Holly Owens

WNCW

WNCW Spindale is a radio station located in Spindale, NC, broadcasting at 88.7FM and on WSIF Wilkesboro at 90.9 FM, with service to translators in Charlotte, NC at 101.3 FM, in Boone, NC at 92.9 FM, and in Greenville, SC at 97.3 FM. WNCW started as early as 1986 when Isothermal Community College began to receive support from the state of North Carolina and the federal government to prepare for a public radio station to broadcast to a then-underserved Western North Carolina. It was envisioned as a different type of public radio station early on, with key fundraising support from future Development Director and Jazz host Charles Benedict, among others, and the musical vision of future Program Director, Greg Hils, and future General Manager, Burr Beard. After years of planning, preparing and waiting, WNCW began broadcasting on October 13, 1989. The weekday program was dubbed Crossroads and featured a broad range of styles of music such as Folk, World, Jazz, Bluegrass, Rock, Blues and Alternative. Further expansion came in 1992 when the Alternative Radio Coalition, a group from Charlotte, partnered with WNCW to staff ARC Overnight, which allowed WNCW to broadcast 24 hours a day for the first time in November of that year. Translators were also added to serve areas without prime reception: Greenville, SC and Knoxville, TN in 1993, Boone, NC in 1995, in Charlotte several times, with the newest translator being reinstated at 101.3 FM in October 2016, and in November 2008 the station acquired WSIF Wilkesboro at 90.9 FM. WNCW began streaming its broadcast on the World Wide Web in 1999. Today, WNCW serves listeners primarily by playing an expansive range of music, but also with many features and programs focusing on news, history and culture. This is all possible thanks to underwriting, member support and volunteers.