By MARIUXI MANSFIELD
Staff Writer
“We’re [students] pretty much running the station now, and it’s a lot of fun,” Senior Brianna Hernandez, 21, said.
Hernandez, who goes by the radio name “Briggie Smalls,” is running one of the hottest shows at WFDU- HD3, the student-run radio channel at FDU, with her program, “The Vibe.”
Hernandez is a communications major with a minor in art, a resident assistant in Northpointe and member of the Omega Phi Chi Multicultural Sorority.
“I wear a couple different hats,” she said.
Hernandez became involved with WFDU last semester when she took the radio workshop course and started o with a one hour show. It was at this time that her group wanted to start transitioning from having a classical radio station to a “student radio station,” according to Hernandez.
Eventually, more students got involved in the
station, and there are now almost 20 weekly shows online.
Hernandez’s expectations are for more students to volunteer to host shows so that the station runs continuously as a nonstop student radio station.
“Students can play whatever they want, as long as songs and language are respectful, and our WFDU-HD3 online radio can be listened through iHeartRadio,” she said.
Hernandez’s goal is to continue in the radio business, with possibly an internship elsewhere. But her heart is with FDU.
“My goal will be hopefully to continue on the radio,” she said. “Maybe here at FDU and continuing helping out the radio station and increasing the student involvement, just because I feel that we accomplished a lot in a short period of time.”
Hernandez’s vision reflects her optimism on what the future holds for WFDU- HD3. Since the Metropolitan Campus harbors students from different countries, she is hopeful that the radio incorporates programs that suit the variety of student groups on campus.
“We need more diversity,” Hernandez said. “International students are learning about us, but we should also be able to engage with them. We are bridging that divide – we are trying to become one in turning away all of our differences.”
To hear Hernandez’s show “The Vibe” or any other student programs on WFDU- HD3, tune in at hd3.wfdu.fm or listen at iheart.com.