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WBGO Community Engagement

As a Newark-based public broadcaster, the community we serve – the public – is the reason we exist and the foundation for all we do. We partner with local cultural and community groups and create special programs to support the arts and strengthen our community. 

Gateway Center Concert Series
Celebrated artists from Newark and beyond performing free and open to the public - regularly on the first Wednesday of every month. Bring your lunch and join in what always proves to be a special hour of music for all. Artists have included Antoinette Montague, SYOTOS, Bobby Sanabria, Akua Dixon, Matthew Whittaker, Alexis Morrast, Brandee Younger, Steve Kroon, Lakecia Benjamin, Ray Mantilla, Mark Gross, Don Braden and so many others. School groups are welcome. Convenient to public transportation and connected via an indoor walkway to Newark Penn Station.

Youth Programming
We bring the music to where people are. Maybe you have attended one of our kids concerts in a local Newark Synagogue or at the World Famous Apollo Theater. Supporting local music education is also an important part of our Jazz Appreciation Month Programming, and we showcase our young talent to audiences around the corner and around the globe.

Media Fellows
Created to honor WBGO’s late past President Cephas Bowles, the WBGO Media Fellowship is designed to provide a window into the world of public media for two Newark higher education students with a paid stipend during the summer break. This program encompasses news, production techniques and storytelling and opens the curtain to future careers in all elements of public broadcasting.

Newark Arts Calendar
An essential connector of the burdgening Newark arts scene, the Newark Arts Calendar is heard six times per day on the air and is always available online at WBGO.org. The calendar features listings and ticket information for venues, performances and related arts and cultural activities throughout the city of Newark, This service is offered at no charge to all arts presenters, many of whom do not have the resources to “get the word out” and build audiences which is vital to the sustainability of the arts.

Community Food Bank
Day Held in partnership with the Community Foodbank of New Jersey and the United Way of Greater Newark during our September year-end fund drive, this program provides necessary meals to families in our community. In 2019, over 600 families received shelf-stable, family-friendly meals thanks to the support of WBGO and our members.

Pet Day
Sharing this music with a loved one doesn’t have to stop at those with two legs. Perhaps your cat is named Miles or your bird is named Dizzy. What better way to honor that special friend in your life or one who has passed on than by making a contribution to WBGO? A generous WBGO donor has committed to matching the first $10 of every membership level pledge with a contribution to a local Newark animal shelter.

Newark Today
The topics can be hot and the questions direct. Newark Today, WBGO’s long-running monthly call in show hosted by NJTV’s Michael Hill gives our community direct access to those making the decisions that impact them, including the Mayor of Newark. Recent programs have tackled issues ranging from the future of Newark’s water to the state of our schools, with listeners asking the questions that matter most.

New Voices Engagement Fellowship
Conceived as a fellowship to work on breaking down barriers between those who live the news and those who report it, the News Voices project has the potential to be instrumental in finding truth in media in our city. With traditional reporting becoming more and more fractured and sensationalized, the word from Newark is often crime and unrest thanks to traditional media. As a public radio station, WBGO’s responsibility is to report the truth - and that can only be done if we can connect in a meaningful way with our citizens. The News Voices project is just that tool.