WNRS-FM (89.9

MHz The hertz (symbol: Hz) is the unit of frequency in the International System of Units (SI), equivalent to one event (or cycle) per second. The hertz is an SI derived unit whose expression in terms of SI base units is s−1, meaning that one he ...

) is an

adult album alternative Adult album alternative (also triple-A, AAA, or adult alternative) is a radio format. See pages 9 and 10Mills, Joshua. "A New Radio Music Format: Rock for Prosperous Adults" New York Times, Feb 28 1994, p. 2. ProQuest. Web. Accessed September 4, 2 ...

formatted

broadcast Broadcasting is the distribution of audio or video content to a dispersed audience via any electronic mass communications medium, but typically one using the electromagnetic spectrum ( radio waves), in a one-to-many model. Broadcasting began ...

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 ...

licensed to

Sweet Briar, Virginia Sweet Briar College is a Private college, private Women's colleges in the United States, women's college in Sweet Briar, Virginia, Sweet Briar, Virginia. It was established in 1901 by Indiana Fletcher Williams in memory of her deceased daughter, ...

, serving

Amherst Amherst may refer to: People * Amherst (surname), including a list of people with the name * Earl Amherst of Arracan in the East Indies, a title in the British Peerage; formerly ''Baron Amherst'' * Baron Amherst of Hackney of the City of London, ...

and

Amherst County, Virginia Amherst County is a county, located in the Piedmont region and near the center of the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. The county is part of the Lynchburg Metropolitan Statistical Area, and its county seat is also named Amherst ...

. WNRS is owned and operated by Stu-Comm, Inc. and simulcasts

WNRN WNRN (91.9 FM) is a Public Radio, Adult album alternative, and formatted radio station licensed to Charlottesville, Virginia, serving Central and Western Virginia. WNRN is owned and operated by Stu-Comm, Inc. History In 1993, Mike Friend, a for ...

full-time.

History

WUDZ ("woods") signed on in late 1979 as Sweet Briar College's student radio station, replacing an earlier

Part 15 Code of Federal Regulations, 'Title 47, Part 15(47 CFR 15) is an oft-quoted part of Federal Communications Commission (FCC) rules and regulations regarding unlicensed transmissions. It is a part of Title 47 of the Code of Federal Regulations ( ...

station that had the unofficial callsign of WSBC. The station was originally licensed for just 10 watts – good for reception at a five-mile radius from campus – but upgraded to 100 watts during 1980. By 1997, WUDZ was broadcasting for the legally required minimum of 36 hours per week: 6 p.m. through midnight on Sunday through Thursday, off on Friday, and noon through 6 p.m. on Saturday. In February 2000, the callsign was changed to WNRS-FM. That April, Sweet Briar entered into a

local marketing agreement In North American broadcasting, a local marketing agreement (LMA), or local management agreement, is a contract in which one company agrees to operate a radio or television station owned by another party. In essence, it is a sort of lease or tim ...

to rent its extra airtime to Stu-Comm, Inc., who filled the hours not programmed by students with a relay of WNRN. The station moved to a 30-watt transmitter from the 2,900-foot Tobacco Row Mountain west of Sweet Briar in 2002, allowing reception in car radios in Lynchburg. Sweet Briar College sold WNRS-FM outright to Stu-Comm in 2010. By this time, Sweet Briar programming had dwindled to a single three-hour window on Mondays through Thursdays during the school year.

WSWE-LP WSWE-LP is an Adult Album Alternative formatted Broadcasting, broadcast radio station licensed to Sweet Briar, Virginia, serving Sweet Briar, Virginia, Sweet Briar and Amherst, Virginia, Amherst in Virginia. WSWE-LP is owned and operated by Sweet ...

has since launched as a new outlet for student programming. In 2011, Stu-Comm attempted to move WNRS-FM to a 20-kilowatt transmitter on near Appomattox Court House, which would have given the station a 50-mile radius from the Roanoke metropolitan area east to

Powhatan County Powhatan County () is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 30,033. Its county seat is Powhatan. Powhatan County is included in the Greater Richmond Region. The James River forms the cou ...

and south to the

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

border. A first application was dismissed in 2011 as 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 ...

primarily determined a signal on 89.9 from this location would cause unacceptable interference to multiple other stations. A second application on 89.5 from the same location progressed to the

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 ...

stage and received local zoning approval, but was abandoned in July 2015. Stu-Comm has since moved the station off of Tobacco Row Mountain back to the town of Sweet Briar, in order to increase its power from 30 to 1100 watts.

References

External links

* NRS-FM Radio stations established in 1980 Modern rock radio stations in the United States Adult album alternative radio stations in the United States Community radio stations in the United States {{Virginia-radio-station-stub

History

See also

References

External links