Perhaps there’s something in the Potomac River water that helps breed good multicasts. As was the case last year, a Washington-area radio station will take NAB honors for its HD Radio multicast programming.
American University licensee WAMU(FM), a noncommercial station, is the winner of the National Association of Broadcasters HD Radio Multicast Award. Its HD2 station, “Bluegrass Country,” will be honored at the radio luncheon on Sept. 25 during the NAB Radio Show in Philadelphia. Howard University’s WHUR(FM) won the award in 2008 for its HD2 channel “WHUR-World.”
NAB EVP Radio John David said WAMU’s HD2 channel “embodies the spirit of the award through the use of their unique programming and listener interaction.”
WAMU(FM) 88.5-2 features 70 weekly hours of content, including several local personalities hosting such programs as “The Katy Daley Show,” “The Ray Davis Show” and “Stained Glass Bluegrass.” The station redesigned its Web site to better communicate with its listeners and has a presence on several social networking sites. Bluegrass Country sponsors concerts, organizes live broadcasts and hosts events for the bluegrass community.
Winners of the NAB HD Radio Multicast Award are recognized for their ability to create innovative or groundbreaking programming on their multicast channel. To be eligible, stations submitted information about the channel’s programming, on-air personalities, promotions, branding elements and Web sites to illustrate the qualities that make their multicast channel separate from their main station.
In 2007, the charter winners were KBCO(FM) Denver’s “The Studio C Channel” and WRIF(FM) Detroit’s “Riff2.”
