The phrase “The neighbors complain,” circles around what appears to be a black WPIR pirate flag. This imagery on the website for college radio station WPIR Pratt Radio alludes to rumors and half-truths about student radio’s legacy and mysterious history on the Brooklyn, New York campus of the Pratt Institute. As is the case at many college radio stations, the concept of history is largely focused on the past few years. And with the COVID disruption, even that institutional memory has mostly been erased.
WPIR Pratt Radio in 2023
However, the 2022-2023 academic year shaped up to be a pivotal moment, with in-person classes happening once again and mask mandates loosening. After a few shaky years, WPIR Pratt Radio is back in action, broadcasting online from a spiffy new studio (as of February, 2023) in the recently renovated Chapel Hall. In spring, 2023, WPIR had 28 shows airing on its internet stream, as well as over speakers in the Student Union building.
Flyers, posters, 45rpm records, and other ephemera from the old station space (which was just down the hall and was WPIR’s home circa 2006-2023) adorn the walls of the two-room studio and a basket is filled with Polaroid photos of station members from the past. Formerly home to an interfaith lounge, the new WPIR space is divided in half by a window. The furthest room functions as a radio booth, where show hosts sit to do their programs.
WPIR’s Whimsical Communication System During Live Shows
The front room is where a “runner” sits, transmitting each live show to the internet stream. Initially station board members played that role, but now every show host is required to also “run” another program. A large collection of colorful, hand-drawn, whimsical signs featuring tips and inspirational messages sits on the counter. These signs are used as props by the show runner, as a way to communicate words of encouragement to the DJ or host. Messages include suggestions like, “The mic isn’t picking up your voice. Speak closer,” as well as praise, such as “This song slaps.”
Photo: J. Waits
At the time of my visit, DJs at WPIR only played digital music. However, inside a metal cabinet is a small collection of CDs, cassettes, LPs and 7″ inch records, along with cables and miscellaneous audio equipment. A stack of cover-less vintage records also sits in the studio. While these items hint at a longer station history, it’s difficult to discern the station’s precise trajectory over the past few decades.
WPIR Pratt’s Early College Radio Days over AM Carrier Current
Originally an AM carrier current station dating back to 1966, WPIR broadcast nightly at 600kc on AM from the first floor of the Willoughby dorm at Pratt, according to a 1971 residence hall handbook. These transmissions could eventually be heard across multiple dorms on campus. Although it was unlicensed carrier current, WPIR was seen as an important communications tool. A letter in student newspaper The Prattler, following student activism efforts and turmoil in 1969, states, “The utilization of radio, WPIR, posters and flyers through quantity and quality, can also aid in securing an informal, involved student body.”
1970s Scene at WPIR Pratt Radio
By the 1970s, WPIR DJs were spinning records on a variety of music shows. One such show was a late night rhythm and blues program hosted by future music industry professional Karen L. Glover, who post-graduation was editor of Black Beat magazine and a music supervisor for films. Other examples of music genres being played in this era can be found in a list of stolen WPIR records during the 1974-1975 academic year. A 1975 article in Drum, a publication by the Black Students Union of Pratt, digs into “PIR Piracy: The Missing Black Records at WPIR,” and mentions that 37 records (mostly featuring Black artists) went missing between September and April. On the list were albums from jazz musician Ramsey Lewis, soul singer Minnie Riperton, funk rock band Labelle, comedian Franklin Ajaye, and artist Carl Douglas (specifically, his disco release “Kung Fu Fighting”).
1980s Equipment Theft and Revival
WPIR continued as a campus-only broadcaster into the 1980s. According to a 1991 article in The Prattler, “in the early 80’s WPIR was a ‘pirate’ station, broadcasting without the schools [sic] or the FCC’s permission. Then all the equipment was stolen.” The article states that in 1984 a freshman, Janell Genovese, “started it back up from scratch,” overseeing WPIR until 1989, when she passed the job on to Daniel Fries.
WPIR’s Foray into Unlicensed FM Broadcasts
Fries was very interested in taking WPIR to the FM airwaves over very low power. After finding a frequency, he began broadcasts on the far left side of the dial (he thinks 87.9 FM) in November, 1990. Several months later, on April 1, 1991, the FCC sent a letter to higher ups at Pratt, asking that WPIR cease their FM transmissions or risk a $100,000 fine.
At the time, Fries told The Prattler that he was surprised because he had “counseled” with “representatives” who had “deemed the broadcast of WPIR, if low power, unlicensable.” I reached out to Fries and he made some clarifications, explaining that he’d spoken with a consultant as well as with engineers on campus. “We determined that at a very low power we could limit the range pretty easily…I was counseled that under a certain power output it was considered legal without a license,” he said, adding that the plan was to operate legal low power unlicensed broadcasts, complying with FCC’s Part 15 rules. These same regulations under Part 15 are what allow for legal, unlicensed campus-only AM carrier current broadcasts.
A former WPIR staffer wrote a more colorful account some years later on the station’s website, saying that, “…the short-lived glory days were perhaps 3-4 months, where we were heard all over the 5 boroughs. We had a great time anyhow, promoting shows – including bands like Fishbone, They Might Be Giants (Pratt alumni themselves), Swirlies, 24-7 Spies, and so on.” However, Fries maintains that those FM broadcasts were much more limited, with “maybe a mile radius” from Pratt’s Brooklyn campus.
WPIR’s Return to AM
After shutting down its low power FM broadcasts, WPIR planned to go back to AM carrier current and increase awareness of the station on campus. The Prattler noted, “Not many people at Pratt know that this institute has a radio station. Even less know its recent history.”
