William Paterson University's radio station, 88.7 WPSC-FM, also known as Brave New Radio, has been awarded the title of "College Radio Station of the Year" for 2024 by the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) during its annual Marconi Radio Awards. This accolade is recognized as one of the highest honors in the radio industry.
This marks WPSC-FM's third Marconi Award and seventh Top 5 finish, having previously won Best College Radio Station in 2021 and Non-Commercial Station of the Year in 2018. Rob Taylor, general manager of WPSC, expressed pride in their students' dedication to quality programming and community service. He highlighted the achievements of Bella Rocha and Daniel Karp during their acceptance speeches at the event.
WPSC-FM was launched in 1988 and is noted for founding World College Radio Day in 2010. The day aims to highlight college radio stations' significance and is celebrated annually by over 600 stations worldwide through continuous live programming.
The station achieved a historic first by producing a live broadcast from the Marconi Museum in Bologna, Italy—the birthplace of wireless radio invented by Guglielmo Marconi, after whom the awards are named.
The student-produced content at WPSC-FM supports local alternative hip hop artists while also featuring classic and alternative rock music. The station includes news and sports reports, talk/music shows, and a Music Biz 101 show with guest speakers from their nationally-recognized music and entertainment industries degree program.
Bella Rocha, a junior serving as co-program director at WPSC, credited strong leadership within Brave New Radio for this achievement: “Winning a Marconi Award is an achievement that would not have been possible without the amazing directors at Brave New Radio."
The announcement came during NAB's annual celebration held in New York City. Established in 1989, NAB Marconi Radio Awards honor excellence among radio stations and on-air personalities. Finalists were selected by a committee of broadcasters with winners chosen by the NAB Marconi Radio Awards Selection Academy.
Daniel Karp, a sophomore co-program director at WPSC, emphasized the team's effort: “Winning the prestigious Marconi award signifies the hard work, dedication, and family at our radio station.”
