After three decades on air, Madison's only volunteer-run community radio station, and probably the only place listeners can expect to hear something as unique as Bulgarian choir music or Tuvan throat singing, remains a popular dial destination for many residents.
Since its first broadcast in 1975, WORT has survived 30 years of internal change, but its essential mission has remained the same.
'We try to provide a place where you can hear things that you won't hear anywhere else and give a voice to unrepresented voices and opinions,' said Norman Stockwell, operations coordinator for WORT. 'We try to make the programming both diverse and alternative at the same time.'
Stockwell said the station has become a more stable organization, structurally and financially, with the help of individual listeners and local businesses.
Their support and popularity has grown in the last 30 years, Stockwell said, because of the broad range of programming the station provides, including local and international news and music, in a time when most other stations are confined to mainstream trends.
According to station volunteer Emma Howell-Wilder, the community continues to listen to 89.9 FM because of its diversity.
'Whatever you want to get out of it, it gives you,' she said.
Former WORT local news reporter Steve Zelaznik said the station offers accessibility for novice radio journalists and a history in the community that facilitates information gathering.
'A lot of people, I've found, are very willing to do interviews with WORT,' Zelaznik said.
In addition to its diversity, the station takes pride in the fact that it has developed from a virtually unknown local station to one whose signal reaches cities as far as Whitewater, Wis. and Oconomowoc, Wis.
'I think WORT is really seen as an example by a lot of community stations around the country,' Stockwell said. 'The fact that a couple of folks with very little money and not much more knowledge were able to put together a radio station 30 years ago that's still on the air and that's as prominent as it is is why it can receive these words and accolades from the mayor and the county board.'
In recognition for its work, Madison Mayor Dave Cieslewicz sanctioned Dec. 1 as 'WORT Day' in Madison. In a proclamation, Cieslewicz commended the station as being 'a unique and valuable asset to the cultural life of our city.'
In celebrating its past, volunteer staff said they look forward to the future of WORT. Stockwell said they are branching out technologically by incorporating podcasts and internet broadcasts.
