“From Delaware State University, this is 91.1 WDDE, Dover!!!!!”

Those words rang out at noon Friday, Aug. 17, as the first-ever Delaware-focused public radio station was launched into the airwaves. The only Delaware-based source for National Public Radio programming is based on the DSU campus in the former ROTC/Center for Teaching and Learning building across the street from the rear of the ETV Building.

DSU President Harry L. Williams was at the radio station for its launch.

“It’s a great day for DSU and WDDE-FM,” Dr. Williams said. “Now you will hear the name Delaware State University 24 hours a day.”

WDDE-FM is owned by Delaware First Media, the nonprofit company that operates the online multimedia news service DFM News. DSU and the University of Delaware have joined Delaware First Media (DFM) in a historic collaboration to launch WDDE-FM.

WDDE 91.1 FM now broadcasts into all three counties, serving a Delaware audience of more than 800,000 on-air and online listeners with nonpartisan local, national and international news.

“WDDE is a major step in Delaware’s evolution as a state with a strong news media that connects Delawareans downstate and upstate to create a shared community culture,” said Delaware First Media President Micheline Boudreau. “We are thrilled to launch this project with the strong sponsorship of Delaware’s premier universities.”

WDDE will generate original, substantive news coverage of Delaware events and people that is urgently needed in a state with few local news sources. “Some Delawareans can tune into out-of-state public radio stations, but when they break for local news, they’re not focusing on what’s happening in Delaware’s legislature, at a Delaware theater, in Delaware schools,” said Ms. Boudreau. “On WDDE you’ll find out what’s going on right here where we live.”

WDDE will have a national impact as well. WDDE reports about Delaware will be exported to National Public Radio’s audience of more than 26 million listeners nationwide.

NPR officials welcomed the news.

“Local stations serving communities across this nation are the strength and backbone of public media,” said NPR CEO Gary Knell. “We are very excited about the prospect of WDDE-91.1FM in Delaware joining the NPR family of member stations.”

“Every day, great stories about Delaware go untold,” Ms. Boudreau said. “Important stories about the legislature, about this year’s election, about our vibrant arts community, about innovations in education, about Delaware’s unique legal community, about its industries – we want to start telling these stories now.”