WMCN (91.7 FM) is a

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 radio ...

broadcasting a

variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

format. Licensed to

St. Paul, Minnesota Saint Paul (abbreviated St. Paul) is the capital of the U.S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of Ramsey County. Situated on high bluffs overlooking a bend in the Mississippi River, Saint Paul is a regional business hub and the center o ...

, United States, the station serves the greater St. Paul area. The station is currently owned by

Macalester College Macalester College () is a private liberal arts college in Saint Paul, Minnesota. Founded in 1874, Macalester is exclusively an undergraduate four-year institution and enrolled 2,174 students in the fall of 2018 from 50 U.S. states, four U.S te ...

and run by students. The station has held the WMCN

call sign In broadcasting and radio communications, a call sign (also known as a call name or call letters—and historically as a call signal—or abbreviated as a call) is a unique identifier for a transmitter station. A call sign can be formally assigne ...

since July 30, 1979.

History

This station was granted a final extension to its original

construction permit Planning permission or developmental approval refers to the approval needed for construction or expansion (including significant renovation), and sometimes for demolition, in some jurisdictions. It is usually given in the form of a building perm ...

by the

Federal Communications Commission The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that regulates communications by radio, television, wire, satellite, and cable across the United States. The FCC maintains jurisdiction ...

on June 20, 1979. The new station was assigned the call sign "KJAB" by the FCC but this was changed to the current WMCN on July 30, 1979. The station received its

broadcast license A broadcast license is a type of spectrum license granting the licensee permission to use a portion of the radio frequency spectrum in a given geographical area for broadcasting purposes. The licenses generally include restrictions, which vary ...

from the FCC on April 1, 1980.

Programming

Located in the Macalester-Groveland neighborhood, roughly between the twin cities of

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

and

, WMCN is a low power station and has a broadcast radius of roughly 2.5 to 3 miles. The freeform programming is hosted by student

disc jockey A disc jockey, more commonly abbreviated as DJ, is a person who plays recorded music for an audience. Types of DJs include Radio personality, radio DJs (who host programs on music radio stations), club DJs (who work at a nightclub or music f ...

s and the station only operates during the school's terms. Students are required to complete training sessions to familiarize themselves with the station's

music library A music library contains music-related materials for patron use. Collections may also include non-print materials, such as digitized music scores or audio recordings. Use of such materials may be limited to specific patron groups, especially in p ...

, policies, and broadcast equipment before they are permitted on the air. WMCN provides Macalester and its surrounding community with music from various genres including rock, Americana, world, jazz, hip-hop, electronic, and classical as well as

talk radio Talk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues and consisting entirely or almost entirely of original spoken word content rather than outside music. Most shows are regularly hosted by a single individual, and often featur ...

programming. Community activist Dan Richmond described WMCN as "one of the first places to look for new music and ideas". The station began an overhaul of its facilities in 2006, adding enhanced

webcast A webcast is a media presentation distributed over the Internet using streaming media technology to distribute a single content source to many simultaneous listeners/viewers. A webcast may either be distributed live or on demand. Essentially, web ...

capabilities and working towards the complete digitization of its music library. The digitization of nearly 20,000 songs was, after some complications, completed in late 2007 with the station announcing plans to sell off its vast CD library when the project was complete.

Former on-air staff

While most student presenters at college radio stations do not pursue careers in broadcasting, some use the experience as a springboard to larger venues. Gregory Keltgen, now better known as "

DJ Abilities Gregory Keltgen, better known by his stage name DJ Abilities, is an American underground hip hop producer and DJ signed to Rhymesayers Entertainment who is based in Minneapolis. He is a founding member of Eyedea & Abilities alongside Eyedea, Se ...

", got his start as a hip hop DJ providing scratches as part of his older brother Derek's show on WMCN. Brian Bull, currently an award-winning business and economics reporter for

WCPN WCPN (104.9 FM) is a non-commercial educational radio station licensed to Lorain, Ohio, featuring a public radio format as a repeater of Kent–licensed WKSU. Owned by Ideastream Public Media, the station serves the western portion of Greate ...

90.3 ideastream and contributing reporter for

National Public Radio 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 n ...

, got his first job in radio hosting a weekly classical music program on WMCN during his freshman year. Joanna Stein, a 2006 Macalester graduate and WMCN veteran, joined the staff of

's ''

Morning Edition ''Morning Edition'' is an American radio news program produced and distributed by NPR. It airs weekday mornings (Monday through Friday) and runs for two hours, and many stations repeat one or both hours. The show feeds live from 5:00 to 9:00 AM ...

'' program. Minneapolis/St. Paul community radio station

KFAI KFAI (90.3 FM Minneapolis) is a community radio station in Minnesota. The station broadcasts a wide variety of music, and also airs programming catering to many of the diverse ethnic groups of the region. KFAI has frequently been honored by lo ...

announcer Jennifer Downham, host of ''Groove Garden'' since 1994, says she did not "pursue her musical interests until she became a radio DJ" on WMCN. Described as "the Queen Mother of the Twin Cities hip-shagging, funked-up improv music scene", the WMCN show she hosted was her first ever job as an announcer.

References

External links

WMCN news blog
* {{Minnesota college radio Radio stations in Minneapolis–Saint Paul Independent Public Radio College radio stations in Minnesota Radio stations established in 1980 1980 establishments in Minnesota Macalester College