image description
The station is seeking community members interested in doing radio shows; training will be provided on the new equipment.
image description
Michael Putnam shows some of the new equipment for the NBCTV's radio station, including a record player he had.

Community Radio Station Powering Up in North Adams

By Tammy DanielsiBerkshires Staff
Print Story | Email Story

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — A new low-power public FM station in the city will sport a well-known set of call letters: WMNB.

Northern Berkshire Community Television Corp. has added WMNB-lp (for "low power") on 107.1-FM to its public access lineup. The station is expected to debut in early February.

NBCTV board President Michael Putnam said the impetus for adding the radio station is "providing local information for people, not just music ... anybody can play music.

"We're hoping to have people come in and do live shows maybe call-ins or request music."

The station had planned to be operating much earlier but NBCTV's relocation to Union Street — caused by plans to redevelop Western Gateway Heritage State Park — delayed its launch.

The low power means the station can't broadcast far beyond North Adams: it reaches north over the line into Stamford, Vt., to the borders of Williamstown and Adams and barely into Florida.

"We went to Billmont's (in Stamford) and sat in the parking lot and listened to it," said Putnam. Another section to the tower is going to be installed that could slightly further the reach.

Low-power frequencies are used by non-commercial entities, including for education or public safety. Application availability through the Federal Communications Commission comes up every few years. Putnam said the last rounds were in 2003 and in 2009, when NBCTV applied.

More than 30 low-power stations were approved or renewed across the state in the last round, including one for Franklin Community Access Television, the Nantucket Police Department and the city of Boston.

The station commits to eight to 10 hours of original, local daily programming and has to renew its license every three to five years. NBCTV's new location will have two radio studios and a third performance studio that can be used by both the radio and television station. Some of the local TV shows may also be broadcast in audio format.

Putnam sees the radio station as an opportunity for community members who may be reticent to do a television show on cable access.



"A lot of people aren't comfortable in front of a TV camera.They're more likely to do this ... because nobody cares what you look like," he joked.

Anyone interested in doing a radio show can pick up a form to fill out at the studio offices at Heritage State Park or check the radio station's Facebook page.

The station will move to its new quarters in the next couple weeks in the former car dealership at Union and Canal streets. It's hoped the central, easy-to-find location will spur more interest in the station and act as a gathering place for the community.

"When you move to a new place, and you get new equipment, you get new ideas, you get new people involved and that's what we're looking for," said Putnam.


WMNB-lp will center on North Adams.

Putnam said the idea for the radio station was initially broached by state Rep. Gailanne Cariddi, who's been involved with NBCTV for years. But Putnam, a founding member of NBCTV, has a long history with radio and already has a show lined up.

"I started in radio in grammar school doing the rosary on Sunday night on the radio at WMNB. The churches would take turns doing the rosary at 10," he said. "That's where I got the bug."

He went to school in Boston and then spent three years in the Army as the radio voice of Ford Devens.

"That was a great privilege being 19 years old and having a lot of pull," Putnam said. "Having people calling me and asking me for stories."

After a stint in the Fitchburg area, he returned to North Adams as the "overnight guy" at what was then WMNB, running a "Live 25" show that "had a huge audience of middle school kids."

The commercial radio station has different owners now and changed the call letters to WNAW some years ago. Putnam knew the WMNB call letters were available and made sure to apply for them.

"The letters belong here," he said. "They don't belong to any other part of the country because they stand for Western Mass Northern Berkshire."


Tags: NBCTV,   public television,   radio,   

If you would like to contribute information on this article, contact us at info@iberkshires.com.

North Adams Arts Commission OKs 'Hatchlings' Installations for Downtown

By Tammy DanielsiBerkshires Staff

Vanessa Hooper of Studio HHH gives a presentation on the light structures to the Public Arts Commission on Thursday. 
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — A light installation that's graced the Esplanade and Greenway in Boston the last couple years will spend the spring, and likely the summer, in North Adams. 
 
The Public Arts Commission last week enthusiastically approved a proposal by Studio HHH to set up the "Hatchlings," six lighted half shells, at points around the downtown. 
 
The studio has offices in Greylock Works, where the Hatchlings were built. The half shells are a metal framework strung with LED lights that can be programmed. Two are solar-powered and the others require electricity. 
 
"They really just generally attract a lot of attention and people wanting to come ... they just sort of flock to it and want to take photos," said Vanessa Hooper, director of Studio HHH. 
 
She gave a presentation on their construction and showed pictures of people interacting with them during their time in Boston.
 
"I included these photos because we were actually really surprised that a lot of people come during the day and still like to take photographs in them as they are, this sort of like basket-woven black structure is also just really beautiful, and people love that, too."
 
They spent a year on the Esplanade, playing off the iconic Hatch Shell, and the Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy Greenway, until all nine were moved to the Greenway last November.
 
View Full Story

More North Adams Stories