WMUA External Review Report

WMUA External Review Report

The WMUA Site Review Team visited the University of Massachusetts-Amherst
beginning the evening of Sunday November 8, 2015 and ending the afternoon of Tuesday
November 10, 2015. The Team had a series of 11 meetings with the different
constituencies of the radio station, including university administrators, WMUA student
directors and members, WMUA community members, faculty, and student media
advisers. The University supplied the Team with a great deal of material on the station
including the WMUA Station Manual and budget information. The Team was not
supplied with a radio station self-study until the afternoon of the last day of the visit. (We
believe this last item directly reflects the absence of a professional adviser/manager who
could have guided the process of a self-study.)
A. Department mission and key goals:
The Statement of Objectives on page 1 of the WMUA Station Manual gives a very
general overview of the radio station goals, and as such we can say that the station is
meeting its objectives as (1) a training facility, (2) a venue to promote student
empowerment, (3) as a forum to those who have historically not had access to broadcast
media, and (4) as a place that provides programming and services that promote a
sensitivity to the different social and educational needs of the listening area.
While the above goals are very general, they are specific enough that general members
have been able to adhere to them. The station seems to be meeting item 1, as station
members are generally operating the station in a manner that reflects adequate training.
The WMUA Station Manual and the workshops, as described to us, seem to do a good
job training members. At the same time, as Section D below explains, there are a number
of serious issues in training and the manual that need to be addressed immediately to
make sure WMUA is meeting FCC rules and regulations. Our meetings with students tell
us that the station is providing a venue to promote student empowerment as these
students are learning the responsibilities of operating an FCC licensed radio station
working to serve the community. At the same time, recent events, particularly issues with
relation to community members, have put a significant strain on students and have posed
a threat to promoting student development. The station format and broadcast sound are
reflective of item 4. A college radio station format, or in the case of WMUA, the
Programming Philosophy as stated in the WMUA Station Manual, is very often a
reflection of the mission and goals of the station. The Programming Philosophy is
specific enough so that we can say that they are adhering to that philosophy.
B. Strengths:
We were impressed by a number of things about the radio station:
- The strong commitment of the student directors. In our meetings with the students we
found that they have worked well together to further the success of the radio station
during a stressful time. Their efforts in producing news and sports programming are
commendable, particularly in the absence of a professional adviser/manager for a number
of months. Often when a student media organization experiences troubled times, students

WMUA External Review Report

retreat into their own areas of interest and fail to work together for the interests of the
entire entity. However, in this case the students have continued to facilitate production of
a fairly diverse range of music, news, public affairs, and sports programming from both
the student members and community volunteers. We would like to particularly cite
students involved in news and sports as that is always prioritized in college radio.
The work and passion for the radio station from community members is also
commendable. They supply WMUA with programming that helps the station serve the
local community, in particular music programming that is very hard, if not impossible, to
find on any other part of the radio dial. The value of this programming is reflected by the
way the community responds in support during fund drives.
The facilities are good to very good, with recent upgrades an important sign that the radio
station will continue to operate efficiently. We see the quality of the facilities also being a
reflection of the work of WMUAs professional engineer. Having a very competent
person in this position is also a real strength for the station. The very large CD music
library is also an important resource, particularly for a station with a programming
philosophy aiming to play a wide and deep variety of music.
Another strength is the support from the University. There is the essential support of
space, personnel, and funding that makes the day-to-day operations of the radio station
possible. The fact that the University supports the broadcasting of its sports teams is also
commendable. There has been a national trend to commercialize college sports on the
radio, which is something we believe is to the detriment of student broadcasters. The
University has shown in the way it has responded during a time of crisis that it is
interested in helping to solve problems rather than get rid of them. Again, this is a marked
difference from the actions of college administrators who have sold off or transferred
licenses when significant problems arose at their radio stations.
C. Limitations:
- As mentioned in Section A., WMUA lacks a comprehensive mission and goals. This
limits the station in that there is no way to measure success in both the short and long
term. Formulation of a detailed mission statement and regular goal-setting and strategic
planning should be undertaken with guidance from the new full time adviser/manager.
This work should include members of all the constituencies of the radio station but be
driven by a vision that prioritizes three things: the operation of the radio station according
to all FCC requirements, as a venue for experiential learning for University of
Massachusetts students, and as a service to the community.
- Lack of full time adviser/manager.
A college radio station that has students in position of some authority has the inherent
issue that students are learning by doing, which often involves learning from making
some mistakes. A full time adviser/manager, one who prioritizes experiential learning,
ensures that those mistakes are followed by learning and growth, and can act as a buffer
for both students and community members who have little or no patience for student

