WCWM

WCWM is a Variety formatted broadcast radio station licensed to Williamsburg, Virginia, serving the Virginia Peninsula. WCWM is owned and operated by The College of William & Mary.

History

The first known radio activities at William & Mary occurred in the spring of 1956, when a group of students, using equipment purchased in their own financial initiative, broadcast a weak signal from the Chapman House. Although many students and some faculty were behind the effort, this early initiative failed due to lack of administrative backing, according to a letter to the editor by former WCWM Program Director Fred Schaffer (class of 1957) that was published in the Flat Hat, the William & Mary newspaper, on March 10, 1959.

WCWM officially began operations in September, 1959, after two years of political process aimed at procuring funding and administrative approval, and another year to complete construction and obtain a broadcast license from the Federal Communications Commission. The station was originally licensed to operate at 89.1 megahertz with an effective radiated power of ten watts. The original operating schedule was daily from 4:55PM to 10:30PM. Programming featured news and mostly classical music.