Signal | April 2011 | WSIU Radio

Signal

Vol. 4, No. 4: April 2011

An Online Newsletter from WSIU Public Radio

This Month on Morning Conversations

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pril 4-8 • We present special features with storytellers from the 2010 Cape Girardeau Storytelling Festival.

This is a preview of the 2011 Festival, which runs April 8-10 in downtown Cape Girardeau.

April 12 • SIUC Chancellor Rita Cheng. This visit comes just days before the SIU Board of Trustees will consider tuition and fee increases for incoming students in the Fall of 2011, as well as other issues. We’ll also update the 2011 budget and look at where things stand financially.

April 14 • We preview the Illinois State Historical Society’s 2011 History Symposium, to be held at SIUC. This year’s topic is “Sacred Oaths, Shallow Graves: Illinois in the Civil War (Part I).”

April 22 • WSIU’s own Kevin Boucher presents a special Earth Day feature.

April 25 • SIU President Glenn Poshard

April 26 • Science Café!

The Mayan Calendar.

SIUC Anthropologist Prudence Rice will help to sort out fact from fiction in the study of the Mayan Calendar.

Morning Conversations, hosted by Jennifer Fuller, airs at 8:30am on Tuesdays and other weekdays, as scheduled, and repeats at 5:30pm.

Prudence Rice.

Photo: University Communications.

All Morning Conversations episodes are available on air and on our live stream at www.wsiu.org/live. You can also find them on our podcast page at www3.wsiu.org/radio/ morningconversation. We also invite you to follow us on Facebook and Twitter.

Michael Feldman’s Whad’Ya Know? in Carbondale

Whad’Ya Know? Michael Feldman with University Museum Director Dona Bachman (left).

Photo: Monica Tichenor.

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had’Ya Know? Hilarious host Michael Feldman entertained an audience of 800 on Saturday, March 26 at Shryock Auditorium on the SIUC Carbondale Campus.

The two-hour road show featured music, interviews, question-and-answer sessions, two quizzes, and Feldman’s take on the important news of the day in “Little Egypt.”

Special guests were Lt. Gov. Sheila Simon, University Museum Director Dona Bachman, and local musicians Robert Bowlin and Wil Maring.

Harbaugh’s Café, *Rory Jaros, Wil Maring, *Murphysboro Apple Festival, My Favorite Toys, Pomona Winery, Southern Illinois University Press.

Whad’Ya Know? band members John Thulin (pianist), Jeff Hamman (bassist), and Clyde Stubblefield (drummer) entertained the audience with their blues-infused jazz.

STAGE SET PIECES: General John A. Logan Museum, The Holiday Lights Fair-DuQuoin Tourism Commission, John A. Logan College, Olney and the Greater Richland County Chamber of Commerce, Southern Illinois Miners, Southern Illinois University Carbondale, Electronic AssociationElectronic Systems Technologies, International Programs & Services, School of Architecture, The Student Center Craft Shop, and Undergraduate Admissions.

Many thanks to our loyal listeners and supporters; WSIU’s Laura Cobin and Jeff Williams, who helped to coordinate the event; the Whad’Ya Know? team; Shryock Auditorium; Robco Audio of Carbondale; and all the WSIU staff, students, and volunteers who made this performance possible. A special thanks to all who loaned stage set pieces and contributed prizes for quiz contestants: PRIZE DONATIONS: Big Muddy Brewing, Robert Bowlin, *Cape Girardeau Convention & Tourism Bureau, Roberta Elliott, GreenRetreat,

Michael Feldman’s Whad’Ya Know? is produced by Wisconsin Public Radio and distributed by Public Radio International (PRI). It airs Saturdays from 10am-noon. * also loaned stage set pieces

Graduate Student: Jun Bum Kim

Jun Bum Kim. Photo: Jenna Richardson.

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un Bum Kim is a graduate student in Radio-Television from Seoul, South Korea. After a stint in the military and taking college classes in his home country, Kim transferred to SIU Carbondale in 2006 where he earned his Bachelor’s degree in Radio-Television. He is now in his last semester as a graduate student in Mass Communication & Media Arts.

“I came to SIUC to study English for a year, but when I found out that the university had a good Radio-Television program, I decided to transfer to that department,” Kim says.

