This week’s EOT covered many topics popping up in the news lately from history education reform to the earthquakes in Chile and Haiti to Ignite Raleigh, and more. Be sure to check out the links for more info.

NEWS
On this week’s newscast, guest newscaster William Lampe and Correspondent Evan Garris gave us the top headlines for the week:
Earthquake/Tsunami
Bosnian wars
Guantanamo detainee case
Apple’s use of child labor
Canada beats U.S.
I-40 wreckage
ABC system in N.C.
Listen to the stories here:

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SPORTS
This week in sports, Correspondents Tommy Anderson and Tyler Everett gave listeners the weekly update:

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VIEWPOINT
This week, Evan spoke on his views about tolerance toward homosexuality. Here is an excerpt: This stigma we’ve created is what’s unacceptable — and oh, did we create it. No god would be so bold as to say one man is worth more than another because of who he happens to love. Homosexuality is about as much of a choice as heterosexuality, but for some reason, we can’t see the writing on the wall; for some reason, two men cannot share a loving relationship equal to that of a man and a woman. I guess it’s just become easier to fear what we don’t know and hate what we refuse to understand.” Listen to the full editorial here and let us know what you think:

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VIP
Members of North Carolina’s Department of Public Instruction drafted of a plan that calls for teaching history before 1877 to not be taught in North Carolina high schools in the traditional way but instead for it to be taught in elementary and middle schools. Since this first draft was published, the amount of debate over it has been intense. Some believe students won’t be able to get the history education necessary to excel in college, while others argue that students are given a more specialized look into particular areas of U.S. history. Michael Jones, a history major and EOT correspondent, thought he would set the record straight. He sat down N.C. State Professor Holly Brewer and Superintendent of the Department of Public Instruction June Atkinson, to get a more comprehensive understanding of what’s in the first draft and what the implications of the first draft have on history education reform in North Carolina. And EOT host Saja Hindi did a live phone interview with social studies teacher from Broughton High School Lee Quinn to talk about the plan and teachers’ sentiments. The initial plan was rejected after feedback and a new plan is set to be posted in April. Listen to the full segment:

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COMMUNITY CANVAS

This week on Community Canvas, Jacob Downey talked with Ryan Boyles an event coordinator for Ignite Raleigh. The second Ignite Raleigh event will take place March 3 from 7 to 9 p.m. at the Lincoln Theatre. Fifteen participants will be sharing their ideas about topics ranging from 20 Little-Known Facts about Sex & Pleasure to Mayberry Modernism or Why the Triangle is America’s Hotspot for Way Cool Houses. Boyles tells us how the presenters were chosen, the constraints of the five minute presentations and how audience members can give back to their community at through Doners Choose. We also talked one of the founders of the Ignite series Brady Forrest about the events origin. Listen here:

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WOLFPACKER OF THE WEEK
For this week’s online-esclusive Wolfpacker of the Week, I sat down with Jennifer Halweil, a senior in electrical engineering, to talk about her project with a team of two other students to participate in a world-wide competition hosted by Société Générale, an international bank headquartered in Paris. “We are the only U.S. team that has advanced to the second round of the competition,” Halweil said. To make it to the final round of the competition and potentially win 12,000 euros and the opportunity to implement their idea, the group had 12 days (since the interview) to promote a wikiblog about the project and garner as much feedback and support through the site.  Her team’s idea is “to create a banking network to support women entrepreneurs, with the goal of increasing women’s access to financial capital, as well as creating opportunities for women in poor and rural areas.” Listen to Halweil’s plan here:

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SOUNDBYTES
This week on Soundbytes, Correspondent Chris Cioffi talked to students about how they were helping or hope the University will help to benefit those who suffered from the earthquakes in Haiti and Chili. Here is what people had to say:

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Comments, questions, suggestions? E-mail us at publiaffairs@wknc.org.

WKNC 88.1 FM, the student-run radio station at North Carolina State University, offers volunteer on- and off-air positions to full-time N.C. State students with a 2.0 minimum grade point average. To qualify for an on-air position, you must first complete a five week WKNC training program and pass a written operator’s exam and demonstrative audio board test.

In the past, WKNC has opened its training program on a first-come, first-serve basis to NCSU students. This has had mixed results, as some students complete the program but for whatever reason never become part of the staff. To maximize the results of the WKNC training program and find students well-suited for success at the station, the general manager and program director have decided to implement a new application process for the Spring 2010 semester.

All students interested in WKNC must attend one of two initial interest meetings Wednesday, January 13, 2010 from 6-7 p.m. or Friday, January 15, 2010 from 6-7 p.m. Both will be held in the Student Senate Chambers on the second floor of Witherspoon Student Center. During the interest meeting, we will provide an overview of WKNC and its role on campus and in the community. We will also circulate an application for interested potential staff members.  Individuals interested in electronic, hip-hop, heavy metal and public affairs are particularly encouraged to attend the interest meeting and apply for a spot in the WKNC training program.

