WRNI

WRNI is a radio station in Providence, Rhode Island broadcasting Spanish-language public radio programming. It is owned by Rhode Island Public Radio, but brokers its airtime to Latino Public Radio.HistoryThe station went on the air in 1947 as WNAF; the call letters were changed to WDEM in 1949. It changed to WICE in 1952 to signify its broadcasting the Providence Reds hockey team. During the 1960s and 1970s, WICE presented a top 40 music format, and was owned by Susquehanna Radio. It switched to Portuguese programming as WRCP in 1983.As an English-language public radio stationIn the 1990s, a group of Rhode Islanders formed the Foundation for Ocean State Public Radio in order to bring a local public radio station to the state. At the time, Rhode Island was the only state in New England (traditionally one of the bedrocks of support for NPR) and one of only two in the entire country (the other being Delaware) that didn't have a full-service NPR station within its borders. Most of the state got at least a grade B signal from Boston's WGBH (with Providence itself receiving a city-grade signal) and WBUR. After a few years of looking, they found a partner in Boston University, owner of WBUR. BU agreed to buy WRCP for $1.9 million; the foundation conducted a statewide drive to help raise the funds.