February 2024 WMNF News & Notes

From elevating on-air standards to fostering diverse voices and community partnerships. A message of community and connection from Station Manager, Randi M. Zimmerman

The end of this month will be my second year as GM of the best radio station on Earth, WMNF. It has been my great joy to take two more laps around the sun in the dream job that I never dreamed about. Thank you all for your support over this time! Even the criticism has encouraged reflection and change. So, thanks for the mental and emotional opportunity to stretch.

We have done a lot as a non-profit organization, community member, and cultural institution. You have all been part of it. If you’re on air, you have raised the bar for what community radio sounds like. Regular listeners have commented about how the station is “sounding better lately.” That’s because Sean Kinane (News & Public Affairs Director) and Sam Hval (Program Director) have been guiding on air volunteers towards following radio best practices. People tell me they notice. More volunteers and interns are producing radio. That means more people have a voice on the radio, and WMNF gets to show off how diverse we are becoming. In this time, I have met many of you who are returning as volunteers and financial contributors after years of hiatus. Welcome back! We are participating in classic WMNF events like the Orange Blossom Review and new ones like Shruti Festival of East-West Dance. We are still a sponsor of our local little league team. And, we have developed a new relationship with our local Boys & Girls Club teaching the kids how to produce radio and offering it on the Pacifica network. WMNF has maintained its relationship with Skipper’s Smokehouse, and we’re building our relationship with The Floridian. We are also actively building relationships with other cultural institutions like the Straz by airing radio theater produced by Patel Conservatory.

The hard working people at WMNF have transformed our website and we are still working on the app so you can get the audio content you want when you want it. Stay tuned as we develop over the next few months a more customizable experience that you coordinate with the programmers who curate the best content available 24-7.

As the beat goes on, we will be dreaming and building a community radio station that you can be sure will continue to promote creative and political vitality. We will be fearless in our pursuit of a more just and sustainable world. During commemoration of special events like Black History Month, we will joyfully note contributions of special people and come to terms with prior abuse because we are willing to civilly have hard conversations. No matter how you participate in the WMNF community, thanks for making all this and so much more happen.

Regards, 

Randi M. Zimmerman 

General Manager, WMNF 88.5FM