Media Preservation Foundation
A United States nonprofit archive dedicated to preserving radio and television history, especially station-identification jingles and related broadcast materials.
Last updated August 26, 2026
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Overview
Media Preservation Foundation is a United States 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization focused on preserving the history of broadcasting. Its principal specialization is radio and television identification material, particularly station-identification jingles, production recordings, broadcast documents, and artifacts associated with the creation and use of those materials. The organization was established in 1994 by Tracy E. Carman and Donald Worsham as an archive for important documents and recordings from the broadcasting industry. The Foundation's collections extend across numerous producers, composers, production companies, radio stations, and private collectors. Materials acquired or maintained by the organization have included archives associated with TM Studios, PAMS, JAM Creative Productions, Johnson & Siday, Futuresonic, FairWest, Wm. Meeks Productions, Johnny Mann, Music Makers, Pepper/Tanner, Media General, Jodie Lyons, Tom Merriman, Tony Griffin Productions, and Thompson Creative Productions. The holdings include multiple generations of recording media, such as open-reel tapes, digital audio tapes, compact discs, cassettes, and transcription discs. The collection also encompasses Emergency Broadcast System identification material and other historically significant broadcast audio. A central purpose of the Foundation is to preserve material that broadcasters and production companies often failed to retain in their own corporate archives. It seeks to acquire additional collections and make them available for research, documentation, and other legitimate historical uses. The organization has also supplied archival material to radio outlets preparing historical retrospectives, helping stations reconstruct their programming, sonic identity, and institutional history. Examples of station-related holdings include archives connected with WTIC Radio in Hartford, Connecticut, and WHYN Radio in Springfield, Massachusetts. The Foundation maintains substantial storage facilities in the Springfield, Massachusetts, area, including facilities at Indian Orchard Mills in Indian Orchard. Some archival holdings are also housed in Northridge, California. Its work combines collection development, preservation, cataloging, and selective access for researchers and media organizations. In December 2015, it acquired materials from the private collection of Francis “Frank” Holler Jr., adding another body of historical broadcast material to its holdings. The organization has also contributed to public understanding of the field. Former foundation director Donald Worsham authored The Hits Between The Hits: The History Of Radio ID Jingles, described as a definitive history of radio identification jingles. In 2000, the Foundation established a fund for REELRADIO while that separate nonprofit was seeking tax-exempt status; the two organizations share related preservation objectives but remain distinct entities. Beginning in November 2017, WIOM-LP, a Springfield low-power FM station broadcasting at 101.7 MHz, operated as a broadcast service of the Media Preservation Foundation with an adult contemporary format aimed at the Indian Orchard neighborhood.
History
Media Preservation Foundation was established in 1994 by Tracy E. Carman and Donald Worsham to preserve documents and recordings connected with broadcasting. Its work developed around a problem common in radio and television: stations, production companies, and networks frequently discarded or failed to retain the recordings and paperwork that documented their identities and operating histories. The Foundation therefore adopted an acquisition-oriented model, seeking collections from both active and defunct producers as well as from private collectors. Over time, the Foundation assembled material associated with a wide range of major and specialist contributors to broadcast production, including TM Studios, PAMS, JAM Creative Productions, Johnson & Siday, Futuresonic, FairWest, Wm. Meeks Productions, Johnny Mann, Music Makers, Pepper/Tanner, Media General, Jodie Lyons, Tom Merriman, Tony Griffin Productions, and Thompson Creative Productions. The collections include station-identification jingles, production elements, program and station recordings, documents, and other artifacts. Formats represented in the holdings include open-reel tapes, DATs, CDs, cassettes, and transcription discs. Emergency Broadcast System jingles form part of the preserved material as well. The Foundation's role is not limited to storage. It has provided material to broadcasters preparing historical retrospectives, particularly when the broadcasters themselves no longer possess complete records of their past. Its station-related collections include archives connected with WTIC Radio in Hartford, Connecticut, and WHYN Radio in Springfield, Massachusetts. The Foundation has maintained multiple warehouses in Indian Orchard, Springfield, Massachusetts, while some portions of its archives have been housed in Northridge, California. In 2000, the Foundation established a fund for REELRADIO during that organization's effort to obtain tax-exempt status. Although the two nonprofits have related aims, they are separate organizations. The Foundation experienced an archival setback during the June 1, 2011, New England tornado outbreak, when some of its materials were damaged. In late 2013, it relocated storage facilities to Indian Orchard Mills in Indian Orchard, a neighborhood of Springfield. The organization expanded from preservation into broadcasting in November 2017, when WIOM-LP began operating as a Foundation broadcast service on 101.7 FM in Springfield. The station used an adult contemporary format directed toward the Indian Orchard community. The Foundation also documented the field through The Hits Between The Hits: The History Of Radio ID Jingles, a book written by former director Donald Worsham. Collectively, these activities position the Media Preservation Foundation as both an archival custodian and a specialist source for research into the production, circulation, and cultural history of broadcast identification media.
