The mood at WMUB, Miami University's NPR affiliate for 58 years, was somber Thursday.
As the shock continued to creep into the newsroom, Station Manager Cleve Callison tried to remain upbeat.
"We're going about our business, we're professionals," Callison said. "We still have a job to do."
As part of the university's recent measures to cut costs and scale back a $22 million budget deficit, Miami is currently negotiating an operating agreement with Cincinnati Public Radio (CPR) to place WMUB under CPR management, effectively shutting down the station's independent operations after years of providing hundreds of thousands of dollars in support for the station.
"We have come to this decision with deep regret because of our long history with WMUB and the excellent staff there now, but the financial obligation of WMUB can no longer be bourne by the university with the economic challenges we face," wrote President David Hodge in a Jan. 22 press release.
Miami currently provides 62 percent of WMUB's $1.7 million budget, an amount totaling more than $900,000 in 2007. On average, public radio stations licensed to U.S. universities receive only 37 percent in subsidies.
With the hopes of hammering out a contract between the university and CPR by mid-February, Hodge said the target date for the switch is March 1. The station will still be heard on the same FM frequency, 88.5, and Miami will retain the broadcast license for WMUB, with the same call letters repeated at the top of every hour. After the switch, two-thirds of the current programming-much of it already broadcast on NPR stations across the country-will remain the same.
Hodge said the decision to close the station would certainly be a shock but not a complete surprise. WMUB's signal has only a limited geographical reach, preventing the station from reaching the same numbers of listeners as urban stations, inhibiting most fundraising efforts.
"It just wasn't (big) enough to reach fund raisers in those markets," said Dionn Tron, associate vice president for university communications.
Callison said the station's signal reaches a half million potential listeners, as opposed to other public stations, which have the potential to reach at least two times as many people.
However, Hodge acknowledged that this decision will felt by many in the Oxford and university community, particularly the seven full-time and three part-time employees currently employed at the station. After the switch, CPR will take over daily operations and will only need one employee to work the Oxford studio.
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"At the very least, there's going to be a lot of people who are very disappointed," Hodge said.
Richard Campbell, director of the journalism department, said the news is particularly crushing for WMUB's employees.
"It's not a good thing for the staff of WMUB who did a great job with keeping (the station) on the air for as long as they did," Campbell said.
Campbell said closing the station will also impact Miami journalism students, many of whom use the station for educational purposes, including a capstone class focused specifically on WMUB and NPR.
"The president is very conscious of the impact on the journalism department," Campbell said.
Campbell said he is meeting with CPR to discuss possible avenues for journalism students to gain experience. In the meanwhile, he said many of the capstone projects may be integrated into the Miami-Whitewater Valley Public Media Project, a media-sharing partnership in southwestern Ohio and eastern Indiana.
Joe Sampson, a journalism instructor who teaches the WMUB capstone, said the initiative has lost momentum built in the fall by getting their projects broadcast on the station.
"My understanding is that the administration, at all steps in this process, has said it would minimize what cuts it makes to academics," he said. "(But) we have been affected by this-the teaching and learning in this capstone class has inevitably been harmed."
However, Eiswerth said that a continued partnership between Miami and WMUB would be preferable.
"(We) want to maintain a studio on campus for the local news gathering," Eiswerth said. "The studio location on campus will facilitate our commitment to maintain an active internship program."
Eiswerth said CPR is considering creating a news bureau in the old facilities once the station begins to raise funds. CPR is also considering plans to increase the station's potential audience by investigating construction permits Miami holds for two repeat stations in Indiana and Greenville, Ohio. Eiswerth said building the stations would expand coverage to the northeast and northwest, doubling the coverage.
Coming to this decision, however, has been many years in the making.
In 2007, the university formed a committee to analyze the station's financial viability and provide a "strategic perspective on WMUB's future."
Campbell, who also chaired the committee, said the group presented the university with four options for the station's future in October 2008. The first involved WMUB remaining an independent station, an option Hodge said was not financially feasible.
The second option involved selling WMUB's license, a choice that was even less appealing, Hodge said, since the buyer would most likely had commercial interests.
The last two options involved forming partnerships with noncommercial radio stations in the area, particularly in Dayton, both of which fell through.
The station attempted to refocus its format in August to include more news in the hopes of satisfying its demographic and raising listener contributions.
After these efforts failed to raise enough funds, Hodge said the university then turned to CPR, which had already undergone a similar experience with WVXU in Cincinnati. Hodge said the decision to align with CPR allows the station to continue providing public radio for its listeners.
Eiswerth said by the time they contacted CPR, the university had very few options left for WMUB.
"As we understand it, were we not to step in at the invitation of the university, in all likelihood, WMUB would not have a future," Eiswerth said.
Hodge said with the university's financial state, he had very few other choices.
"I think it would be very irresponsible for us to be making cuts around the campus and still support the station," Hodge said.
However, Eiswerth was optimistic and said CPR will do all it can to help WMUB back on its feet.
"We're taking a gamble at this point, but we think it's a worthwhile gamble," Eiswerth said. "It's a great station, it's got a great heritage. We want to keep the station alive and make it thrive."
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