News and Press

Collectively YOU helped raise $10,842 via 123 supporters over four days of eclectic and specially themed programming. WPKN's dedication to broadcasting sounds and ideas not heard on any other frequency means so much to so many, and for decade after decade, we are continually supported by you, our faithful listeners!

A reminder that all of this specialized programming is available in our archives through the end of the month.

Still want to support? 

VIEW & DOWNLOAD THE WPKN FRESH FOR FALL SCHEDULE 2025 HERE!

October 23, 2025

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT: Jim Motavalli, publicity director, at [email protected]

WPKN Diversifies with a New Schedule Starting November 3, a Refreshed Website, Podcasts, Live Music, and More

As a fiercely independent radio station, WPKN (89.5 FM and wpkn.org) has been dedicated to serving our communities since 1963. But we can’t expect our audience—and the available technology—to stand still. As a result, WPKN is evolving—staying true to our free-form roots while also recognizing how people listen to music, news and public affairs these days. The result is a new broadcast schedule going into effect November 3, an array of podcasts, a freshened website, live music in the studio with video (think NPR’s Tiny Desk Concerts) and much more.

We recognize the existential threats to independent media, and the competition from streaming, podcasts, YouTube and social media posts. It’s time we upped our game. and have embarked on a process of transformation to address these challenges. For a station that has prided itself on the unpredictable, WPKN is acting with strategy and intention for a bid at expanded audience listenership.

WPKN features more than 150 original programs from a wide spectrum of unique DJs and hosts. Membership features two Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame Inductees (Mark Naftalin, Chris Frantz), a founding member of the Cramps (Miriam Linna), a Saturday Night Live band member (Christine Ohlman), professional record company alumni (Howard Thompson, Kevin Patrick, Amy Wachtel, Bob Anderson), popular local club DJs (Neubody, Radio HEAVEN), astronomers, farmers, scientists, writers and many representing diverse parts of the globe from Jamaica, Haiti, Ecuador, Antigua, Nigeria, Mexico, Peru and Brazil.

“WPKN has always prided itself on the art of radio, audio personality, and presentation,” said Brendan Toller, WPKN’s director of operations and new initiatives. “Where would I be personally without the DJs and wild broadcasts that introduced me to the likes of Jackie Shane, Irma Thomas, the Mummies, Allen Toussaint, the Chats and so many more? We are thrilled to be the human antidote in an increasingly AI and algorithmic era.”

WPKN has a 10,000-watt broadcast signal, but that’s only part of our arsenal now. With our new digital tools, you can listen anywhere: Check us out via the WPKN Mobile App, our Internet stream at WPKN.org, or seamlessly in your dash with the TuneIn Car Radio App. Classic WPKN, but in new formats.

Since 2024, WPKN has established podcasts for its public affairs programs with 20,000+ downloads across programs on farming and food justice (Digging in the Dirt, The Table Underground, The Organic Farm Stand), astronomy (Cosmic Perspectives), politics (Counterpoint), architecture (Our Buildings, Our Selves: Humanity in Architecture), and much more. Music podcasts via Apple are rolling out in coming months, with Howard Thompson’s PURE, Binnie Klein’s A Miniature World, and Dave Schneider’s Storied Sounds now available.

WPKN Gold Sounds is a new live music video and broadcast series available on YouTube and all podcast channels. The second pilot session, featuring New York-based multidisciplinary artist and musician Katy Pinke, is here. Gold Sounds artists and bands perform at WPKN’s Bridgeport Studios, captured on video via Black Rock’s Kicker Pictures, and multi-track recorded by Chris Ruggiero (Preservation Sound), and assistant engineer Chris Miller. Video sessions are typically 10 to 20 minutes, paired with a 55-minute broadcast featuring the performance tracks, led by an artist/band interview.

The New Schedule

Valerie Richardson, a former program director, has noted, “Schedule change is like straightening out the linen closet at home.” With that in mind—and with the Talking Heads’ “same as it ever was” buzzing in our ears, we present a new schedule that retains what’s great about WPKN while making it more accessible to a wider audience.

