# WIUM

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Radio station in Macomb, Illinois, United States

WIUM Macomb, Illinois United States Frequency 91.3 (MHz) Branding Tri States Public Radio Programming Format Public broadcasting Affiliations American Public Media National Public Radio Public Radio Exchange Ownership Owner Western Illinois University Sister stations WIUW WVKC History First air date 1956 (1956) Call sign meaning Western Illinois University Macomb Technical information Licensing authority FCC Class B ERP 50,000 watts HAAT 148 meters (486 ft) Links Public license information Public file LMS Website www.tspr.org

**WIUM** (91.3 [FM](/source/FM_broadcasting)) is a 50,000-watt radio station licensed to [Macomb, Illinois](/source/Macomb%2C_Illinois), in west-central [Illinois](/source/Illinois). [Western Illinois University](/source/Western_Illinois_University) is the station licensee, authorized by the [Federal Communications Commission](/source/Federal_Communications_Commission).

## Mission

Tri States Public Radio is an outreach service of the College of Fine Arts and Communication at Western Illinois University.

## Early history

After World War II, the [University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign](/source/University_of_Illinois_Urbana-Champaign) hosted the [National Association of Educational Broadcasters](/source/National_Association_of_Educational_Broadcasters) (NEAB) for the establishment of broadcast allocations (AM/FM radio and TV channels) for non-commercial education programming. The outcomes of meetings underwritten by the [Rockefeller Foundation](/source/Rockefeller_Foundation) (Allerton I) in 1949 and (Allerton II) in 1950 established the foundation for [National Public Radio](/source/National_Public_Radio) and the [Public Broadcasting System](/source/Public_Broadcasting_System).[1][2]

In 1956, Western Illinois University established WWKS for educational radio broadcasting at 91.3 MHz with 3,000 watts. The station's FCC call letters were attributed to William Kimbrough Shake, who installed the equipment acquired from [Gates Radio](/source/GatesAir), in Quincy, IL. The station's mission was to provide educational programming primarily for the growing K-12 audiences in west-central Illinois. The radio studios were located in Tillman Hall (the "new science building") and a 250-foot (76 m) radio tower was constructed south of Murray Street, at the north edge of the university in 1956.

With the completion of the university's "new library", Memorial Hall in 1962, WWKS studios were relocated to the top floor. The radio station and adjacent video studios would remain at this location for the next 40 years. The station's sole full-time employee throughout the decade is Elmer "Tug" Haddock, who served as General Manager and provided supervision of volunteer student announcers. In 1964 Sallee Hall (College of Fine Arts and foreign languages) was built along Murray Strret and adjacent (north) of the WIUM tower, the station's transmitter was moved to the roof of Sallee Hall in a specially designed enclosure. The station's FCC call sign was changed in 1970 to WIUM, to better reflect the station's ownership (Western Illinois University - Macomb) and mission.

## Expansion

- 1970 - WWKS becomes WIUM.

- 1978 - WIUM increases power to 7,200 watts. The 19-hour broadcast day features classical, jazz and rock music with some local news, sports and weather. The Radio Information Service is created to broadcast readings from local newspapers through specially tuned receivers placed with people with a [print disability](/source/Print_disability). The service was inspired and initiated by Helen L. Wear, the first blind woman to graduate from Western Illinois University.

- 1981 - WIUM relocates its transmitter to the new 500-foot (150 m) tower at Western Illinois University's Horn Campus south of Macomb. This tower was constructed to jointly support WIUM-FM and the new [Public Broadcasting Service](/source/Public_Broadcasting_Service) (PBS) [television](/source/Public_television) station (WIUM-TV), part of the [Convocom](/source/WSEC) network, to serve west-central Illinois. The original WIUM-FM tower adjacent to Sallee Hall was dismantled in the following years. WIUM-TV became WMEC in 1989 and relocated to a new tower site in 1997.

- 1982 - WIUM qualifies for Corporation for Public Broadcasting support and becomes a member station of [National Public Radio](/source/National_Public_Radio). Coinciding with the addition of NPR programming is the organization of a second station to be run and programmed by WIU students ([WIUS](/source/WIUS)-FM, now in the Department of Broadcasting in Sallee Hall).

