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| Broadcast area | Chattanooga metropolitan area -Tennessee Valley |
|---|---|
| Frequency | 88.1MHz (HD Radio) |
| Programming | |
| Format | Public Radio -Adult Album Alternative -News - Talk |
| Affiliations | National Public Radio Public Radio Exchange American Public Media |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | University of Tennessee at Chattanooga |
| History | |
First air date | March 1980; 45 years ago (1980-03) |
Call sign meaning | University ofTennessee atChattanooga |
| Technical information[1] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 69325 |
| Class | C1 |
| ERP | 30,000watts |
| HAAT | 271 meters (889 ft) |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
| Webcast | Listen live |
| Website | wutc.org |
WUTC (88.1 FM) is anon-commercial, listener-supportedpublicradio station inChattanooga, Tennessee, serving theChattanooga metropolitan area and theTennessee Valley. It is owned and operated by theUniversity of Tennessee at Chattanooga and broadcasts from UTC campus. It is amember station ofNational Public Radio and broadcasts news programs plus a variety of music, includingadult album alternative and related genres.
WUTC has aneffective radiated power (ERP) of 30,000watts. Thetransmittertower is on Sawyer Cemetery Road inWalden. The signal can be heard in parts ofTennessee,Georgia,Alabama andNorth Carolina.
WUTC airs a mix of news and talk programs andadult album alternative (AAA) music shows on weekdays with other genres heard on weekends. Popular weekday shows from NPR includeMorning Edition,All Things Considered andFresh Air. Once-a-week specialty shows includeOn The Media,The Moth Radio Hour,Latino USA,Travel with Rick Steves,The New Yorker Radio Hour,Radiolab,The TED Radio Hour,Freakonomics Radio,Left, Right and Center andWait, Wait, Don't Tell Me.
Weekday music shows are hosted by Richard Windham (late mornings) and Haley Solomon (early evenings). Specialty music shows, heard nights and weekends, include programs onacoustic,bluegrass,jazz,folk,blues andCeltic music. The station seeks donations on the air and on its website.
In June 2025, it was revealed late morning host Richard Windham would be retiring from radio at the end of the month after having worked at the station since the late 1980s. A benefit concert will be held in his name to celebrate his illustrious career in radio and his contributions towards it.
WUTCsigned on the air in March 1980; 45 years ago (1980-03).[2] In its early years, it aired aclassical musicradio format, with news and educational shows. Another Chattanooga non-commercial station, 90.5WSMC-FM, also airs classical music. WUTC's studios were in Race Hall on the UTC campus.
Until 1988, WUTC rebroadcast the morning programming ofWUOT-FM inKnoxville. At that point, WUTC obtained its own satellite downlink and was able to obtainnationally syndicated programming from public radio networks on its own.
In October 1995, WUTC became the exclusive home in the Chattanooga market for several NPR programs, includingMorning Edition,All Things Considered,Car Talk andWeekend Edition. That's when 90.5 WSMC-FM dropped most NPR programming due to conflicts with religious programming on its schedule. WSMC-FM is owned bySouthern Adventist University and it devotes some hours on Fridays and Saturdays toAdventist programming.[3]
Today, WUTC maintains a mix of syndicated programming and local music shows in its weekday schedule, with a focus on syndicated shows almost exclusively on weekends. In July 2002, WUTC began streaming its broadcast online. In May 2006, it became the first Chattanooga radio station (public or commercial) to simulcast its broadcast inHD Radio format. In 2022, WUTC moved its studios and offices from its longtime location in Cadek Hall to the 7th floor of the State Office Building at 540 McCallie Ave., relocating in 2024 to the UTC Administrative Services Building on Palmetto Street during the renovation of 540 McCallie.
In March 2017, the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga fired WUTC reporter Jacqui Helbert, who had interviewed state politicians about atransgender bathroom bill. The political figures alleged they did not know she was a journalist even though she was reportedly wearing headphones and a microphone with the WUTC logo.
The dismissal came after state legislators complained to university officials. Station and university officials said that Helbert breached journalistic ethics by not identifying herself as a journalist or giving the legislators a chance to comment before the story aired. However, critics claimed station and university officials overreacted out of fear that the legislature would reduce the station's funding.[4][5][6][7]
35°12′25″N85°16′52″W / 35.207°N 85.281°W /35.207; -85.281