadcasting the radio waves are broadcast by a land-based radi ...

Worcester, Massachusetts Worcester ( , ) is a city and county seat of Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. Named after Worcester, England, the city's population was 206,518 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the second-List of cities i ...

. It broadcasts commercial-free, 24 hours a day to an audience of over 40,000. The programming is mostly

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...

, with daily evening shows dedicated to

soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun '' soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest atte ...

, bluegrass,

Americana Americana may refer to: *Americana (music), a genre or style of American music *Americana (culture), artifacts of the culture of the United States Film, radio and television * ''Americana'' (1992 TV series), a documentary series presented by J ...

folk Folk or Folks may refer to: Sociology *Nation *People * Folklore ** Folk art ** Folk dance ** Folk hero ** Folk music *** Folk metal *** Folk punk *** Folk rock ** Folk religion * Folk taxonomy Arts, entertainment, and media * Folk Plus or Fo ...

and blues, world music, and Sunday night public affairs programming. WICN's mission statement is as follows:

"Arts and culture contribute to a quality of life that keeps a community vibrant and economically alive. WICN Public Radio is committed to this ideal through the presentation of authentic, independent music, on the radio and in the concert halls, preserving America's living art forms of Jazz and Folk music for generations to enjoy."

History

WICN began in 1969 as Worcester's Inter-Collegiate Network, joining with The College of the Holy Cross and

Worcester Polytechnic Institute Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) is a Private university, private research university in Worcester, Massachusetts. Founded in 1865 in Worcester, WPI was one of the United States' first engineering and technology universities and now has 14 ac ...

. In 1980, the station became a member of National Public Radio, & was accredited by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting in 1987. Through 2000, their studios were located at 6 Chatham Street. This location was formerly a

YWCA The Young Women's Christian Association (YWCA) is a nonprofit organization with a focus on empowerment, leadership, and rights of women, young women, and girls in more than 100 countries. The World office is currently based in Geneva, Swi ...

and the swimming pool, now drained, housed the station's record collection. At this time the station's transmitter was 8,000 watts (directional) and co-located at the

WUNI WUNI (channel 66) is a television station licensed to Marlborough, Massachusetts, United States, broadcasting the Spanish-language Univision network to the Boston area. It is owned by TelevisaUnivision alongside Derry, New Hampshire–licensed ...

TV tower on Styles hill in Boylston. In March 2010, WICN completed another change making its signal less directional. It is now located on Asnebumskit Hills in

Paxton, Massachusetts Paxton is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 5,004 at the 2020 census. History Paxton was first settled by Europeans in 1749 and was officially incorporated in 1765. It was previously occupied by the Ni ...

along with the antenna for WAAF (now WKVB).

References

External links

* * {{Jazz Radio Stations in Massachusetts WICN Radio stations established in 1969 Jazz radio stations in the United States ICN 1969 establishments in Massachusetts

History

See also

References

External links