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New radio station now on air in Canton, airing Public Radio Remix

Posted 5/29/11

By MAUREEN PICHÉ North Country Public Radio is now on the air with a new station and a new service available over the air on only one other station in the nation. WREM 88.7 in Canton can be heard …

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New radio station now on air in Canton, airing Public Radio Remix

Posted

By MAUREEN PICHÉ

North Country Public Radio is now on the air with a new station and a new service available over the air on only one other station in the nation.

WREM 88.7 in Canton can be heard throughout central St. Lawrence County, broadcasting the Public Radio Remix, an experimental radio stream featuring public radio stories, conversations, audio essays, talks, sounds and the work of young producers 24 hours a day.

Remix is curated by PRX, the Public Radio Exchange, and broadcast on only one other station, KPBZ in Spokane, Wash.

“This has a different feel and content than traditional public radio,” said Jackie Sautter, NCPR program director. “This gives people a chance to hear new work and a greater variety of work by younger producers. I think a lot of people who aren’t familiar with NCPR or don’t care for our format might enjoy this.”

Right now, the broadcasting radius of the new station extends to the greater Canton-Potsdam area for those without an antenna. In cars, and depending on terrain, actual reception may be much wider.

But PRX does offer an online stream of Public Radio REMIX, which has a slightly different playlist from its broadcast counterpart. However, anyone with a computer can access the stream throughout the county and beyond. You can find the link to the stream on the NCPR site northcountrypublicradio.org.

Sautter said NCPR was able to pick up the new frequency through the FCC. The frequency has never been used, and is in the non-commercial portion of the band.

She said the station could have just used the new frequency for a simulcast of NCPR, but opted for this low-cost, diverse programming instead. The station is automated, so the overhead is the streaming fee.

At some point, Sautter said the station may look for underwriters, but she also encourages public radio supporters to send in donations to keep it up and going. Eventually, she added, the station may introduce local content.

Find playlists, coverage, the Remix blog and more: www.ncpr.org/remix.