WMUA External Review Report

directors/managers who for the first time in their lives may be in some position of
authority. The lack of a professional manager has left the student directors in position
where they are vulnerable to unfair criticism and significant personal stress.
The lack of racial and ethnic diversity at the station was noticeable. While the on-air
programming has some sense of diversity, student membership did not seem to reflect
that of the student body of the University. When this issue was raised with some of the
student directors they seemed a bit hesitant about how to develop and execute a
comprehensive and on-going effort to recruit and train a more diverse student staff. This
is an issue that should be addressed in leadership training and would be helped by the
hiring of a full time station adviser/manager.
D. Organizational challenges:
The most pressing concern is the adoption and implementation of the recent changes by
the student management team, the reintegration of the community members who remain
committed to the station, and the rebuilding and/or restoration of the audience due to the
changes.
This effort will be even more difficult in the short term before the search for a new
station adviser/manager is complete and in the transition of that person, who may have
specific ideas that differ slightly from the student managements plans.
Included in implementation is deletion of all imaging and promotion for any show(s) no
longer on the schedule and respective changes to the website schedule and DJ profiles.
It needs to be made clear (and restated every semester due to student turnover) that
ultimately the college is the licensee and is in control of the station.
Operationally student manager elections and other leadership selections are a few short
months away, and may be conducted before changes to station governance are finalized.
These elections may also occur before the adviser/manager search can likely be
completed adding complexity to the 2016-17 academic year as well.
Other items that must be addressed (not necessarily in order of importance or need):

Revamping/rewriting the station manual including policies consistent with

prevailing college policies for such items as grievances, conduct, etc.
Moving EAS equipment so DJ has operational control.
Immediate and future plans to continuously train staff on EAS, Public File,
copyright and other legal matters.
Develop a plan for a year-round office management presence during normal
business hours per FCC requirements.
Fix discovered Public File holes such as, but not limited to: Pre and Post Filing
announcement broadcast times/days during last renewal cycle, quarterly Issues
and Programs dating back to last license renewal date, and current list of donors.

WMUA External Review Report

These must be printed and placed in labeled folders in an accessible Public File
and not just on computers. Also cleaning out of unneeded material.
Funding for the 2016-17 academic year and beyond must be planned for, as any
anticipated reduction in fundraising money wont be felt fully until late in the Fall
2016 semester.
SoundExchange fees to cover streaming rights must be paid by February 1, 2016.
Check with campus legal counsel for college blanket licenses for music royalty
contracts for ASCAP, BMI and SESAC and correct any issues with payments.

E. Opportunities for improvement:

Improving Strengths:
With a solid core of students (and we were told many more waiting for their opportunity),
staff size and motivation doesnt appear to be an issue. The Chief Engineer seems very
invested in the operation, though some consistent effort needs to be made to regularly
expose all students to broadcast legal issues such as EAS operations and installing &
using a delay system, etc. instead of working around them so they are better prepared for
professional careers in the field should they choose.
The station has a well-established history of providing eclectic programming to the
audience, which needs to be maintained through the transition to more student-based
programming.
Limitations:

Location of the facility off the main traffic pattern of the building
Lack of integration between various student media
Potential budget issues should fundraising goals not be met as a result of changes
Process of selecting student leadership could be revamped to be more inclusive of
entire student staff
Although the Team did not do a comprehensive review of all the on-air
programming, we did listen enough to recommend that the station add training or
workshops that go beyond the basics of broadcasting to focus on sports, news, and
music programming that emphasizes what listeners to college radio look for. This
could include WMUA alumni coming back to the station to talk about what they
see as the role of college radio in todays media environment. Of importance here
is addressing the listening interests of both the university and local community.
No operational delay unit subjects the station to potential fines should expletives
be broadcast during any shows carrying live phone calls or sports broadcasts.

