WIUS makes improvements to station

WIUS, IU's student-run radio station, is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year. The station has been a place for students to receive on-air experience and to help behind-the-scenes to produce daily broadcasts. \nBut after four decades, the station was in need of new equipment and improvements in technology.\nWIUS (AM 1570) employees worked all summer to improve their facilities and format to better serve the interests of listeners, said Program Director Lou Capwell. \nGone is outdated, broken equipment that made programming a tedious process. The station purchased numerous computers, microphones and, most important, a new broadcast board that serves as the nerve center for the DJs' broadcasts, Capwell said. \nAlso, the Web site, www.wius.org, is being completely revamped and will be up and running by the first or second week of October. \n"It was necessary to invest money in the station house to create a better learning environment for WIUS workers," said station manager and IDS employee Neal Taflinger. "We want to have updated equipment that is professional enough for students to work on."\nThe equipment upgrade comes at the same time the station has seen a rise in student participation. \n"We had 209 DJ applications to be on air (this year), not to mention people that want to work off the air, too," Capwell said. "It has been overwhelming." \nCapwell, Taflinger and other employees put in the heavy lifting of upgrading the facilities. The improvements were made possible through student activity fees. \n"We are funded exclusively though those fees, and get 20 cents per student to make this station run," Taflinger said. \nAssistant Dean of Students James Gibson, the station's adviser this summer, was very supportive of the employees and made the process a lot easier, Taflinger said.\nThe new equipment is not the only improvement at WIUS. The format has been tweaked to increase listenership from a variety of genres. \nThe station has a new morning show named "The Morning Company." It will be on from 10 a.m. to noon, Monday through Friday, and consist of live interviews, news, sports and comedy. \n"It's your basic morning drive time variety and there will be different sets of DJs every day of the week," Capwell said. \nAnother new show titled "WIUSex" will be similar to MTV's past program "Loveline." It airs from 8 to 9 p.m. on Mondays and will have a fun nature to it, but it will also venture into serious discussions with sex experts and professionals on issues such as sexually transmitted diseases, Taflinger said. \nFor music lovers, more independent and underground tunes will find their way into the DJs' playlists. \nIn the past, college and independent rock were exclusively played, but this latest move illustrates the station's desire to appeal to many different groups, Capwell said. \nLocal bands will play live concerts from 8 to 11 p.m. every Friday at the station for a show called Bloomington Vibes.\nSports fans can hear broadcasts of all IU football and basketball games, along with telecasts of soccer and volleyball games. \nAll of these recent changes have students who work at WIUS looking forward to the upcoming year. \n"For the people that have done this for awhile, we're all pretty excited," junior Danny Rosenberg said. "This is a huge step up and will make for better radio." \n-- Contact staff writer Colin Burns at coaburns@indiana.edu