WQFS
Broadcast areaTriad
Frequency90.9 MHz
BrandingYour Only Alternative
Programming
FormatVariety
Ownership
OwnerGuilford College
History
First air date
January 6, 1970 (1970-01-06)
Call sign meaning
W Quaker Friends School
Technical information
Facility ID68233
ClassA
ERP1,900 watts
HAAT61.0 meters
Transmitter coordinates
36°5′39.00″N 79°53′21.00″W / 36.0941667°N 79.8891667°W / 36.0941667; -79.8891667
Links
Websitewww.wqfs.org

WQFS (90.9 FM) is Guilford College's student-run radio station, with both students and members of the community serving as disk jockeys.[1] Broadcasting in a variety format, it serves Greensboro, North Carolina and the greater Piedmont Triad area. It is also broadcast on the internet via streaming audio at TuneIn. WQFS ranked 6th among college radio stations in 2016, according to The Princeton Review.[2]

History

The station started as a student club, The Fine Music Broadcasting Society, in 1965. Guilford College obtained a license from the FCC on October 26, 1966 and, once it had the necessary equipment and funds, WQFS began a daily broadcast schedule on January 6, 1970, broadcasting in an adult contemporary or middle of the road format.[3] By its second year of operation, some disk jockeys began to play what a decade later would become known as college rock. Others would play hybrid programming, which could feature avant-garde jazz, contemporary classical, bluegrass, blues, and Musique concrète, sometimes all within the same program.

One early experiment involved celebrating the second anniversary of the Paul is dead hoax by playing not only Beatles, but other rock, and even classical records backwards, or using the station's two turntables to play a Beatles song forwards and backwards at the same time.

WQFS features a wide variety of genres. The main format is indie rock. About one hundred DJs, half of them Guilford College students, work at the station at any given time. Students serve as station managers. Their leadership roles include general management, programming, promotions, news, and production.

WQFS plays many local and North Carolina artists.

Long-running shows include David Butler's "The Sunday Morning Rehab Show," Josh Neas' "J's Indie Rock Mayhem," DJ Midnightt's "Garden of Good and Evil," Chris Roulhac's "North Carolina Show." and Mad Dog's "Friday Night Rock Party."

Programming

All radio shows are independently produced and hosted by volunteer disc jockeys, unless otherwise noted. Some programs include:

References

  1. ^ "WQFS Facility Record". United States Federal Communications Commission, audio division.
  2. ^ "Princeton Review's The Best 378 Colleges". 2014 edition. Archived from the original on August 20, 2013.
  3. ^ "WQFS About Us". Archived from the original on August 22, 2008.

External links

Guilford College
North Carolina college radio stations
Radio stations in Greensboro, Winston-Salem, and High Point, North Carolina (the Piedmont Triad)
Categories