Effectiveness and Efficiency:

Moving forward, the station may investigate eventually moving to HD radio to allow a
second station (HD-2) for additional programming. As/if HD-radio equipment becomes

WMUA External Review Report

more commonplace among listeners, this may eventually help alleviate the normal
conflict between DJ and sports broadcasters when games are aired during their show. If
not HD, then a separate streaming option where one program is on the FM with a
separate program on the online stream may also help with these conflicts. If either is
pursued, much thought needs to go into the process of how to select which show goes
wherea set of criteriaso one student (i.e. Program Director) cannot dictate based on
their personal preferences, but instead there is an established protocol to reduce
contention.
Also with students from the broadcast major in mind, the station may in the future decide
to adopt more professional formatting and/or equipment/software to better reflect the
situation they will find in commercial broadcasting. This could include voice-tracking
some shows, increased use of podcasts, Selector scheduling software, hiring a station
signature imaging voice, format clocks for breaks, using 360 or VoxPro phone recording
devices, etc.
Leadership Training:
Currently there is no required leadership training for the officers of WMUA, or the
officers of any other SGA agencies. These students are responsible for managing what
amounts to a small business, supervising paid and volunteer student staff, managing a
significant budget, and making decisions about a major public asset. While the addition
of a full time adviser/manager will help ensure stability, an intentionally designed and
ongoing leadership development program will ensure the students gain the specific
leadership and management skills to not only run the station with vision and confidence,
but also graduate with a substantial skill set to take into whichever field they choose to
enter. Suggested content includes topics that fall under the umbrellas of leadership and
management:
Leadership
Leadership style
Ethical decision-making
Individual/Organizational values identification
Cultural competence (understanding of and ability to work with people of all social
identities, including race, ethnicity, gender and gender identity, sexual orientation,
socioeconomic status, etc.)
Management
Goal-setting & strategic-planning
Running effective meetings
Supervision
Budget management
Change management
Conflict resolution

WMUA External Review Report

Given the time and staffing resources it takes to develop and implement such a training
program, and the similarities in responsibility between all SGA agencies (and, in fact, the
SGA itself) it may be prudent to design a program that applies to all of the groups. An
additional benefit of including the full scope of groups is that it will enhance the
relationships between the organizations and provide opportunities for the student leaders
to learn from each other.
F. Additional insights:
With the station culture/history and considering the contentious transition that will take
place over the coming months/years, the college may want to consider changing the title
and job description of the adviser/manager. The position description should be written in
such a way that the position does take full responsibility for FCC compliance and equal
authority with students for training and professional development. She/he could report to
Student Activities or directly to a Vice Chancellor or Assistant Vice Chancellor.
In addition, consideration may be given to appoint a professional sales coordinator who
would work on commission only to help lend some consistency and predictability to the
stations ongoing fundraising efforts.
From our brief visit, the station has been and is in jeopardy of incurring an FCC fine due
to multiple issues addressed earlier such as Public File and EAS violations. Evidence was
that the student manager and Program Director could not locate the Public File for several
minutes allegedly due to studio upgrade issues. This leads us to believe that the rest of the
student staffand probably the community staff as wellis equally unaware of this key
point that should be part of basic training.
They also regularly put themselves at risk without a delay unit during live call-in shows
or broadcasts where there may be fleeting expletives such as at sports broadcasts and/or
concert coverage.
The station may be running a copyright violation risk by allowing personal laptops and/or
downloaded music to be played via their direct wire hookup to the board. No one really
knows how someones individual music was acquired, so large potential for illegal
activity.
As with most college operations, the focus seems to be on my show rather than all of
the essential knowledge that is inherent in the right and privilege to broadcast. There is
nothing wrong with taking pride in my show, but an ongoing effort of training,
leadership work, and building relations with alumni should have a goal of building
teamwork and pride in the radio station in both its organization and on-air sound.
G. Preliminary Recommendations
Due to the pressing nature of many of the issues that the Site Review Team found on its
visit the Team issued the following seven Preliminary Recommendations to the