The new schedule, available here, is aimed at making the station more consistent, especially during the critical “drive times” when most people today spend peak time with the radio.

WPKN Program Director Bob Johnson says the new schedule aims to “bring more consistency to the airwaves while staying true to WPKN’s unique, community-centered identity. I believe these schedule changes will set us up for success with the listeners who are the heartbeat of WPKN’s sustainable future.”

The new Monday-to-Friday schedule breaks down as follows:

Early Morning News and Music. From 6 to 6:30 a.m., we air the WPKN Local Daily News, led by WPKN New Director John Ianuzzi, covers Fairfield, Litchfield and New Haven counties in Connecticut, and Suffolk County on Long Island, New York. The program focuses on state legislative sessions and local politics, immigration rights, climate and environmental concerns, economic inequality, poverty, and cost of living issues, and reproductive rights. Broadcasts include diverse voices from the respective communities and direct reporting from the field. The podcast version just surpassed 1,800 downloads. From 6:30 a.m. to 7, it’s a rotating cast of public affairs shows, including Scott Harris’ Between the Lines, the Monthly Labor Report with Richard Hill and Michael Zweig, The Forest and the Trees with Melinda Tuhus, This Way Out, and Tidings and North Fork Report with Hazel Kahan.

7 to 9 a.m., it’s live, high-energy WPKN currents-to-classics music programming featuring Alec Cumming’s Snap, Crackle, POP! Steve di Costanzo’s Radio Base Camp, reggae and African music from Ebong Udoma, Brendan Toller’s Shake ‘n’ Vibrate Radio (alternating with Herman Olivera’s Re-Humanize Yourself), and Del’s In Transition.

9 a.m. to noon is an eclectic coffee break extension featuring Bob Anderson’s A Little Bit of Everything, Miriam Linna’s Kicksville Radio alternating with Linna and Marc Miller’s Crashing the Party, Binnie Klein’s A Miniature World alternating with Martha Willette Lewis’s Flux Capacitor, and Emma Speer’s EMUSE alternating with Storied Sounds with Dave Schneider.

Noon to 3PM features afternoon jazz, worldbeat, blues, reggae, and americana with hosts Lisa Sahulka, Mike Zito, Mike Horyczun, Richard Epstein, Cheryl Magoveny, Cliff Furnald, Amy Wachtel the Night Nurse, and i Messiah.

3 p.m. to 6 p.m. features a return to WPKN music programming with Kevin Gallagher’s Digging in the Dirt, alternating with Kenn Greenquist’s As Heard on WPKN/ Incunabula, Terry Hopper’s The Quest, The Mark Naftalin Show (featuring the former pianist with the Butterfield Blues Band), The Music Never Stopped with Martha Nachman alternating with Valerie Richardson’s Radio Something, Módulo Lunar with Luis Luna alternating with Organic Radio with Bill Cosentino, and finally an electric alternation of Howard Thompson’s PURE, Kevin Patrick’s So Many Records, So Little Time, and Chris Frantz’s The Talking Head.

At 6 p.m., it’s a public affairs rotation with such shows as The Organic Farm Stand with Richard Hill, The Table Underground with food justice organizer Tagan Engel, Writers Voice with Francesca Rheannon, Emotion Roadmap with Chuck Wolfe, Digging in the Dirt with Kevin Gallagher, the LGBTQ Community Show with Andrew Ross and Bonnie Sue, and State of the Arts with Peggy Nelson and Michael Boland.

7 to 8 p.m., WPKN broadcasts Democracy Now! with hosts Amy Goodman and Juan Gonzalez.

8 p.m. to 11 p.m., it’s a mostly musical program, featuring Rod Richardson’s Radio Nothing, Michelle Morgan’s Love and Communication, JMS Jams with Justin Shay, Sounds of the Studio with Donny Russell, The Kitchen Sink with Catherine Conroy, Shaki Presents with Rick Omonte, Radio HEAVEN 2 with NEUBODY 3, and Shut Up and Listen with Mystery Girl, plus shows from Jim Motavalli and ICON. Monday nights are devoted to public affairs, starting with Scott Harris’ Counterpoint leading into a rotation that includes Hazel Kahan’s Tidings, This Way Out, Monthly Labor Report and the Ralph Nader Radio Hour.
11 p.m. to dawn. WPKN has you covered with our late-night eclectic radio shows, including Golden Hours with DJ Tom Oliverio, Rock Therapy After Dark with Music Director Rob Silber, Another Girl, Another Planet with Simon Hunter, SNM Radio with Shenata Nicole and Underground Dispatch with DJ Daysix.

