Rick Martin has been a Wizard (what DJ’s on WZRD Radio call them selves) in one way or another since its inception in the early 1970’s. There is a lot of history behind that sticker filled doorway off the basement student lounge.
WZRD is one of the last “Free Form” stations left in the United States. Martin described the idea of free form radio at WZRD in artistic terms “The broadcast day is like your pallet.” WZRD is clearly alternative radio but Martin said that it tries to go beyond even that moniker, “Not only are you (WZRD DJ’s) doing alternative radio but you are doing it in alternative ways.”
That was the idea in 1970 when the NEIU Radio Club was founded. Martin said that vision wavered a bit over the years but is coming back on track, “What’s different today is it doesn’t always follow radio as an art form, though with advances is editing (technology) its getting back to that.”
WZRD DJ’s do not use their names, ever, everyone is on the air is a “Wizard” and “block programming” the idea of playing one style of music or programming throughout a whole show, is strongly frowned.
There are in fact only three regularly scheduled programs at all on WZRD, the Pacifica network’s Democracy Now with Amy Goodman and Juan Gonzalez heard from 7:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. each weekday morning, Pacifica’s afternoon news program Free Speech Radio News (FSRN), which airs at 4:00 p.m. and again at 10:00 p.m. each weekday evening with headlines from around the world, including some filed by WZRD Wizards and Thursday Night Live, where live bands play in studio (currently on hiatus).
What will not be played at WZRD are the big hits and that is by design and chartered that way with the FCC. Martin said that in the early 1980’s WZRD formed a consortium of 14 ten watt stations who all bumped up to 100 watts to fend off a threat from Public Radio who wanted the space between 88 and 89 on the radio band, designated “educational” by the FCC for it self. WBEZ, Chicago Public Radio is now at 91.5 FM
WZRD’s role and mission to the community to play music and express ideas not heard in mainstream radio. That mission and guiding principal has caused them to have to fight for survival and at least once, according to Martin, and saved them in the FCC’s eyes from being over taken by Public Radio.
Radio at NEIU started humbly when a few guys who knew the audio visual crew who ran a regular movie night on campus started using some turntables to play records between and after movies. From that grew a radio club, a broadcast on AM radio broadcasting with a small transmitter only to the campus using the electric conduit lines on campus and later the fully powered FCC licensed 100 watt FM station known now as WZRD 88.3 FM.
WZRD has a history of independence and activism, they’re non-music content and interviews have covered in depth everything from local poets, artists and theater in Chicago, to protests at the School of the America’s, events surrounding the conflicts and wars in Central America, Iraq, Afghanistan, Israel and the Palestinian Occupied Territories to gay rights to national elections to local housing issues and neighborhood and ward issues.
WZRD has always had this independent streak going back to the days of the Viet Nam war. They continue in this vein taking advantage of alliances with new media groups like Chicago Indymedia and the Pacifica network.