WVSP (North Carolina)

WVSP was a public radio station that broadcast on 90.9 FM in Warrenton, North Carolina. The station was owned and operated by Sound and Print United and operated from 1976 to 1987; it was perpetually challenged by poor community support for the station, even after it moved its studio facilities to Rocky Mount in the mid-1980s.

WVSP
CityWarrenton, North Carolina
Broadcast areaRocky Mount, North Carolina
Frequency90.9 MHz
Programming
FormatDefunct (was Public radio)
AffiliationsNPR
Ownership
OwnerSound and Print United, Inc.
History
First air date
August 26, 1976
Last air date
1987
Call sign meaning
Voices Serving People[1]
Technical information
ClassC
ERP100,000 watts
HAAT500 ft (150 m)
Transmitter coordinates
36°14′35″N 77°58′12″W

History

Sound and Print United, Inc., applied for a new noncommercial radio station in Warrenton on December 14, 1973,[2] despite none of its principals having any experience in radio.[3] The call letters WMIP were assigned to the station originally, but before going on air, they were changed to WVSP, for "Voices Serving People".[1] The station initially broadcast with 50,000 watts from its tower halfway between Warrenton and Rocky Mount, near Essex, North Carolina. The station's first studios were located on the second floor of a building previously used by two doctors, on Franklin Street in downtown Warrenton,[1] with Sound and Print's print shop occupying the first floor;[3] 75 percent of the original equipment cost was covered by a federal grant.[1]

WVSP began broadcasting on August 26, 1976.[4] It was an NPR member station and aired All Things Considered along with its own local news and community programming and jazz music.[3] In 1980, the station was granted a power increase to 100,000 watts.[2]

Throughout its decade on the air, WVSP struggled with a chronic shortage of community support. The station was unusual among its noncommercial peers in the fact that it served a mostly rural region; additionally, most of the station's management was black.[3] As early as 1977, the station was suffering from a variety of financial and technical problems, as stated in its own mailings.[5] As a result, and in order to move closer to the center of its listening audience, the station embarked in September 1983 on a campaign to relocate its studios from Warrenton to Rocky Mount, where it hoped to obtain a wider volunteer base and increased community and corporate support.[6] The move was in part funded by a $25,000 challenge grant from the Mary Reynolds Babcock Foundation of Winston-Salem that required WVSP to raise the remaining $155,000.[6] Abbott Laboratories, which owns a facility in Rocky Mount, donated $5,000 in support of the campaign,[4] as did Belk Tyler; Hardee's made a $20,000 contribution.[7] However, the station expressed disappointment at the poor response to raise the remainder of the funds needed to cover moving expenses.[8] In July 1984, the station took an option to purchase the Hodgin Building at 230 Tarboro Street in Rocky Mount.[7] However, the move was not completed until November 1985[9] owing to slow fundraising and building renovations.[10]

The move to Rocky Mount would not be enough to save WVSP. At NPR's 1986 public meeting, the national organization voted to disconnect WVSP for not paying its distribution/interconnection fees.[11] On December 15, the station temporarily ceased operations for technical and financial reasons, not returning until January 15, 1987.[12] By that fall, however, the station had ceased operations for good, and it was being reported that creditors were seeking a person connected with WVSP's operations.[13]

North Carolina Wesleyan College became involved in efforts to keep WVSP afloat, but when the station ultimately failed, Wesleyan and people previously associated with Sound and Print United applied to build a new public radio station licensed to Rocky Mount;[14] this station, WESQ, went on air in April 1992 and was sold by the college to a local non-profit group in 1995, becoming WRQM, which remains on air.

References
  1. Armstrong, R.D. (May 30, 1976). "New FM Radio Station Opening In Warrenton". Rocky Mount Telegram. Retrieved September 20, 2019.
  2. FCC History Cards for WVSP
  3. Ottolenghi, Hugo H. (April 22, 1979). "A Community Radio Station In Dialogue With Its Listeners". Rocky Mount Telegram. p. 45. Retrieved September 20, 2019.
  4. "Abbott Gives Grant for Radio Station; WVSP On Air For Seven Years". Rocky Mount Telegram. March 29, 1984. Retrieved September 20, 2019.
  5. Armstrong, R.D. (July 24, 1977). "In And Around The Community". Rocky Mount Telegram. p. 2. Retrieved September 20, 2019.
  6. "R.M. Gets New Radio Station". Rocky Mount Telegram. September 11, 1983. p. 3. Retrieved September 20, 2019.
  7. "Station WVSP Takes Option On Rocky Mount Building". The Nashville Graphic. July 31, 1984. p. 1. Retrieved September 20, 2019.
  8. "Station Ready To Buy Site". Nashville Graphic. August 30, 1984. p. 1. Retrieved September 20, 2019.
  9. "WVSP public radio celebrates anniversary". Rocky Mount Telegram. August 22, 1986. p. 3. Retrieved September 20, 2019.
  10. Ballou, Cathy (September 15, 1985). "Relocation becoming a reality for WVSP-FM". Rocky Mount Telegram. Retrieved September 20, 2019.
  11. "In Brief" (PDF). Broadcasting. July 21, 1986. p. 89. Retrieved September 20, 2019.
  12. "WVSP to broadcast again". Rocky Mount Telegram. January 14, 1987. Retrieved September 20, 2019.
  13. "Radio Station Closed". Rocky Mount Telegram. December 13, 1987. p. 42. Retrieved September 20, 2019.
  14. Hoskinson, Charles (April 29, 1989). "Wesleyan College officials not sure what is next in getting radio station". Rocky Mount Telegram. p. 1. Retrieved September 20, 2019.
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