On weekends, WPKN continues its eclectic ways with, among other shows, we air the auto-themed Car Bob Show, My Other Music and Soundprint Asia with Joseph Celli, Alternative Radio with David Barsamian, Soul Hive with the Beehive Queen Christina Ohlman, Preservation Sound with Chris Ruggiero, The A-List with Sam Hopkins, Morning Maniac Music with Dave Golden, and WPKN’s long-running and recently celebrated Sunday Latin music show, La Esquina Latina with Lou Pomales. Rob Silber hosts a Sunday afternoon show, as does Deb Guhl and Harry Minot (WPKN’s long-serving station manager).

About WPKN

WPKN is located at 277 Fairfield Avenue in Bridgeport—walking distance to Read’s Artspace and other arts venues. Founded in 1963 as a 100-watt campus outlet, WPKN is today a 10,000-watt listener-supported community radio station broadcasting at 89.5 FM and streaming online at WPKN.org. WPKN’s terrestrial signal now reaches to a listenership of 1.5 million people in Connecticut, Long Island, parts of New York and Massachusetts. Operating 24/7 and largely run by volunteers, WPKN offers a unique and eclectic mix of live and recorded music, news, public affairs, spoken word, arts and culture and other free-form programming which defy genre.

END

Thursday through Saturday, Sept 25–27 | 7am–7pm daily

WPKN’s Stronger Together fundraiser isn’t just about meeting a goal—it’s about standing up for the kind of radio that speaks freely, listens deeply, and brings people together in all their complexity.

In a time when many forces aim to narrow the media landscape and silence community voices, we’re taking a stand: WPKN will remain bold, independent, curious, and centered around the communities we serve—and we’re asking our listeners to stand with us.

We’re working toward an $89,500 goal by year’s end, and this three-day drive with a goal of $15,000 is our early push. We’re choosing stability, sustainability, and strength—on our own terms.

Stronger Together is more than a slogan. It’s a reminder that this station has always been built by the people who believe in it—from the programmers in the studio to the supporters who keep the signal alive.

Expect your favorite voices, great conversation, and a lot of heart. Because WPKN isn’t background noise—it’s a lifeline.

So tell a friend. Make a gift. Say why you listen.

And let’s show what it really means to be Stronger Together.

Press

Press release by Jim Motavalli

As part of its Latino Heritage Month coverage, listener-supported WPKN Radio (89.5 FM and wpkn.org) and Housatonic Community College in Bridgeport, Connecticut are co-sponsoring two workshops focused on immigrant rights and safety, addressing such questions as, what should you do if ICE stops you, and what are your rights? What is the red card? What is the red folder? If you don’t know the answers to these questions, and you’re either a possible enforcement target or know someone who might be, the events could be life-saving.

The dates are September 17 and 29, 7 to 9 p.m., and the workshops take place at Housatonic Community College, 900 Lafayette Boulevard in Bridgeport.

Phillip E. Berns, a Stamford-based immigration attorney, will address how to handle an ICE stop. The Stratford-based Noyes and Associates, also immigration attorneys, will offer a tutorial on the rights of anyone stopped by the authorities. And the firm will also discuss the red cards, which are available online and advise holders:

• DO NOT OPEN THE DOOR if an immigration agent is knocking on the door.

• DO NOT ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS from an immigration agent if they try to talk to you. You have the right to remain silent.

• DO NOT SIGN ANYTHING without first speaking to a lawyer. You have the right to speak with a lawyer.

If you are outside of your home, ask the agent if you are free to leave and if they say yes, leave calmly.

• GIVE THIS CARD TO THE AGENT. If you are inside of your home, show the card through the window or slide it under the door.