- 2017
WIOM-LP becomes a Foundation broadcast service
[1]Beginning in November, WIOM-LP at 101.7 FM in Springfield operated as a broadcast service of the Foundation.
- 2015
Frank Holler archive acquired
[1]In December, the Foundation acquired archival materials from the private collection of Francis “Frank” Holler Jr.
- 2013
Storage facilities move to Indian Orchard
[1]The Foundation moved its storage facilities to Indian Orchard Mills in Indian Orchard, Springfield, Massachusetts.
- 2011
Archive damage during New England tornado outbreak
[1]Some Foundation archives were damaged during the June 1 tornado outbreak in New England.
- 2000
Fund established for REELRADIO
[1]The Foundation established a fund for the separate nonprofit REELRADIO while REELRADIO pursued tax-exempt status.
- 1994
Foundation established
[1]Tracy E. Carman and Donald Worsham established the Media Preservation Foundation as an archive for broadcasting documents and recordings.
Products and positioning
A specialist nonprofit preservation institution for the sonic, documentary, and material history of radio and television broadcasting, with particular expertise in station-identification jingles.
Archival collection · 1994
Broadcast archive collections
Collections of radio and television recordings, station documents, production materials, and related artifacts assembled from active and defunct producers, broadcasters, and private collectors. The holdings cover multiple physical and digital formats and are intended to support preservation, research, and historical reconstruction.
Broadcast production archive
Radio identification jingles
A core area of the Foundation's collection consists of station-identification jingles and related audio produced for radio and television. The archive includes work associated with numerous production companies and composers, as well as Emergency Broadcast System identification material.
Book
The Hits Between The Hits: The History Of Radio ID Jingles
A history of radio identification jingles authored by former Foundation director Donald Worsham. The book documents the development and significance of a specialized form of broadcast production.
Low-power FM radio service · 2017
WIOM-LP
A Springfield, Massachusetts, low-power FM station operating as a broadcast service of the Foundation from November 2017. It broadcast at 101.7 FM and used an adult contemporary format aimed at the Indian Orchard neighborhood.
Brand decisions
2017
Launch of WIOM-LP broadcast serviceProduct launchBackground
The Foundation expanded its preservation-oriented activities into operating a local broadcast service.
Action taken
Beginning in November, WIOM-LP broadcast on 101.7 FM in Springfield as a Media Preservation Foundation service using an adult contemporary format.
Aftermath
The station provided the Foundation with an active local broadcasting outlet serving the Indian Orchard area.
2013
Consolidation of storage facilities in Indian OrchardStrategyBackground
The Foundation required storage space for extensive collections of reels, DATs, CDs, cassettes, transcription discs, and other archival materials.
Action taken
It moved its storage facilities to Indian Orchard Mills in Indian Orchard, Springfield, Massachusetts.
Aftermath
The move established Indian Orchard as a principal storage location for the Foundation's growing broadcast archive.
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