THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, December 2, 1994 TAG: 9412020567
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA
SOURCE: BY REGINALD WORLDS, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: ELIZABETH CITY LENGTH: Short : 42 lines
After years of work, Elizabeth City State University's radio station soon will carry National Public Radio programming.
Beginning Monday, WRVS will broadcast programs and specials from the radio network, station General Manager Edith Thorpe said Thursday.
NPR is a news and information network serving public radio stations nationwide. Member stations receive an array of programs, such as the well-known ``All Things Considered,'' which NPR distributes by satellite.
Thorpe said NPR is a good opportunity for the station (89.9-FM) to expand its diverse format and is something that will benefit the public.
``It was always a goal of the management to increase the format so that our audience could be kept abreast of different news items,'' Thorpe said. ``Because of NPR, the community will become more aware and enlightened about different subjects.''
Thorpe led efforts to bring NPR to the school about three ago after doing research on the service. In 1992, she said, the station received a grant for more than $40,000 from the National Telecommunications Information Agency and started buying equipment to receive and broadcast NPR.
WRVS installed the equipment and started training its staff, made up mostly of ECSU students, to use it.
``It should not be hard for the students to operate the equipment,'' Thorpe said. ``The setup is basically the same.''
The NPR programs on WRVS will include hourly newscasts on weekdays: ``All Things Considered,'' a newsmagazine covering the day's events; ``Blues Stage,'' an award-winning musical show featuring exlusive club and festival performances; and ``Jazz Set With Branford Marsalis.''
NPR also has a variety of talk shows and music specials. ``All Things Considered'' is scheduled for 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday on WRVS. Most other programs will be broadcast on Sunday. Promotions of the NPR schedule will run daily. by CNB