5 ms·

The listener-funded radio station that runs the archive, WFMU, is the single greatest radio station in the world.

by ewretgg 8y ago

meatsock 8y ago
by definition public radio is in the public interest, not many ad supported stations can claim that.
- quadrangle 8y ago
  While true in general, public radio has quite a quantity of paid-third-party-ads these days. And they don't just say "supported by [corporation, tag line]", they are full ads, just read by the public radio hosts. There's one radio station group that has consistently been fully public interest with neither ads nor corporate nor government conflicts-of-interest: the Pacifica network which has affiliates around the country http://pacificanetwork.org http://pacificanetwork.org
  - jilnji 8y ago
    Thanks for the link. WFMU also runs no ads and has no corporate sponsors. "WFMU’s primary source of support comes from listener contributions made during our annual on-air fundraising marathonand revenue generated from our annual Record Fair. WFMU does not accept underwriting or corporate sponsorships. We receive some support from foundations and government grants, as long as they do not contain conditions that determine our programming content or restrict our independence." from: https://wfmu.org/about/ https://wfmu.org/about/ I donate every year. It's a great cause to support.
    - lnrdgmz 8y ago
      I remember listening to WFMU's station manager recount one of the times he had to fire a (volunteer) DJ: the DJ was selling ad time on his show. He got away with it for a while because his show was not in English. It seems that ads were also a motivation for the long-running show JM in the AM to leave the station. > WFMU, licensed as a non-profit radio station, adheres to the guidelines of charitable and non-commercial radio. With the move of ‘JM in the AM’ exclusively to NSN, the program, its host, its content and its reach will be allowed greater creative flexibility and sponsorship opportunities. [1] [1] http://www.nachumsegal.com/historic-jm-announcement-made-morning/ http://www.nachumsegal.com/historic-jm-announcement-made-mor...
- brudgers 8y ago
  WFMU is a community radio station. That's distinctly different from what "Public Radio" usually means in US discussions. Public radio stations don't usually do projects like this. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_broadcasting https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_broadcasting https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Community_radio https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Community_radio
electricslpnsld 8y ago
> The listener-funded radio station that runs the archive, WFMU, is the single greatest radio station in the world. Little known fact: the Go gopher mascot was originally a WFMU commission [1]. [1] https://blog.golang.org/gopher https://blog.golang.org/gopher
disantlor 8y ago
just discovered it this year; cannot believe i went this long without knowing about it. also the web 1.5ish site and comments board brings me a lot of joy, reminds me of the spirit of the earlier web, in keeping with the free form nature of the programming itself. everyone should donate if you listen!
trophycase 8y ago
I'll make a separate plug for KFJC, a radio station in the bay area. All the DJs have totally unique taste and the station is really good if you're into experimental or electronic music. My personal favorite radio station, and their donation t shirts are awesome.
- bufordsharkley 8y ago
  KFJC is a tremendous place. If I may plug KZSU, on Stanford campus, as another college/community radio outlet in Silicon Valley. ...I worry all the time that, owing to the lack of affordable housing for the creative class, and the general lack of culture throughout the Silicon Valley, that there won't be enough energy to support all these radio stations. If you're curious, don't be afraid to look into joining them! They both take on community members from throughout the area.
  - trophycase 8y ago
    I no longer live in the area, but I aso enjoyed KZSU a lot. It seemed a lot less music focused and felt more like an NPR. They had some really awesome segments, like I remember one in particular about having students look at themselves in a reverse mirror.
    - bufordsharkley 8y ago
      KFJC achieves more consistency with its music shows, whereas KZSU is more of a grab-bag. Music shows that fill certain niches, experimental talk programs, and other things like sports broadcasts. It's certain not to give someone a consistent sound that they'll like, but it usually puts out interesting stuff.
bufordtwain 8y ago
Haven't listened to WFMU yet but KEXP.org of Seattle is also very good. They regularly post live sessions to youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC3I2GFN_F8WudD_2jUZbojA https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC3I2GFN_F8WudD_2jUZbojA. And BBC radio 6 isn't bad: https://www.bbc.co.uk/6music https://www.bbc.co.uk/6music
- bjelkeman-again 8y ago
  KEXP live streaming from the Iceland Airwaves music festival every November is excellent, and they keep that archived.
- yantrams 8y ago
  I am a huge fan of KEXP channel on Youtube. Discovered many wonderful postpunk/experimental/alternative bands thanks to them. Glad to see someone share the sentiment.
lurena 8y ago
Thanks for the tip! In return, for people who are into this sort of thing but don't know about these (listener-supported radio stations/streams and free music archives): -Radio Paradise [1] -SomaFM [2] -Jamendo [3] -Magnatune (not quite free but close enough) [4] -And all the Icecast streams [5] [1] http://www.radioparadise.com http://www.radioparadise.com [2] http://www.somafm.com http://www.somafm.com [3] http://www.jamendo.com http://www.jamendo.com [4] http://www.magnatune.com http://www.magnatune.com [5] http://dir.xiph.org/ http://dir.xiph.org/
bpafonso 8y ago
For the ones who like rock n' roll, there's radiomutation.com with the best rock shows ever. Have a look.

