WKNC named ‘Best of the Triangle’

Readers of The Independent Weekly voted WKNC 88.1 FM top radio station in its annual “Best of the Triangle” reader survey. The paper also named WKNC’s ‘Rochester’ the best radio DJ.

“We have been really fortunate to have a great staff this past year,” said Brian Ware, who became general manager in April. “We still have a great staff and will continue to work to be the best radio station in the Triangle. Keep listening because we won’t disappoint you.”

Jamie Lynn Gilbert, the station’s adviser, agrees. “We have some really talented students on staff,” she said. “I am especially proud of ‘Rochester’ for being named best radio DJ. He does such a great job every week. When Rochester gets on the air, the phones just light up with requests.”

“When I found out, I was stunned,” said Tom Wharton, a senior in English/Creative Writing also known on-air as ‘Rochester,’ who has been on the air for three years and who beat the honorable mention DJ Bob Dumas from G105. “This just goes to show that WKNC and Student Media are growing at a rate that parallels the Triangle.”

More than 1,800 people filled out the 2006 Best of the Triangle ballot, voting on everything from best breakfast and best auto mechanic to best place to people watch while drinking beer and the best place for kick-ass shoes.

This is the third year The Independent Weekly honored WKNC, including naming the station Best College Radio in 2004 and 2005. The station also earned Best Radio for Music in 2005.

WKNC 88.1 FM is a student-run, non-commercial, educational radio station that broadcasts at 25,000 watts directly from the North Carolina State University campus. WKNC prides itself in offering forms of music that cannot be heard anywhere else on the dial. Primary formats are alternative, loud rock, hip-hop and electronica. Specialty shows include local music, heavy metal, punk, Latin music, Southeast Asian music and reggae.