From Broadcast Electronics: Utah Public Radio Returns to Student-Programmed Broadcasting

Quincy, IL USA –Students at Utah State University will have their own radio station once again, thanks to flexible HD Radio gear by Broadcast Electronics and the dedication of Utah Public Radio supporters.

Utah Public Radio added a BE HD Radio exciter and importer for multicasting its traditional program channel along with a live, student-run HD3 digital channel on low-powered KUSR 89.5 FM. With this addition, students returning to the university this fall will program and operate a separate HD Radio station, known as Fusion HD3, piggybacked onto 89.5 MHz.

National Public Radio (NPR) newscaster Corey Flintoff ceremoniously flipped the switch to the new station in April, commenting that "what was old is new again" in reference to a return of the days of student-programmed public radio.

Not since the 1970s has the university had a student-run station offering a hands-on radio experience and preparing journalist students for careers in broadcasting. Like many public stations, Utah Public Radio went on the air as a student-operated radio station but began full service public broadcasting with professional programming distributed by NPR, and funded in part by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting in the late '70s.

The pubcaster has two FM stations, KUSU 91.5 FM and KUSR 89.5 FM, and 31 translators covering the state of Utah.

"What an opportunity to be able to put our students back on the air and at the same time, continue to provide quality, relevant programming to the community. The flexibility of our new BE HD Radio broadcast system lets us add this student channel, and more," said Cathy Ives, the General Manager of Utah Public Radio, which carries traditional public radio programming, including blocks of classical and folk music, local news as well as long-form, NPR distributed programs.  

"We're proud to be chosen by Utah Public Radio for their return to student broadcasting. Their adoption of HD Radio multicasting is not only a good use of the public airwaves, it also helps groom the next generation of broadcasters," observed Debra Huttenburg, Vice President of Business Development and Marketing for Broadcast Electronics. 

The public broadcaster installed a BE FXi 250 digital FM exciter to modulate the FM carrier and a BE XPi 10 to generate the HD Radio digital signal. BE's IDi 20 HD Radio data importer is being used to provision the HD Radio bandwidth for multicasting the main audio channel and the additional student-operated Fusion HD3 channel, and will require a simple setting change for adding another broadcast channel to come.  

Starting in September, Utah Public Radio will alternate music and news magazine program blocks on the main and the HD2 channels in order to provide program continuity to its diverse listener base. "What HD2 also allows us to do is counter-program ourselves, so that when classical or folk music is on one channel, news is on another," commented Ives.

In addition to KUSR 89.5 FM, Utah Public Radio will broadcast HD2 alternate programming on its 90kW KUSU 91.5 FM station and has acquired a BE FMi 301 HD Radio transmitter along with BE FXi 60 digital FM exciter, XPi 10 HD Radio generator and IDi 20 importer for this purpose.

Utah Public Radio also has BE's The Radio Experience data management suite at the studio for eventually adding text radio services; it will utilize on-the-fly provisioning capabilities by the BE IDi 20 to scale bandwidth as required for all services running over HD Radio.

The digital upgrade of KUSR 89.5 FM and KUSU 91.5 FM was funded with two grants by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and a grant by the Public Telecommunications Facilities Program, as well as private donations. Associated Students of Utah State University (ASUSU) helped make the needed match to qualify for the grants and is helping to mentor the student station.

Photo caption: Utah State University student Clark Anderson experiences all the joys and challenges of radio operation as the director for Utah Public Radio's new student-run station, Fusion HD3. Photo courtesy of Eli Lucero of The Herald Journal, Logan, Utah.

About Broadcast Electronics (www.bdcast.com)

Broadcast Electronics (BE) is the premier provider of mission-critical solutions for over-the-air and Internet radio. BE products encompass program generation, audio and data management, inter-facility transport, and analog and digital transmission. For more than four decades, BE pioneering developments have set industry standards for innovation and reliability, while providing broadcasters with new options for operational productivity and income generation. BE is headquartered in Quincy, Illinois, and is represented worldwide by a network of local representatives.

About Utah Public Radio (www.upr.org)

Utah Public Radio is a service of the College of Humanities, Arts & Social Sciences at Utah State University. Utah Public Radio is a member of National Public Radio and an affiliate of Public Radio International and of American Public Media. Utah Public Radio broadcasts a mix of information, public affairs, and fine arts programming through two FM radio stations (KUSU-FM and KUSR-FM) and a system of 31 translator stations.

CONTACT:    

Kim Winking
Broadcast Electronics
4100 North 24th Street
Quincy, IL 62305
Phone: 217-224-9600
Fax: 217-224-9607
kwinking@bdcast.com    

or    

Dee McVicker
Inc. Writer
480.545.7363
deemcv@qwest.net  

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