When Kim was an undergraduate student, one of his teachers recommended that he contact Lisa Morrisette, program assistant and

volunteer coordinator for WSIU Radio, to gain some hands-on experience at the station. He started volunteering for WSIU in 2006 and by 2007, he had earned a spot as a paid student worker. In his senior year at SIUC, Kim received an undergraduate assistantship to support his training at WSIU in FM programming and operations. He began his graduate studies in the fall of 2009 and was awarded a graduate assistantship to continue his work at WSIU. Kim’s career interest is in recording music, creating sound, and sound design. “I’ve been producing Celtic Connections with Bryan Kelso Crow for almost a year, and I really enjoy it,” he says.

Kim used to work as a board operator and programming assistant with Morrisette, but in his role as a graduate assistant at WSIU Radio, he does a little bit of everything. Says Kim, “I now do some paperwork, reports, and other documentation and when Lisa is out of the office, I fill in for her.”

“WSIU is a neat place to work. I really like the people,” says Kim. “My co-workers

and fellow students are some of the best people I’ve ever worked with. One of the best qualities WSIU has is that they aren’t afraid of change or to try new ways to do things.”

After graduating with his Master’s degree this May, Kim says he would prefer to work for an NPR station and to continue to produce Celtic Connections. “I’ve learned a lot about Celtic music by helping to produce the program,” he says. “I’m from an Asian country, so I wasn’t familiar with this kind of music. Now I even have an understanding of the different genres within Celtic music. It’s really interesting, and I’ve grown to like a lot of the same music Bryan likes!”

When Kim isn’t busy studying or working at WSIU, he enjoys interacting with other international students on campus and attending the Vine Community Church in Carbondale.

WSIU would like to thank Kim for doing an outstanding job and for his commitment to the station over the past five years. We wish him much success in the future!

SIRIS Volunteer Profile: Dan Hill

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eet Carbondale local and volunteer reader, Dan Hill. Hill volunteered with a service similar to SIRIS at the University of Virginia where he would read local news for broadcast. “I liked doing that, so when I found out I had a chance to be a reader at SIRIS, I was pretty eager to get back into it,” Hill says.

Hill feels that SIRIS’s services are a valuable resource to those who are visually impaired and thinks it’s great that they have an opportunity to hear local news.

“There are a lot of things that aren’t going to be broadcast on local TV or radio, a lot of smaller articles and things that are only going to be found in local newspapers and there’s no other way for people to get that information,” Hill says. “You’re never going to see obituaries on the TV or radio, but that’s something I always make time

to read. Just hearing another voice fills the house with something other than just TV noise. It’s a little more natural with local voices that kind of have something in common with you.”

Another benefit of SIRIS Hill cites is that it shows people with disabilities that they are valued members of the community.

“We provide a service and special radios.

These resources offer encouragement to people who have some struggles,” Hill says.

“I tell everyone I know about SIRIS. I let everyone know that this is a fun thing to do,” he says. “It’s not as intimidating as public speaking because you’re in a little room by yourself and you can hit ‘pause’ anytime you want to catch your breath.”

You can feel pretty good about helping people out.”

SIRIS volunteer Dan Hill.

Photo: Jenna Richardson.

Hill also volunteers with The Stage Company in Carbondale.

To volunteer for SIRIS, call (618) 453-2808 or click on the SIRIS tab at wsiu.org.

April Special Programs & Features Sunday, April 3 • 3pm

(repeats Tuesday, April 5 • 6pm) Join WSIU Radio for special documentary Turn Your Radio On

by SIUC Radio-Television Associate Professor Jacob Podber. The halfhour special is based on his book The Electronic Front Porch: An Oral History of the Arrival of Modern Media in Rural Appalachia and the Melungeon Community.

More information is available on line at www.capestorytelling.com.

Friday, April 22

WSIU celebrates Earth Day as Kevin Boucher takes listeners on a radio field trip through the Shawnee National Forest. The special feature will air at 6:33am, 8:33am, and 5:29pm.

Wednesday, April 6-8

Tune in for WSIU’s special Radio Voices series The Storytellers during Morning Edition and All Things Considered at 6:33am, 8:33am, and 5:29pm. We’ll share the stories of some amateur storytellers as heard during last year’s Cape Girardeau Storytelling Festival.