WMUA External Review Report

University on Nov. 23rd 2015. Upon completion of this full report the Team still stands
by these recommendations.
1) Make it clear to the University administration, the students, and the community that
as the licensee the University of Massachusetts has ultimate authority for WMUA. (And
the local designeeWe assume the Chancellor followed by VC of Student Affairs to
Assistant VC of Student Affairs, etc.)
2) Create and begin a search for a 12-month, full time position of Station Manager (or
Station Advisor) as an employee of the University. This could be fulltime in Student
Affairs or a split appointment with Student Affairs and Journalism (non-tenure track)
with no more than a half-time teaching load each semester. Create a job description that
is based on input from those in the fields of student-centered college radio and student
development. The job description must clearly define scope of authority and decisionmaking power of the Station Manager/Advisor in relation to that of the student
management. This scope may vary by area of responsibility (i.e. professional staff may
take on full responsibility for FCC compliance but assist and advise on areas of training,
content production, and governance).
3) As the Licensee the University should implement a policy concerning community
members. The External Review Team presents the following two options:
Option I
a) establishing that the only people eligible to work at the station are currently
enrolled University of Massachusetts students.
b) remove all current Community on-air slots from the schedule at a date that works
best.
OR
Option II
Limit Community Members to 24 on-air hours per week.
(The University might want to consider an expansion of these hours during the
summer and winter sessions.)
If Option II is taken the following steps should be taken:
Create an application policy and process for becoming a Community On-Air
Programmer.
Consideration for an on-air time slot for community programmers should include:
- programming not currently supplied by student programmers; and
- programming that clearly serves the University and local community.
Create a subgroup of the WMUA Board of Directors that would act as a Programming
Group that would work with the Program Director to evaluate applications for
community on-air time slots. This process should take place four times a year for Fall,
Winter Spring, and Summer Schedules.
4) Begin a process for updating and rewriting the WMUA Manual and governance
documents. The following are of immediate concern:

WMUA External Review Report

a). separating the manual into distinct sections for the University as licensee;
mission and goals; governance; position descriptions; training documents; code of
conduct and related disciplinary procedures;
b). removal of items that conflict with University and SGA policies and
procedures;
c), Manual should explicitly state that as the licensee the University of Massachusetts
has
ultimate authority for WMUA; and
d). governance model should clarify role of SGA in decision-making and/or
advisement
of WMUA:
5) Expand the WMUA Board of Directors to Eight to Twelve Members all with equal
voting rights.1 If option is a Station Manager and not Adviser, she/he should also be a
part with voting rights as is now the case.
6) As soon as possible:
a. The Emergency Alert System (EAS) control needs to be established in the main
studio & staff training on how to use
b. Station licenses must be posted on the wall in main studio are current and
outdated ones removed
c. Complete update of Public File including:
i. Print and establish one file for Issues & Programs lists for each quarter since
last license renewal (April 1, 2014). All others may be discarded or archived
elsewhere.
ii. A list of dates and times Pre-Filing and Post-Filing announcements were aired
during last license renewal (October & November 2013 for Pre-Filing; December,
January & February 2014 for Post-Filing) put in file with all paperwork for 2014
License Renewal.
iii. List of current donors supporting specific programs (including
underwriting/advertising) to the station
iv. Latest Ownership Report
v. All applications, exhibits, letters, initial and final decisions in hearing cases,
and other documents pertaining to the station which were filed with the
Commission
vi. Contour Maps
d. Staff training on Public File location

The Team does not mean to recommend any specific number. That is up to those formulating
the station governance. Our point is that all directors have equal voting rights.

WMUA External Review Report

7) Develop mandatory leadership/management training for student leaders of WMUA.

The content could include supervision, communication & conflict resolution, financial
management, diversity - multicultural/global consciousness, teambuilding, constituent
outreach, etc. The eventual Station Manager/Advisor should provide additional training
specific to leadership and management in radio. (Although beyond the scope of this
report, this recommendation could be equally helpful to the student management of all
SGA Agencies.)
H. Concluding Comments
College radio stations operate as unique spaces that allow students learning and
leadership opportunities unobtainable elsewhere on most campuses. Students are exposed
to issues of group dynamics, planning, accomplishing tasks, relationships with campus
and outside community, and regulatory structures. Many of these issues are ones
students will deal with if they go on to careers in the media, but college media work also
prepares individuals for almost any work situation that involves small group interaction,
supervisory situations and institutional pressures. These radio stations also serve an
important role in todays media environment where it often seems the one and only goal
is to supply programming that makes a profit. College radio can be educational,
informative, and entertaining. It can change the lives of both the radio creators and
listeners. The University of Massachusetts-Amherst and all the constituencies of WMUA
should be commended for taking on the task of making the radio station stronger so it can
continue to change lives for many years.
Site Review Team:
Gregory Adamo, Ph.D.
Annie Dooley
Becca Herman
Warren Kozireski