WIUM & WIUW coverage map

- 1983 - WIUM's first on-air membership drive raises $3,550 in pledges.

- 1984 - The station purchases its first compact disc player and begins 24-hour-a-day broadcasts.

## Tri States Public Radio

- 1989 - WIUM increases its power to 50,000 watts.

- 1990 - Production of Rural Route 3 begins. The award-winning live performance series is distributed to public radio stations nationwide throughout the decade.

- 1991 - WIUM's administrative reporting line is moved from Broadcast and Educational Communication Services to the School of Extended and Continuing Education.

- 1995 - Tri States Public Radio is born as [WIUW](/source/WIUW) signs on at 89.5 FM. The new tower and transmitter just outside Warsaw, Illinois extend public radio service into southeast Iowa and northeast Missouri.

- 2002 - Tri States Public Radio moves into a new, state-of-the-art broadcast facility at 320 University Drive at the front door of the Western Illinois University campus.

- 2004 - Tri States Public Radio becomes part of the College of Fine Arts and Communication. The Southeast Iowa News Bureau in the Hotel Iowa in downtown Keokuk opens.

- 2005 - WIUM become the first University-licensed public radio service in the state of Illinois to begin broadcasting in HD (high definition) Radio technology.

- 2007 - Tri States Public Radio enters into a partnership agreement to provide daytime NPR programming to the Galesburg radio market via [WVKC](/source/WVKC) at Knox College.

- 2013 - Tri States Public Radio entered into a 20-year management agreement to operate Knox College's WVKC-FM as a full-time NPR station for the Galesburg market. Knox College will retain its license to WVKC. Tri-States Radio will provide equipment and technical support to enhance the school's capacity to deliver a high-quality audio stream[3]

- 2014 - Tri States Public Radio adds translator station K292GR at 106.3 FM to serve the Burlington, IA area.[4]

[5]

## See also

- [Western Illinois University](/source/Western_Illinois_University)

- [CONVOCOM](/source/CONVOCOM)

## References

1. **[^](#cite_ref-1)** Hudson, Robert (Spring 1951). ["Radio in Education : Allerton House 1949, 1950"](https://web.archive.org/web/20180622032546/http://fq.ucpress.edu/content/5/3/237). *Hollywood Quarterly*. **5** (3): 237–250. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.2307/1209659](https://doi.org/10.2307%2F1209659). [JSTOR](/source/JSTOR_(identifier)) [1209659](https://www.jstor.org/stable/1209659). Archived from [the original](http://fq.ucpress.edu/content/5/3/237) on June 22, 2018. Retrieved June 22, 2018.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-2)** Hill, Harold (1954). ["The National Association of Educational Broadcasters: a history"](https://web.archive.org/web/20220814103644/https://catalog.umd.edu/F/L34HGR2C77BUC9SPYL8X8JM1I1TDEU72M523YUECVEKT3H32RH?func=find-c&ccl_term=sys%3D003144780). National Association of Educational Broadcasters. Archived from [the original](http://catalog.umd.edu/F/L34HGR2C77BUC9SPYL8X8JM1I1TDEU72M523YUECVEKT3H32RH?func=find-c&ccl_term=sys%3D003144780) on August 14, 2022. Retrieved July 18, 2012.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-3)** ["Tri States Public Radio to operate student-run WVKC"](http://www.current.org/2013/08/tri-states-public-radio-to-operate-student-run-wvkc/.). Current.org. August 22, 2013.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** ["NPR goes on the air in Burlington"](http://www.thehawkeye.com/story/Tri-States-Public-Radio-062214). thehawkeye.com. June 29, 2014.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-5)** ["Keep public broadcasting (NPR) on the air"](https://web.archive.org/web/20170329101155/http://www.thehawkeye.com/opinion/editorials/keep-public-broadcasting-on-the-air/article_2b4a8e6b-0514-5e95-8b07-232bbd43fc3b.html). thehawkeye.com. March 29, 2017. Archived from [the original](http://www.thehawkeye.com/opinion/editorials/keep-public-broadcasting-on-the-air/article_2b4a8e6b-0514-5e95-8b07-232bbd43fc3b.html) on March 29, 2017. Retrieved July 24, 2017.

