1973: |
Five N.C. State University students dream of starting a radio station. They form the Educational Information Corporation and apply to the FCC for a two-watt, non-commercial broadcasting license. |
1978: |
Using hand-built and army-surplus equipment, WCPE takes to the air with 12,500 watts four hours a day from an old frame house in Raleigh, N.C. Volunteers hold yard sales to pay operating expenses. |
1982: |
A power increase to 33,000 watts, with a new antenna and transmitter, allows the station to reach much of the Research Triangle.WCPE responds to listeners by programming 24-hour Great Classical Music. |
1984: |
Operations move to their present site outside Wake Forest, N.C. |
1993: |
With FCC approval, WCPE begins broadcasting at 100,000 watts. |
1998: |
WCPE installs first-of-its-kind broadband antenna atop a
1,200-foot tower, reaching new listeners in North Carolina and Virginia. The station establishes a digital satellite uplink and soon adds a second satellite signal in an unscrambled analog format to serve owners of C-band home satellite receivers as well as cable television operators. WCPE begins streaming in RealAudio on the Internet, becoming one of the first public broadcasters to take advantage of this new medium. |
1999: |
A college FM station in Pennsylvania becomes our first broadcast affiliate, carrying WCPE's satellite signal on weekends. Apple adds Great Classical Music to its QuickTime TV/Radio Network, making WCPE available online in multiple formats. InternetRadioList chooses WCPE as its favorite online classical station. |
2000: |
Listenership via Internet, C-band satellite, cable TV and FM affiliate continues to grow. WCPE adds a Windows Media stream, becoming one of only a few public stations to offer listeners a choice of three online formats, each with unlimited connectivity. |
2001: |
An MP3 stream is added to the Internet offerings. WCPE adds a translator in Aberdeen at 88.3 FM, allowing Great Classical Music to be heard in the Sandhills region of North Carolina. |
2002: |
WCPE becomes the first radio station to stream 24-hour classical music in Ogg Vorbis, an open-source format; WCPE now streams in 5 formats (Real Audio, QuickTime, Windows Media, MP3 and Ogg Vorbis). TheClassicalStation.org, WCPE's website, wins the Silver Microphone Award for Best Radio Station Website. In the face of unfair royalty regulations, WCPE steps up as a leader in the fight for DMCA reform and fair treatment for non-commercial radio. WCPE drops the BBC news summaries from its broadcast day, focusing now solely on 24-hour classical music. After a long, hard-fought battle, WCPE wins
FCC approval to broadcast at full power in all directions from
our studio site north of Raleigh, N.C. |
2003: |
WCPE celebrates its Silver Anniversary: 25 years of Great Classical Music. The long-awaited removal of the antenna "shield" is complete; the shield had been required by the FCC and limited WCPE's signal strength to the west of the radio station... its removal allows WCPE to broadcast 100,000 in every direction. WCPE is one of 5 finalists for the Marconi Award (given by the National Association of Broadcasters) for "Best Classical Station of the Year". WCPE begins providing classical music on WUNC-owned transmitters on the Outer Banks. Outreach listening surges as one in four contributions is made from outside the Triangle area. |
The future: |
WCPE is committed to providing Great Classical Music to our listeners 24 hours a day, every day of the year. We pledge to continue bringing classical music to a worldwide audience using the latest in broadcast technology, while maintaining our commitment to our loyal local listeners who may remember our station's humble beginnings. |