Connecticut Students for a Dream will offer training at the workshops on the red folder, which is a practical, evolving resource for recognizing and supporting the needs of immigrants, regardless of status. This folder equips individuals and organizations with essential policies, resources, and best practices for inclusive care, fostering safer, more informed communities where everyone feels supported.

WPKN initiated the two-month planning for the forums, and brought the organizations together, as part of its broader Latino Heritage Month coverage. The station will also offer on-air interviews on immigration rights leading up to the forums, and beyond.

Turn on, tune in, donate - WPKN airs an encore broadcast presentation of the entire 35+hour hippie-yippee, mud-slidin', brown acid, counterculutral touchstone, WOODSTOCK '69! Commemorating 56 years since the heralded fest shut down freeways, invaded small towns, and created the largest gathering in Western civilization (at the time) of nearly 500,000.

Four days of peace, love and community radio fundraising commences Thursday, August 14 and continues through Sunday, August 17, daily from 7am to 7pm.

This is the ultimate experience. Complete performances and every single stage announcement gives listeners a full perspective of the historic event, featuring all 32 storied sets, and very-of-the-time stage announcements. Think of it like a long-form audio documentary, or sound installation.

Among the artists who memorably played Woodstock are Richie Havens, Joan Baez, the Who, Sly and the Family Stone, Johnny Winter, Ten Years After, Blood, Sweat and Tears, Santana, Joe Cocker, Canned Heat, The Grateful Dead, Janis Joplin, The Band, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young (still a brand-new super group), and Jimi Hendrix.

Favorite WPKN DJ’s will act as guides and fundraising catalysts throughout the broadcast.

The Woodstock '69 broadcast source originates from Rhino’s limited, archival, Aug 2, 2019, 38-disc release Woodstock: Back to The Garden: The Definitive 50th Anniversary Archive, chiefly compiled and produced by Andy Zax. A renowned reissue producer, Zax embarked on the improbable task of piecing together the complete immersive Woodstock experience when the original tapes arrived in 2005 at the Warner Music Storage tape facility in Southern California. The project took years of restoration and artist approvals. Interviews with Zax will bookend various broadcast days.

Lest you think the radio station that rarely repeats itself is lazing, we remind you that this will be only the fourth time Woodstock '69 has been aired in entirety on terrestrial radio. WXPN in Philadelphia being the pioneer station.

2024's broadcast turned into an emotional high of tributes, memories, stories - a true community event for the tristate area, and that, is what we ultimately hope to repeat and build upon in 2025...

DIG THE SCHEDULE:

Join us for the opening of the WPKN Art Collective: Programmers and Volunteers Summer Art Show!

Celebrate the creative talents of WPKN’s programmers and volunteers at this special exhibition featuring original artwork in a variety of styles and media. Stop by the station on Saturday, May 17, from 2 to 5 pm to meet the artists, enjoy refreshments, and celebrate the artists behind the airwaves of WPKN.

WHAT: WPKN Art Collective: Programmers and Volunteers Summer Show

WHERE: WPKN Studios, 277 Fairfield Avenue, Bridgeport, Connecticut

WHEN: Saturday, May 17, 2 to 5 PM

WPKN has debuted two new free listening apps available on the Apple and Android platforms. A major upgrade for WPKN’s global audience, the new WPKN apps allow listeners to tune into WPKN’s new upgraded stream which boasts an SSL (secure socket layer), unlimited capacity, and higher bitrate (read: audio quality).

The WPKN app features quick links to podcasts, archives, social media channels, and a donation page. Song History features 25+ real-time recently played tracks. The app is fully integrated with Apple Carplay and many car interfaces.

Citing a commitment to improved digital infrastructure to better serve WPKN communities, WPKN has simultaneously launched a new website. The website was designed by volunteer, UX/Web developer, Meg Griffin, with direction from Brendan Toller, Director of Operations and New Initiatives, and Anne-Marie Ryzak, Office Manager. The new WPKN website was designed to provide a clear, concise, organized web presence optimized by web analytics, with a focus on improved mobile experience. The site was also built with future expansion and re-branding in mind.