A former staffer spoke of efforts to continue broadcasting after this setback, writing about this history on the WPIR website (circa 2007), “My wife (the then GM) and I tried to resurrect the station as a campus-only ‘leaky cable’ system, which uses a low-power signal that radiates perhaps 100 feet max from the cable – so it’d be run around campus, down hallways, up elevator shafts, and so on. Never worked out too well, as I couldn’t get the damned cable across Willoughby Avenue! Some sort of hoo-ha permitting that sort of thing, so we gave up.” A 1994 yearbook mentions a return to AM following the whole FCC debacle.
WPIR Transitions Online in the 2000s
The station’s pirate radio past is immortalized in some of the station’s branding, as evidenced by a pirate flag with WPIR call letters hanging in the current studio. With its forays into AM and FM broadcasting behind them, Pratt Radio shifted to internet streaming somewhere between 2001 and 2004 and even introduced podcasts as early as 2006.
WPIR Pratt Radio’s Post-COVID Revival
To current students (as was the case decades ago!), the history of Pratt Radio is very murky. And in the shadow of COVID, just getting WPIR up and running again has been the main focus of their attention. When I met up with four WPIR board members in late March, 2023 they spoke of their work to bring the station back to life. All sophomores at the time (a fifth board member was a senior), they had not experienced Pratt Radio pre-COVID, so much of what they knew about the station came from conversations with upperclassmen and their advisor as well as from digging into past postings on Instagram.
2020 WPIR Frozen in Time
Since WPIR was inactive for a bit, current station participants also had to do some sleuthing in order to get back on social media. However, the station’s wonderfully designed tumblr site remains inaccessible and is frozen in time. One page shows the Spring 2020 schedule, packed with 53 shows, hosted by students, faculty/staff, and alumni. It’s easy to imagine the enthusiasm that everyone had when that schedule was posted at the start of 2020, but of course everything changed that March of 2020. By fall, 2020 shows were being done remotely, with some hosts recording programs using the voice memo app on their phones.
Bringing WPIR Pratt Radio Back in 2022-2023 School Year
As we chatted in the quiet studio (except for a constant hum of construction and periodic banging noises from a sculpture class upstairs) in March, 2023 during a mid-day break in programming, I learned more about what brought this group of people together to help bring back college radio on campus. Lili Leoung Tat described the situation at WPIR in the 2021-2022 school year, telling me that “it was kind of dead” and that “there wasn’t really anyone running it.” In fall 2022, she was part of the group that brought the station back from the “ground up.” Around 45 people signed up to be part of WPIR that semester, with 21 shows making it to “air.” By the spring, the number of shows had increased to 28.
The Allure of College Radio for WPIR’s Student Leaders
Amazingly, this small group of students, new to radio, quickly revived the dormant WPIR. Interestingly, several had relatives, including cousins and parents who had worked in college radio or radio in general. WPIR board member Arzu Oran reflected back on an older cousin who had done college radio, saying “he always seemed so cool,” adding that this was part of her desire to join a college radio station, “especially at an art school” like Pratt.
Coincidentally, fellow board member Eve Mikkelson also had an older cousin who did college radio. She was partially drawn to Pratt Radio because she thought it would be the “perfect way to meet a bunch of people.” The newest board member (she was a week into her term when we all meet in March), Mikkelson talked about how much she enjoys doing her show, “Brooklyn Buzz,” which highlights Brooklyn artists. “Getting to curate what you play and what you say, it’s just a really nice form of expression,” she explained, adding, “You’re picking all your favorite things and you’re getting to share it with as many people as possible.”
Similarly, Oran, who hosts “Kraving Kibbeh,” spoke philosophically about the experience of listening to music “actively,” without distractions. She finds herself doing that much more while participating in college radio at WPIR, where she is more likely to listen to music “fully.” She said, “It feels so nice to actively listen” to both her own program as well as other shows on WPIR.
Building Community at Pratt Institute
In addition to the joy of “doing” radio, the participants at WPIR talked about the satisfaction that they felt in contributing to campus life. “I really like that we’re leaving a mark on the campus, because we’re helping to relaunch the Pratt radio station,” said board member Colin Coffey. He continued, “Hopefully we’ll keep thriving after we graduate…it’s just a nice community that we’ve built.” Leoung Tat agreed, adding that the station community is also building connections with other groups. She mentioned that several clubs have reached out to collaborate with WPIR. One organization, Queer Pratt, inquired about having DJs spin at an event and the student book club asked WPIR to curate playlists for their meetings.
Fall 2023 Shows at WPIR Pratt Radio
WPIR is up and running again this semester, with all four of the board members who I met in the spring still active on the Pratt Radio Board. When I tuned in to the stream in mid-October, 2023, there were 25 shows on the fall schedule running from about noon to 10pm. The broad range of programs include “Eli’s Experimental Hour,” “Jesus Wept,” “Evil Hour,” “Show Tunes Swag,” “Tuning into the 2000s,” “Clowns, Cowboys & Punks,” and more. An edition of “Nocturnal Emissions” that I caught featured bands with under 20,000 monthly listeners on Spotify, which I thought was an interesting way to feature more underground artists.
Thanks to WPIR Pratt Radio + More Radio Station Tours
Thanks to WPIR Pratt Radio for the wonderful visit. Also many thanks to WPIR advisor and Associate Director for the Student Union Alexander Ullman for taking time to speak with me. Additional appreciation goes to Brendan Enright, Project Archivist at the Pratt Institute for research assistance and for digging up some vital materials in the archives. And, finally, thanks to WPIR alum Daniel Fries for sharing his memories with me, helping to shed light on the station’s pirate radio rumors.
This is my 173rd radio station tour report and my 115th college radio station recap. View all my radio station visits in numerical order or by station type in our archives. Stay tuned for additional tours from my spring and summer travels.