After the interest meetings, our general manager will contact you via email to notify you if you have been accepted into the WKNC training program. Decisions will be made by the general manager and program director, in consultation with the student board of directors. Discrimination based upon race, color, religion, creed, sex, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, or sexual orientation is in violation of federal and state law and North Carolina State University policy, and will not be tolerated. WKNC will follow all Student Media, University, state and federal procedures, policies and laws regarding equal opportunity employment.

Our first training class is Wednesday, January 20 from 6-7 p.m. and will be held at that time for five consecutive weeks. Four weeks of in-studio training with a current DJ will begin the week of January 25.

Station adviser Jamie Lynn Gilbert (right) instructs DJ Zuul (left) about the proper procedure for on-air giveaways during the Fall 2008 training program.

The staff of N.C. State’s Technician and UNC-Chapel Hill’s Daily Tarheel are playing flag football on Miller Fields, starting at 4:30 p.m. today. For more info on the game or for each publication’s editor’s remarks, check out the last episode of Eye on the Triangle at wknc.org/eot.

For live updates on the game, be sure to follow WKNC’s Twitter @WKNC881.

The game is open to the public.

This Thursday at Tir Na Nog is the Sparkcon Kickoff show. Sparkcon is
a annual DIY festival that showcases Raleigh’s top artists. This show
has a great local lineup: Starmount, Aminal Music, The Jackets and
Bright Young Things. Starmount is a psychedelic, down-tempo, four
piece band headed by Greg Elkin, who has produced albums for many well
known local artists (including Goner- YEAH!). Aminal and The Jackets
will bless the stage with a heavy dose of Americana-Indie rock
followed by Bright Young Things, which will crush you with its pop
sensibility.

This event will also provide local beer tasting from Foothills beer, a
Winston Salem brewery.

Tune in Thursday at 7  p.m. for an interview with Bright Young Things.

Listen in for your chance to win tickets to these awesome local shows happening this week:

Tuesday, September 15th
Missing Cats @ Presented by Cat’s Cradle at Arts Center

Trail of Dead and Secret Machines @ Cat’s Cradle

Trail of Dead

Cowboy Mouth w/ Simplified @ Lincoln Theatre

Cowboy Mouth photo by Sandra O'Claire

Keegan Dewitt with Parachute Musical and Wakey Wakey @ Nightlight

Keegan Dewitt

Old Habits

Old Ceremony with Sunfold @ The Pour House

The Old Ceremony photo by Derek L Anderson

Zoso with Van Heaven @ Lincoln Theatre

Zoso

Who’s Bad with Barbarella @ Cat’s Cradle

Who's Bad

They Might Be Giants

My dad had told me it was the iPod of its day. He had told me it was big, but I hadn’t realised he meant THAT big. It was the size of a small book.

This week marks the 30th anniversary of the Sony Walkman. As someone nearly that old myself, I felt it necessary to share this BBC article in which a 13-year-old boy trades in his iPod for its much older, distant cousin.

Here are the top 30 records at WKNC from the past week, compiled by Daytime Music Director Jenna St. Pierre:

1. Grizzly Bear – Veckatimest
2. Black Moth Super Rainbow – Eating Us
3. Veelee – Three Sides
4. St. Vincent – Actor
5. American Folklore – American Folklore
6. Harlem Shakes – Technicolor Health
7. Doves – Kingdom of Rust
8. Phoenix – Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix
9. Kingsbury Manx – Ascenseur Ouvert
10. Passion Pit – Manners
11. Americans in France – Pretzelvania
12. It Hugs Back – Inside Your Guitar
13. Telekinesis – Telekinesis
14. Lonnie Walker – These Times Old Times
15. Empire of the Sun – Walking on a Dream
16. Decemberists – Hazards of Love
17. Screaming Females – Power Move
18. Roman Candle – Oh Tall Tree In the Ear
19. Yeah Yeah Yeahs – It’s Blitz
20. Metric – Fantasies
21. Akron/Family – Set Em Wild Set Em Free
22. Amadou and Mariam – Welcome to Mali
23. Dirty Projectors – Stillness is the Move
24. Red Collar – Pilgrim
25. White Lies – To Lose My Life
26. Gliss- Devotion Implosion
27. Xu Xu Fang – Seven Days Now
28. Dan Deacon – Bromst
29. Magic Wands – Magic Love and Dreams EP
30. City Center- City Center

The following are albums we’ve recently added to our library, which you can look forward to hearing on the station:

1. Deer Tick – Born on Flag Day
2. Dirty Projectors – Bitte Orca
3. Ha Ha Tonka – Novel Sounds of the Nouveau South
4. Portland Cello Project – The Thao and Justin Powers Sessions
5. Eels – Hombre Lobo

N.C. State’s student radio station earned recognition as one of the best in the Triangle in Independent Weekly’s annual “Best of the Triangle” reader survey. Kyle Robb, the station’s general manager for 2008-2009, accepted the award during his Jun. 10 radio program.

WKNC 88.1 FM, along with Clear Channel’s G105, received finalist honors for Best Radio Station. WUNC 91.5 FM, the NPR-affiliated station from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, earned the top award.