## External links

- [Facility details for Facility ID 71791 (WIUM)](https://enterpriseefiling.fcc.gov/dataentry/public/tv/publicFacilityDetails.html?facilityId=71791) in the [FCC](/source/Federal_Communications_Commission) Licensing and Management System

- [WIUM](https://www1.arbitron.com/sip/displaySip.do?surveyID=SP26&band=fm&callLetter=WIUM) in [Nielsen Audio](/source/Nielsen_Audio)'s FM station database

- [Facility details for Facility ID 70537 (WMEC)](https://enterpriseefiling.fcc.gov/dataentry/public/tv/publicFacilityDetails.html?facilityId=70537) in the [FCC](/source/Federal_Communications_Commission) Licensing and Management System

- [Tri States Public Radio](http://www.tspr.org/)

- [WIUM via streaming audio](http://jrabold.net/radio/7wium.shtml) - *Allegro service*

v t e Radio stations in Macomb, Illinois (McDonough County) By FM frequency 88.3 89.7 91.3 92.5 95.9 96.7 100.1 102.7 104.1 104.7 LPFM 106.3 By call sign WGNX WHPA WIUM WIUS WJEQ WKAI WKXQ WLMD WMQZ WNLF WTND-LP Defunct WCBS Nearby regions Burlington Peoria Quad Cities Quincy-Hannibal-Keokuk See also List of radio stations in Illinois

v t e Western Illinois University Located in Macomb, Illinois Campus Sherman Hall Athletics Sports: Western Illinois Leathernecks Baseball Men's basketball Women's basketball Football Venues: Alfred D. Boyer Stadium Brophy Courts Hanson Field Harry Mussatto Golf Course MacKenzie Alumni Field Mary Ellen McKee Softball Stadium Spring Lake Course Western Hall Traditions: Western Illinois Marching Leathernecks Media WIUM WIUS WIUW People List of Western Illinois University people Founded: 1899

v t e NPR member stations in the state of Illinois CPM stations Chicago WBEZ Kankakee WBEK Morris WBEQ NPR stations DeKalb WNIJ Freeport WNIE LaSalle WNIW Sterling WNIQ DeKalb WNIU WGLT stations Normal WGLT Peoria WCBU IPM stations Urbana WILL WILL-FM WSIU stations Carbondale WSIU Mt. Vernon WVSI Olney WUSI TSPR stations Macomb WIUM Galesburg WVKC Warsaw WIUW WUIS stations Springfield WUIS Pittsfield WIPA Other stations Edwardsville WSIE Elgin WEPS Quincy WQUB Rock Island WVIK See also List of NPR stations See also adult contemporary classic hits college country news/talk NPR oldies religious rock sports top 40 urban other radio stations in Illinois

v t e Illinois college radio stations WCRX Columbia College Chicago WCSF University of St. Francis WEIU Eastern Illinois University WESN Illinois Wesleyan University WGRN Greenville University WHPK University of Chicago WIIT Illinois Institute of Technology WIUS Western Illinois University WJMU Millikin University WKKC Kennedy–King College WLCA Lewis and Clark Community College WLKL Lake Land College WLNX Lincoln College WLRA Lewis University WLUW Loyola University Chicago WMXM Lake Forest College WNUR-FM Northwestern University WONC North Central College WPCD Parkland College WPGU University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign WQUB Quincy University WRRG Triton College WSIE Southern Illinois University Edwardsville WVIK Augustana College WVJC Wabash Valley College WVKC Knox College WXAV Saint Xavier University WXEC-LP Eureka College WZRD Northeastern Illinois University WZND-LP Illinois State University See also adult contemporary classic hits college country news/talk NPR oldies religious rock sports top 40 urban other radio stations in Illinois

[40°25′41″N 90°40′59″W / 40.428°N 90.683°W / 40.428; -90.683](https://geohack.toolforge.org/geohack.php?pagename=WIUM&params=40.428_N_90.683_W_type:landmark_region:US-IL_source:FCC)

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [WIUM](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WIUM) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WIUM?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.