The listener-funded radio station that runs the archive, WFMU, is the single greatest radio station in the world.

meatsock 8y ago

by definition public radio is in the public interest, not many ad supported stations can claim that.

quadrangle 8y ago
While true in general, public radio has quite a quantity of paid-third-party-ads these days. And they don't just say "supported by [corporation, tag line]", they are full ads, just read by the public radio hosts. There's one radio station group that has consistently been fully public interest with neither ads nor corporate nor government conflicts-of-interest: the Pacifica network which has affiliates around the country http://pacificanetwork.org http://pacificanetwork.org
- jilnji 8y ago
  Thanks for the link. WFMU also runs no ads and has no corporate sponsors. "WFMU’s primary source of support comes from listener contributions made during our annual on-air fundraising marathonand revenue generated from our annual Record Fair. WFMU does not accept underwriting or corporate sponsorships. We receive some support from foundations and government grants, as long as they do not contain conditions that determine our programming content or restrict our independence." from: https://wfmu.org/about/ https://wfmu.org/about/ I donate every year. It's a great cause to support.
  - lnrdgmz 8y ago
    I remember listening to WFMU's station manager recount one of the times he had to fire a (volunteer) DJ: the DJ was selling ad time on his show. He got away with it for a while because his show was not in English. It seems that ads were also a motivation for the long-running show JM in the AM to leave the station. > WFMU, licensed as a non-profit radio station, adheres to the guidelines of charitable and non-commercial radio. With the move of ‘JM in the AM’ exclusively to NSN, the program, its host, its content and its reach will be allowed greater creative flexibility and sponsorship opportunities. [1] [1] http://www.nachumsegal.com/historic-jm-announcement-made-morning/ http://www.nachumsegal.com/historic-jm-announcement-made-mor...
brudgers 8y ago
WFMU is a community radio station. That's distinctly different from what "Public Radio" usually means in US discussions. Public radio stations don't usually do projects like this. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_broadcasting https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_broadcasting https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Community_radio https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Community_radio

electricslpnsld 8y ago

> The listener-funded radio station that runs the archive, WFMU, is the single greatest radio station in the world. Little known fact: the Go gopher mascot was originally a WFMU commission [1]. [1] https://blog.golang.org/gopher https://blog.golang.org/gopher

disantlor 8y ago

just discovered it this year; cannot believe i went this long without knowing about it. also the web 1.5ish site and comments board brings me a lot of joy, reminds me of the spirit of the earlier web, in keeping with the free form nature of the programming itself. everyone should donate if you listen!

trophycase 8y ago

I'll make a separate plug for KFJC, a radio station in the bay area. All the DJs have totally unique taste and the station is really good if you're into experimental or electronic music. My personal favorite radio station, and their donation t shirts are awesome.

bufordsharkley 8y ago
KFJC is a tremendous place. If I may plug KZSU, on Stanford campus, as another college/community radio outlet in Silicon Valley. ...I worry all the time that, owing to the lack of affordable housing for the creative class, and the general lack of culture throughout the Silicon Valley, that there won't be enough energy to support all these radio stations. If you're curious, don't be afraid to look into joining them! They both take on community members from throughout the area.
- trophycase 8y ago
  I no longer live in the area, but I aso enjoyed KZSU a lot. It seemed a lot less music focused and felt more like an NPR. They had some really awesome segments, like I remember one in particular about having students look at themselves in a reverse mirror.
  - bufordsharkley 8y ago
    KFJC achieves more consistency with its music shows, whereas KZSU is more of a grab-bag. Music shows that fill certain niches, experimental talk programs, and other things like sports broadcasts. It's certain not to give someone a consistent sound that they'll like, but it usually puts out interesting stuff.

bufordtwain 8y ago

Haven't listened to WFMU yet but KEXP.org of Seattle is also very good. They regularly post live sessions to youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC3I2GFN_F8WudD_2jUZbojA https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC3I2GFN_F8WudD_2jUZbojA. And BBC radio 6 isn't bad: https://www.bbc.co.uk/6music https://www.bbc.co.uk/6music

bjelkeman-again 8y ago
KEXP live streaming from the Iceland Airwaves music festival every November is excellent, and they keep that archived.
yantrams 8y ago
I am a huge fan of KEXP channel on Youtube. Discovered many wonderful postpunk/experimental/alternative bands thanks to them. Glad to see someone share the sentiment.

lurena 8y ago

Thanks for the tip! In return, for people who are into this sort of thing but don't know about these (listener-supported radio stations/streams and free music archives): -Radio Paradise [1] -SomaFM [2] -Jamendo [3] -Magnatune (not quite free but close enough) [4] -And all the Icecast streams [5] [1] http://www.radioparadise.com http://www.radioparadise.com [2] http://www.somafm.com http://www.somafm.com [3] http://www.jamendo.com http://www.jamendo.com [4] http://www.magnatune.com http://www.magnatune.com [5] http://dir.xiph.org/ http://dir.xiph.org/

bpafonso 8y ago

For the ones who like rock n' roll, there's radiomutation.com with the best rock shows ever. Have a look.