THINK BIG: WTST-AM The Blaze

Black History Month at Tennessee State University

 

THINK BIG: WTST-AM The Blaze

*Tennessee State University celebrates Black History Month by recognizing individuals or organizations that have made noteworthy contributions to University’s history and are taking the “Think Big, TSU BIG!” approach to their areas of study and expertise while impacting the campus, community and beyond.

New changes are on the horizon for a familiar entity at Tennessee State University. After years of broadcasting from TSU's Learning Resources Center (LRC), the University's campus radio station WTST-AM The Blaze is preparing to move their operations to the Performing Arts Center by summer’s end.

The big shift across campus will unite the Communications department’s television studio and radio station under the same roof, allowing for more convenient in-class exposure for students and faculty members. The move will also support the department’s new, improved media convergence curriculum for its mass communications emphasis, which has been adopted to cross train students across broadcast and news-related disciplines.

Joseph Richie, the station’s operations manager, has helped turn what is a hobby for most students into a realistic environment in the radio business. The student-operated station features about 50 student announcers each semester assigned to weekly air shifts and host live sports programming and other remote campus events.

“Our students have always approached broadcasting with a lot of creativity. It has been my goal to establish the business aspect in their minds and give them the understanding that any decision they make will impact the station as well as their future careers,” Richie said.

 In the past year, commercial radio stations in Atlanta, Philadelphia, Chicago and radio shows in national syndication have hired students from WTST. “It is rare that students are hired in the top five or even top 10 markets in the country. We are having that happen on a very consistent basis with students from WTST,” Richie explained.

WTST’s signal transmits over-the-air on 1600-AM, on Comcast campus cable on Channel 99 to university buildings and by Internet access through www.tsuradio.com.