Kelly Reid, known as Mz. Kelly to WKNC listeners, was a finalist for Best Radio DJ. She is one of three WKNC staff recognized as among the Best in the Triangle in recent years. Tom Wharton was voted Best Radio DJ in 2006 and Sam McGuire received a finalist nod in 2007.

Mike Alston, who took over for Robb as general manager in April, thanked the listeners for their loyalty. “We are honored to be finalists,” he said. “We can’t compete with larger stations in terms of resources, but we have a dedicated staff and dedicated listener base.”

“The fact that a group of students can earn this kind of recognition year after year shows the value the student media have to N.C. State University,” Jamie Lynn Gilbert, the station’s advisor, said.

More than 3,000 people filled out the 2009 Best of the Triangle ballot, voting on everything from best pet specialty store to best comfort food.

Independent Weekly voted WKNC Best Radio Station in 2006, 2007 and 2008. The station was named Best College Radio in 2004 and 2005, as well as Best Radio for Music in 2005. WKNC also earned top awards from Spectator in 2001 and 2002.

by Spaceman Spiff

This past Thursday was a busy day for Prabir and the Substitutes! After being stuck in traffic, the band dropped by the 5 o’clock Shadow for an in-studio interview with Mikey P and me. Then, the band headed to Tir Na Nog where they completely rocked out WKNC’s weekly Local Beer Local Band Night with Chapel Hill natives Embarrassing Fruits.

Considering their hectic touring schedule, I was excited to have such a relaxed discussion with the band about their music. Prabir and the Substitutes are a pop-rock group from Richmond, Virginia with a knack for melody and harmony and a keen appreciation for the joys of playing music. Appropriately enough, we discussed the trials and tribulations of touring and the many ways the band keeps their lives enjoyable (everything from maintaining an amusing website to smashing their instruments after their shows). We also spun some great tracks off of their new EP “Hello.”

Check out the interview below!

Prabir part 1
Prabir part 2
Prabir part 3
Prabir part 4
Prabir part 5

In today’s digital world, it’s great to see a band that cares so much about the physical release of an album. I love having something I can hold in my hands when I buy my music—the thrill of driving to my local record store, thumbing through the collection, talking with the clerk as I pay, peeling off that damn sticky tape before prying open the cover, admiring the pictures in the liner notes—owning the physical CD gives me more of a connection with the artist.

In the 1960s, the single was the primary means by which an artist released their music before bands like the Beatles and the Beach Boys demonstrated the artistic importance of the album. In 2007, Prabir and the Substitutes demonstrated their respect for the physical release of an album by intending for the duplicate copy included with their EP, Share, to be given to a friend. The group might not save the physical album from certain doom, but they’re putting up a valiant fight.

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Bands Mel Melton and the Wicked Mojos, The Swingin’ Johnsons, The Soulless Dogs, Will McBride Group, and The Scarlet Divide will battle tonight at Tir Na Nog starting at 7 p.m. for the chance to open for Buckwheat Zydeco at the Artsplosure spring arts festival on May 16. Admission is free.

We at WKNC have a lot to say.

If you get one of our DJs talking about music, be sure you have a lot of time on your hands — it will most likely be a long conversation.

But our listeners probably wouldn’t appreciate lengthy discussions of this type on the air, because that’s not what the station is for. You don’t tune in for talking, you tune in for music.

That’s the beauty of the WKNC Blog. Our DJs have an outlet to fill you in on everything to do with all of our formats — Daytime Rock, Local Music, Underground Hip-Hop, Chainsaw Rock  and specialty shows, along with extras such as multimedia and promotions.

This blog is a relatively new project, and I, Emcee Luck, am serving as its first editor. I’m constantly on the hunt for new ideas for blog posts, and that’s where you, the readers come in.

What do you want to see on our blog? More posts like The 88 Hottest Women in Indie Rock? More reviews of local shows and music festivals?

Send me your suggestions for blog content at blog@wknc.org.

WKNC will be doing maintenance on its transmitter today between 11:45 a.m. and 3 p.m. Listeners at 88.1 FM may experience interruptions in their signal. You can continue listening online at wknc.org/listen.

Yeah, we’re at it again. WKNC’s team of trusty engineers will be working on our transmitter this afternoon. Listeners on 88.1 FM may experience disruptions in the signal for the next few hours. To enhance your listening pleasure, switch to our Internet stream. We promise they will be done in advance of Lonnie Walker’s in studio interview today at 5 p.m.

Our engineering team is continuing to work hard to eradicate the gremlin infestation in our transmitter tower, but in the meantime you may hear bursts of static in the analog signal this afternoon.  You can continue to listen to static free WKNC all afternoon through our webstream, which will not be affected by the maintenance.  Baseball fans fear not, our engineers will have everything back to normal in time for NC State to take on NC A&T at 6:30.

WKNC will be off the air for brief periods throughout the afternoon. In the meantime, please listen to us online at wknc.org/listen.  We thank you all for your patience.