WSUC-FM (90.5 FM) is a

college radio Campus radio (also known as college radio, university radio or student radio) is a type of radio station that is run by the students of a college, university or other educational institution. Programming may be exclusively created or produced ...

station

broadcasting Broadcasting is the distribution (business), distribution of sound, audio or video content to a dispersed audience via any electronic medium (communication), mass communications medium, but typically one using the electromagnetic spectrum (radio ...

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 from the

State University of New York at Cortland State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...

(SUNY Cortland). The station is owned and licensed by the

State University of New York The State University of New York (SUNY, , ) is a system of public colleges and universities in the State of New York. It is one of the largest comprehensive system of universities, colleges, and community colleges in the United States. Led by c ...

at Cortland in

Cortland, New York Cortland is a city and the county seat of Cortland County, New York. Known as the Crown City, Cortland is in New York's Southern Tier region. As of the 2020 census it had a population of 17,556. The city of Cortland, near the county's western ...

, United States.

History

WSUC-FM went on the air officially on November 29, 1976. Prior to becoming WSUC-FM, the university radio station broadcast in AM with the

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 ...

WCSU. The station had expected to retain the WCSU call sign but the FCC's FM license application required 5 potential call sign choices. The 5 choices given on the application were WCSU, WMLF (Station Manager Michael Flaster's initials), WCJL (Corey Leibow, the Program Director's initials), WRTC (the Chief Engineer, Dick Crozier's initials), and as a joke, WSUC. It turned out the first 4 had already been assigned so the station was assigned WSUC for its FM license. Shortly after the negative exposure garnered by record fines levied against the station by the F.C.C. in 1993, the station underwent a major restructure. Following the FCC fine, the station was found to be in a state of disrepair, and original Chief Engineer Dick Crozier was ousted. Tim Backer, current Director of Engineering for Galaxy Communications, was brought into oversee redesign and repairs to the station's broadcasting infrastructure as well both broadcast and production studios. Repairs and upgrades to the station were completed in 1994.

FCC Notice of Apparent Liability

On January 7, 1993, the radio station was fined $23,750 by the FCC for a June 21, 1992, mid-afternoon broadcast which included the uncensored version of the lead single " Yo-Da-Lin in the Valley" from the

Kid Rock Robert James Ritchie (born January 17, 1971), known professionally as Kid Rock (also known as Bobby Shazam), is an American singer, songwriter and rapper. His style alternates between rock, hip hop, country, and metal. A self-taught musician, ...

album

Grits Sandwiches for Breakfast ''Grits Sandwiches for Breakfast'' is the debut studio album by American rapper Kid Rock. Released on November 27, 1990, by Jive Records, the album is marked by a straightforward hip hop music style, in sharp contrast to the largely rock-oriented ...

and the

explicit lyrics Advisory (abbreviated PAL) is a warning label introduced by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) in 1985 and adopted by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) in 2011. It is placed on audio recordings in recognition of profan ...

version of "I'm Not Your Puppet" from the

Hi-C Hi-C is a fruit juice–flavored drink made by the Minute Maid division of The Coca-Cola Company. It was created by Niles Foster in 1946 and released in 1947. The sole original flavor was orange. History Niles Foster, a former bakery and b ...

album

Skanless ''Skanless'' is the debut studio album by American rapper Hi-C from Compton, California. It was released on December 10, 1991, via Skanless Records. The album peaked at number 152 on the Billboard 200, number 53 on the Top R&B Albums chart, and nu ...

. At the time, this was the largest fine the FCC had ever levied against a non-commercial radio station for a violation of the commission's "obscenity, indecency, and profanity" regulations. The university appealed the $23,750 fine stating that the fine was excessive and that due to a lack of a

playlist A playlist is a list of video or audio files that can be played back on a media player either sequentially or in a shuffled order. In its most general form, an audio playlist is simply a list of songs, but sometimes a loop. The term has sever ...

and with no identifying announcements on the recording submitted to the FCC, SUNY was unable to ascertain if the alleged broadcast had actually aired on WSUC. SUNY also argued that it had been discovered shortly after the alleged broadcast that the student DJ who was logged on the transmitter at the date and time of the alleged broadcast had also stolen station equipment and forged purchase orders. According to a certified arrest report provided to the FCC, the student was criminally convicted, sentenced and later officially banned from the SUNY Cortland campus on threat of criminal trespass. On July 28, 1998, the FCC fine was reduced to $4,200.

References

External links

*
WSUC-FM The Dragon History
* {{NPR New York SUC-FM NPR member stations SUC-FM State University of New York at Cortland Radio stations established in 1976 1976 establishments in New York (state)