Since its first broadcast on May 8, 1950, WNUR has produced broadcasters who range from rock ‘n’ roll radio pioneers to “capitalist pigs.”
More than 300 of those pigs and pioneers are expected to visit Northwestern this weekend for the WNUR 50th anniversary alumni reunion, which includes a panel discussion, “50 Years and Beyond with Seconds to Spare,” at 10 a.m. Saturday in the Annie May Swift auditorium.
The panel discussion features six WNUR alumni who have held prominent positions in the broadcast industry, from Chief Executive Officers to business show hosts. The event will be hosted by Neal Sabin, executive vice president of Weigel Broadcasting and a 1978 Speech graduate, and NU graduates from the 1960s, ’70s and ’90s will participate in the discussion.
“The panel discussion will bring together people who have actually run the media,” said Prof. Rick Morris, director of broadcast operations for WNUR. “Those people will have a lot to say.”
“The station has trained some of the people at the forefront of the field and we wanted to highlight that,” said Mary Kate Barley-Jenkins, associate director of public affairs for the School of Speech. “(The organizers) wanted to find alumni to represent a lot of the decades.”
Discussion participants have wide-ranging positions in the broadcast industry. Jonathan Hoenig, a ’90s WNUR alumnus better known on Fox national radio as “The Capitalistpig,” will also appear at the panel discussion. “The Capitalistpig” gives investing tips to young people, an idea Hoenig first started while broadcasting on WNUR.
Radio rock ‘n’ roll innovators and ’60s alumni Allen Shaw and Jack Minkow will also be part of the discussion. Shaw and Minkow helped put original rock ‘n’ roll content on FM radio, helping to break the trend of FM stations rebroadcasting AM material.
Morris said the panel discussion will also focus on WNUR’s transition to online broadcasts, including Webcasting and streaming broadcasts. Jim Leven, former CEO of Pilot Communications, will talk about his experiences with Internet broadcasting.
“We don’t want to just look back upon the important role of WNUR and Northwestern in broadcasting, but to look forward into the future,” Morris said.
The event is free and open to the public.
