In the cookie-cutter, suburban Abercrombi ‘ Fitch world that resembles Fairfield, the university’s radio station WVOF 88.5 FM prides itself in offering a diversity of individuals and ideas and has over 220 members.
Try “The Upper Room,” Joe Kelly’s jazz and funk show on Mondays 4-8 p.m. followed by “Falco Presents,” a source for underground indie rock at 8-10 p.m. “The John Griffin Show,” a rock show on Thursdays from 6-8 p.m., is followed by “In Da Mixx,” a hip hop show which features live DJ sets and freestyling on Thursdays from 8-10 p.m.
“I think that diversity is in how one thinks and reacts, and the culture or social elements you have been raised in, and not sometimes ethnicity,” said Nick Mercadante, station manager at WVOF.
In order to add more variety to the station, many of the community members who work at WVOF are professional DJs from all over Fairfield County. Mercadante adds that the reggae and dance hall DJs from Bridgeport “hold down Saturday nights with jammin’ tunes and tons of credibility.” WVOF also features DJs from New Haven and New York City.
“It gets better each year, and we went from an apathetic station with 100 watts several years ago to the premier college station in Connecticut, and one of the top college stations in the Northeast,” said Mercadante. “We couldn’t have done that without diverse thinkers.”
Students have recently been drawn to a new show, the “Ben ‘Ice Cold’ Manchak” radio program, hosted by Ben Manchak ’05, which airs on Tuesdays from 4-6 p.m.
“Ben is the man,” said Isabel Depina ’05. “He talks about issues that really matter to the Fairfield University student body, and it’s nice to hear people from your class on radio.”
A listener interactive show, like the “Ben ‘Ice Cold’ Manchak” radio program, might receive between 30 and 70 phone calls during a good show said Mercadante. He added that some shows get none or the occasional campus prankster.
Even with the amount of student involvement, some students feel that WVOF just is not accessible to them.
“I never really used to listen to WVOF, but now that I know people with radio shows I try to tune in. I think the station, in general, needs more exposure,” said Melody Serafino ’05. “Most students don’t really think to listen because it is just isn’t accessible, they need to advertise or have a schedule available to students.”
WVOF is working to make the station more accessible to the student body.
“This campus has had to kind of warm up to the idea that not everything is cookie-cutter, and there is more to school than just school and booze,” said Mercadante.
In order to become involved in the station, students need not be on the air. WVOF also has marketing, music and sports teams, web content management, people in charge of business and sponsorship and doing general office duties.
“I wanted to get involved, and I was attracted to WVOF by the progressive dynamism that characterizes the organization,” said Program Director Ben Manchak ’05. “We are truly in the avant garde here at Fairfield University, given our affinity for doing things like putting on bowties and throwing pineapples.”
Students have also expressed a problem with access to the station.
“I get horrible reception in my room,” said Deena Crimaldi ’06. “I also used to listen last year when my friend had a show, but not much this year. So many people from outside the university are on the weekends, so who wants to listen to that?”
Mercadante reminds students that they can listen to WVOF in many other ways than through conventional radio. WVOF is broadcast through a live webcam on campus television, internet streams and the FM station running live on the info channels throughout campus.
Along with the usual shows, WVOF also covers a number of activities on campus. They have an organized sports team who have sole right to broadcast the entire men’s and women’s basketball schedule which through the mentoring of John Griffin and play-by-play support of professional sports broadcaster Bob Huessler has gained a great amount of student interest.
Soon the station will be releasing the schedule for their winter and spring concert series, “The Hostile Takeover Concert Series,” which Mercadante plans to make “bigger, better, and more diverse this year.”
“If you want to make things happen, you do it yourself,” said Mercadante. “That’s what us Gorillas are all about. Stags freeze in headlights. Gorillas take a bite outta the car.”
“We love visitors,” said Mercadante. “Sometimes we get lonely and need to be held. We bring you in, personnel you, train you, contract you and love you.”
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