WBRU
[2] Formerly an FM modern rock radio station that broadcast at 95.5 FM in the Rhode Island area, WBRU currently broadcasts two online stations with different genres on each: indie and alternative on WBRU and an urban contemporary format on WBRU360, named after its long-time Sunday program, The 360° Experience in Sound.
In August 2017, Brown Broadcasting Service sold the 95.5 license to Educational Media Foundation and WBRU was replaced on that frequency by WLVO, a Christian adult contemporary station, at midnight on September 1, 2017.
[11] Abraham originally conceived of the idea as a way to share his record collection and serve as a personal disk jockey for his friends.
After being recognized as an extra-curricular activity, The Brown Network was assigned a studio and control room located in the Faunce House student union building.
On February 17–18, 1940 an organizing convention for the Intercollegiate Broadcasting System (IBS) was held at Brown, attended by representatives from twelve colleges with existing or proposed carrier current stations.
IBS's role was defined as a medium for the exchange of ideas and programs, in addition to working to attract national advertising contracts for the member stations.
[12] In 1945, student journalists began to use the WBRU call letters on air, which had been coined by undergraduate Stephen Plimpton.
The station's playlist featured artists such as Frank Zappa and The Mothers of Invention, The Fugs, Pearls Before Swine, Phil Ochs, Country Joe & The Fish and other left-leaning rock acts that were not typically played on mainstream radio.
[citation needed] It was among the first radio stations in the United States to play Ben Folds Five and Talking Heads.
[7] WBRU aired for the last time on 95.5 FM at 11:59 p.m. on August 31 and was replaced on that frequency by Educational Media Foundation's K-Love Christian adult contemporary network.
One minute later, at midnight on September 1, WBRU was relaunched as an online-only station, with the first song played being "Welcome To Paradise" by Green Day.
[16] Although the sale had not been completed by the time WBRU ceased broadcasting on 95.5FM, Educational Media Foundation opted to lease the frequency until the deal was approved.
[20] In October, well after Brown Broadcasting Service had signed a purchase and sale agreement for the station,[21] Paxson asked the board to consider an informal proposal from earlier in the year to sell the license to Rhode Island Public Radio instead.
[22] The day of WBRU's final broadcast on FM radio, former student staff member Tucker Hamilton alleged that the sale of the station's license was coerced; Hamilton and other members of a WBRU alumni group asked Rhode Island attorney general Peter Kilmartin to block the sale to Educational Media Foundation.
"[24] The Federal Communications Commission approved the sale of the 95.5 FM license to Educational Media Foundation on October 24, 2017.
[26] In January 2018, the WBRU callsign was transferred to a low-power Providence-based station located at 101.1 MHz and operated by the non-profit Brown Student and Community Radio group and the Providence arts and event space, AS220.
[27] The low-power station continues to air WBRU programs on a permanent basis, including the 360° Experience in Sound on Sunday-Tuesday.
[27] The indie and alternative programming continues to run as a 24/7 online radio stream through the station's website and mobile app.
In 1997, WBRU's carrier-current AM station split off and became Brown Student Radio (BSR), broadcasting initially on WELH/88.1, under a license owned by The Wheeler School and online [2].
On Sundays, the station switched formats to hip hop and urban contemporary in a day-long program called The 360 Degree Experience in Sound.
Local network television affiliates WJAR and WLNE-TV reported that WBRU had been sold without gaining confirmation about the story.
In 2008, WBRU was the first station in the country to air "I Will Possess Your Heart" by Death Cab For Cutie, which it did at approximately 1:30 p.m. on March 18, 2008.
