WWRM

     If you want to explore the history of WWRM, perhaps the best place to start is in our record collection. It speaks volumes about the early growth of the station. So if you happen to have a few minutes to spare, stop by when the office door is open.  Come in a take a look at the hundreds of LPs and 45s that line our walls.  We have everything from Jim Neighbors to Ani.

     Not much has been recorded about the early start of the station, but it is obvious that great strides were made to increase the music collection in the late 1960s into the 1970s, and once again in the early 1980s.  At some point, the station was an actual AM station broadcasting on 570 AM, according to some old yellowed envelopes the post office found in 1998. It is known that the station once used a carrier current system, which was not regulated by the FCC (Federal Communications Commission) because it is an extremely ineffective broadcasting system. Literally, the station used Main Hall as an antenna sending out radio signals along the building wiring. Legend has it, that the signal was hard to pick up in Bell Hall and too many hair dryers or televisions used at once could scramble the entire station. 

     The station went dark for a large part of the 1980s.  It was revived for brief periods by cliques on campus, but there was no solid broadcasting schedule. In the early 1990s, the station was revived again on cable channel 5 on campus. Dr. Carla Heath helped negotiate the switch to cable casting to help the station overcome the challenges it had faced with the old carrier current system and allowed it to remain free from FCC rules and regulations.

     Still in 1993, when future station manager Ruth Martin visited as a perspective student the only person on campus who could point her to the radio station was a security guard.  Martin described the station as dark and dusty with huge dark curtains hiding all the equipment in the studio–nothing like it’s current more open appearance.  A true revival of the station began with Nadine Swor, who proceeded Martin as station manager. A stable programming schedule began to develop and Martin worked hard to generate more interest in the station. The addition of the character generator in 1997 made the technological change to cable casting complete, because now all televisions on campus could receive the station.

     In 1998 the station won several co-curricular leadership awards, a trend which continued in 1999. Also in 1998, the progress of the station was recognized by the school by making station manager a paid campus leadership position. The station was commended for becoming a stable and important part of campus life.

     Somewhere along the way the station picked up the nickname “The Worm.”  The only good explanation is that the call letters look like they spell worm–WWRM.  Traditionally, the station colors are blue and green.  Although the true symbolism behind this choice of colors is unknown, perhaps blue and green were chosen to equally represent the Evens (green and white) and Odds (blue and red). 

      In the fall of 1999 the station hit an all time high for number of shows and DJs - over 55 people on campus hosted shows, making WWRM one of the biggest and most diverse clubs on campus. The station continued to enjoy a large membership through 2005.  Unfortunately concentration on big campus issues began to take over campus, and the WWRM suffered from neglect through 2007.  In the spring of 2008, WWRM began broadcasting again and lost the character generator, causing the station to broadcast exclusively online.  In 2009, WWRM obtained a portable sound system, allowing campus clubs and organizations to book WWRM disc jockeys for various parties and events.  WWRM has also began to feature different people from the campus and the Lynchburg community on its radio shows, expanding awareness of events and issues in the community. Today, WWRM is working on truly reviving the popularity and membership of the station through training disc jockeys and working campus events.