Change your radio presets because Otterbein's WOBN is moving frequencies starting around week five this quarter. The 60-year young station will be busy getting acquainted with their new numbers, 97.5 FM and their interim name, "The Wild Card," this year. Starting out as a pipeline station that only broadcast to dormitories on campus, WOBN is very familiar with change. Since then they have changed call letters, frequencies and even names to fit the needs of the community. General Manager of the station, Tom Hough, doesn't think the changes will hurt WOBN but rather help them become better known around campus, "The students are our biggest fans, and the students get to make the decisions." Commercial radio stations, "the big guys," are the reasons for WOBN to change its face. KOOL 101.7, located in Newark, OH applied to move their transmitter, which would increase their power and grab a larger chunk of the Columbus market. The two frequencies being so close would cause static and limit the distance that the college station could be heard even more. "Because they are so close to WOBN on the radio dial these increases would have drown us out," explained Bryan Mravac, production director. Switching frequencies has dug into the bank account of Otterbein. Janice Windborne, the faculty advisor for WOBN explained that it was not an easy move. After applying for a new frequency, hiring lawyers to deal with the Federal Communication Committee (FCC), buying a new transmitter and antenna and paying engineers to install the equipment "a ballpark figure would be around, $25,000," she says. Since winter quarter of 2008 WOBN has been struggling with the FCC to apply for a new frequency. In the beginning of September the station was granted the numbers 97.5. The project was originally scheduled to be completed at the start of this school year. Due to the storm, technical engineers are busy at commercial stations in the area and WOBN was bumped down the list. Another commercial station formerly known as "The Blitz 99.7" decided to change names to match their new identity. The name they decided on was "The Rock," a familiar name for Otterbein listeners. To avoid confusion and another legal battle, WOBN staff heads and faculty decided to switch from the 10-year-old name "The Rock" to an interim name, "The Wild Card." "The name was selected because it plays on the Otterbein Cardinals and our seemingly random 'we play anything' format," said Mravac. The station whose focus is Alternative Rock still remains a college station, playing a random selection of tunes. "You can't put our genre down on paper, that's the beauty of college radio," Mravac informs. This year is a better time than any to get involved in the station. "It doesn't matter what type of student you are, anyone can become a member of the WOBN family," said Hough. WOBN has a weekly meeting on Thursdays at 4 p.m. in the Communication Building.t&c;
WOBN set to change name, frequency
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