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KRCU Public Radio in Cape Girardeau about to expand

By Crystal Britt - bio | email

CAPE GIRARDEAU, MO (KFVS) - Students and staff at the radio station on Southeast Missouri State University's campus will soon have a much bigger listening audience.

With the St. Louis area set to lose a classical music station, KRCU public radio in Cape Girardeau hopes to fill that void.

It's a big deal to KRCU and Southeast as an upcoming power increase will allow the radio station to reach into South County and metropolitan St. Louis, providing more opportunities.

Junior Mark Walter is one of 10 students taking advantage of the hands-on training at KRCU.  

"It's exciting for us being students not professionals, but getting this experience that we can use for later jobs," said Walter.

In operation since 1976 and a National Public Radio affiliate since 1990, KRCU is looking to expand.

"We do many different things," said KRCU General Manager Dan Woods.  "We're not all classical, all news or all jazz,".  We do many different things to appeal to a broader audience."

That audience is about to grow.

It appears a classical radio station in St. Louis is about to be sold, making way for KRCU.

"KRCU's grown over the past 20 years, and now to think we're going to pick up more listeners to expand the reach of the university," said Woods.

What they'll do is increase power and upgrade the station's antenna in Farmington, which should reach a lot of listeners in St. Louis County.

"Gives us a chance to expand what we're doing, and double our transmitting power from a 9500 to 20,000 watts which is very exciting," said Woods.

Student Mark Walter is from St. Louis, so he's excited about the possibility of his family and friends hearing him on the air.

It will give him and other students a resume booster, as that listening audience continues to grow.

The big power increase and antenna upgrade takes place in 2010.

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