We’ll hear some tall tales, a couple of poems, and a history lesson or two as a preview to the 4th Annual Storytelling Festival April 8-10 in Cape Girardeau. This year’s festival features national tellers Bill Lepp, Willy Claflin, Elizabeth Ellis, and Rev. Robert Jones.

Spring Community Support Celebration!

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elp WSIU Radio celebrate its rich and diverse programming during our 2011 Spring Community Support Celebration April 1-8.

Your support is WSIU Radio’s most reliable source of funding.

Membership support accounts for about 30% of our budget and is used to help pay for the programs that you enjoy and rely on every day.

Given the current debate in Congress regarding the uncertain future of federal funding for public broadcasting, listener support is vitally important. It helps pay for the news programs and classical music you hear, as well as our outreach activities in the community and our student training initiatives.

Steve Otto of Kansas City, Missouri shares a story at WSIU’s booth in 2010. Photo: WSIU.

If you believe in our mission, please contribute during our Spring Community Support Celebration.

WSIU Radio is Powered by You! Please call 800-745-9748 or give on line at www.wsiu.org!

Herrin High School Seniors Visit WSIU Radio for Career Day!

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n Wednesday, March 30, a group of 13 seniors from Herrin High School participated in a Career Day field trip. Their trip included a stop at WSIU Radio where students experienced what it’s like to work in broadcasting and learned about how to prepare for a career in broadcast journalism.

WSIU Radio’s Jeff Williams and Jennifer Fuller, and Mike Reis (Voice of the Dawgs) and Chris Hagstrom of SIU Athletics answered questions, shared their experiences, and offered career advice to the students.

English and Journalism teacher Carla Taylor of Herrin High School organized the trip to educate her students about career options after high school.

Celtic Connections host Bryan Kelso Crow.

Photo: Rachel Snow King.

Airs Saturday @ 7pm • Sunday @ 6pm April 9 • New Releases

Join host Bryan Kelso Crow for a sampling of some of the best tracks from new and recent releases from both sides of the Atlantic.

April 16 • Musical Michiganders

“When I’m not laughing, I’m thinking.”

- David Wood, Mt. Vernon, IL

April 23 • Child Ballads VIII

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The state of Michigan is rich in its folk and traditional musicians and dancers, including Scottish and Irish traditions.

We honor some of these musical Michiganders in this week’s program.

This is the eighth in our occasional series spotlighting the Child Ballads, collected and published by Professor Francis Child in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Some of today’s leading singers, like Andrew Calhoun, continue to find ways to arrange and perform these classic narrative ballads to keep them interesting to contemporary audiences.

April 30 • A Proper Sort of Tea Party

Tune in this week to learn how to make a proper cup of Irish tea, from none other than Cork singer Mairtin de Cogain. We will also explore musical references to this most popular nonalcoholic beverage of the British and Irish Isles.

Thank You, Underwriters!

Please join us in thanking the underwriters who recently began, renewed, or expanded their partnerships to make public radio possible:

Alwerdt’s Gardens, Altamont Carbondale Main Street Green Earth, Inc. Native American Student Organization at Southern Illinois University Carbondale SIU School of Law For a complete list of WSIU sponsors and information about sponsoring WSIU programming, visit us online at www.wsiu.org or call (618) 453-4286.

listen to WSIU for just one reason…one word describes it all: engaging. Whether it’s the news, music, or interviews, WSIU’s programs are engaging. When I’m not laughing, I’m thinking.

I think people should support public radio because it’s a great source for news, music, and humor.

Sometimes it’s serious, sometimes it’s wacky, but it’s always excellent radio.

I feel it’s important to have public radio in Southern Illinois because nobody does it like WSIU. Some of my favorite programs are Car Talk and A Prairie Home Companion. They are both about humor, but they approach it in different ways.

I’m David Wood from Mt. Vernon, Illinois and WSIU Public Radio is Powered by Me!

What do you love about WSIU? Tell us and we’ll share it on the air, online, or in print!

Online • www.wsiu.org/you Email • you@wsiu.org

W S I U i s P o w e r e d b y Yo u ® WSIU Public Radio Communications Building 1003 - MC 6602 Southern Illinois University Carbondale 1100 Lincoln Drive Carbondale IL 62901 • 618/453-6101 • wsiu.org • wsiuradio@wsiu.org