The sale of WDUQ-FM has kicked up controversy at every step -- from the announcement that Duquesne University had decided to put the city's first public radio station on the block, to the struggle between bidders over the deal, to last week's announcement that the station will shift to a news-heavy format, with jazz offerings drastically reduced.

The deal is part of a nationwide wave of public radio sales, and many sparked battles like the one in Pittsburgh.

Last week's announcement that jazz programming will be cut and moved to a full-time, dedicated high-definition channel -- HD -- and an online stream angered many listeners. They protested that the deal was done in secret, the station was sold to the lower of two bidders, and that the station's longtime supporters were not being considered in programming decisions.

The new owners maintain that jazz will still be available and that the new format will invigorate the station.

In January, Duquesne University agreed to sell the WDUQ-FM signal to Essential Public Media, a wholly owned subsidiary of one of Pittsburgh's other public radio stations, WYEP/Pittsburgh Community Broadcasting Corp.

Founded in 1949, WDUQ (90.5) was the city's first public radio station and is the first public radio license in this market to change hands.

The selling price was $6 million, including $4 million in cash, a loan for $500,000 and the balance in underwriting and internship programs. Essential Public Media has raised $3.5 million so far in grants from local foundations.

"We wanted to have local ownership," said WYEP general manager Lee Ferraro.

Essential Public Media is working in partnership with Public Media Co., a newly launched subsidiary of Public Radio Capital, a Boulder, Colo.-based organization that helps groups buy public radio signals. Public Radio Capital is helping the buyers secure up to $4 million in debt financing, if needed. Those funds will come from the FJC Foundation, a foundation for philanthropic funds, and Public Radio Capital's own Public Radio Fund may provide a portion of the financing if needed, said Public Radio Capital managing director and co-founder Susan Harmon.

Essential Public Media did not make the high bid, nor was it the first bidder to work with Public Radio Capital.

When Duquesne put the station up for sale late in 2009, a group of WDUQ employees and supporters formed Pittsburgh Public Media. They wanted to buy the station and preserve the current mix of locally produced jazz and news and National Public Radio programming.

Pittsburgh Public Media enlisted the help of Public Radio Capital. The group submitted an initial bid of $4.5 million and later raised it to $6.5 million when the first offer was turned down.

In May 2010, several local foundations purchased a 60-day option on the license that froze the sale process for two months. During that period the foundations studied possible new directions for the station.

In June, Public Radio Capital withdrew from working with Pittsburgh Public Media on the deal for reasons that have remained murky. Ms. Harmon of Public Capital Radio called the matter "confidential" and would say only that "WDUQ has been subsidized for years by Duquesne University, so taking on debt and becoming independent would require a change from the status quo."

She said the decision to terminate preceded WYEP's involvement in the deal.

"In August, [WYEP board president] Marco Cardamone called us to say that WYEP was concerned about the future of WDUQ and wanted to be sure that the station remained in Pittsburgh as a public radio station," Ms. Harmon said. "We were not approached by Mr. Cardamone until well after we terminated the agreement with PPM."

When the agreement was announced in January, Essential Public Media's $6 million bid was accepted over Pittsburgh Public Media's higher offer -- also for reasons never made clear. Duquesne University president Charles J. Dougherty said during the announcement that the university was looking for a financially strong buyer with an established track record of operating an independent radio station.

The decision angered some who have been supporting the current format with annual pledges.

"As a sustaining member I feel I have a direct line of ownership of this station, along with over 11,000 other sustaining members. We were not consulted and were, in fact, ignored when decisions to sell our radio station were made by the university," said Robert Cowan of McMurray. "In commercial broadcasting the public has no recourse when the broadcaster makes a business decision to change programming. This is public broadcasting owned by the public. The public was not consulted and has been totally ignored."

Public Radio Capital's mission is to expand public radio coverage and audiences. It serves as a consultant to groups that are trying to buy public stations and helps them find the financing. It also lends money to station buyers through its Public Radio Fund, which is supported by several national foundations and NPR. The organization has been involved with more than $260 million in radio transactions since it was founded in 2001.

Public Radio Capital holds licenses in several cities, including Tulsa and Denver, which are operated by local radio organizations under an agreement with Public Radio Capital. But Public Radio Capital is not involved in management and programming.

With the launch of Public Media Co., Public Radio Capital's role changed from sale facilitator to co-owner.

After the 90.5 sale is completed, Public Media Co. will be a consulting partner and will be represented on Essential Public Media's board of directors.

"The WDUQ deal and the launch of Public Media Co. are a first," Ms. Harmon said. Public Radio Capital will be involved not only in the acquisition, but "in the governance and oversight of operations," she said.

A number of public radio stations have been sold recently, and Public Radio Capital was involved in two recent high-profile sales. Space is limited on the radio dial, and some universities struggling to recover from the long economic downturn are seeing their radio stations as valuable assets that can generate cash.

KUSF-FM in San Francisco -- a "freeform" format station, meaning its disc jockeys have control over the music they play -- is being sold by the University of San Francisco in a complicated three-part deal. On Jan. 18, station staff were told they were going off the air within an hour. Like WDUQ, the San Francisco station had been a longtime cultural institution in the community -- airing a wide range of programming and respected for breaking new music and artists over the years. The sale sparked protests among students and in the community.

Pending Federal Communications Commission approval, the new owner will be Classical Public Radio Network, a partnership between Public Radio Capital and the University of Southern California.

Freeform KTRU-FM at Rice University in Houston was just sold to the University of Houston and is now a classical and fine arts station. As with the San Francisco station, the KTRU deal unfolded behind closed doors. "It came as total shock. No one saw it coming," said former station manager Joey Yang, a senior mechanical engineering student at Rice.

Although several groups filed petitions to deny, the FCC approved the Rice sale in April and the deal closed early in May. "In the end, [the FCC is] less concerned about content and what programs are being offered as much as the feasibility" of University of Houston as a suitable license holder, Mr. Yang said.

Both stations have migrated online and are streaming programming, which is also available through smartphone applications. The KUSF in Exile stream is hosted by public station WFMU-FM in New York. KTRU also has an HD channel and has been giving away HD radio receivers so listeners can stay tuned in. "There are other ways to reach our audiences," Mr. Yang said.

Essential Public Media has announced that as of July 1, the station will carry a predominantly news format, with a mix of NPR and other syndicated public radio programs along with locally produced in-depth regional news coverage and a daily call-in interview show. Jazz will move to a six-hour Saturday night time slot and to a full-time dedicated HD channel and online stream.

Who will be on the air come July is still undecided. Essential Public Media chair Marco Cardamone said the hiring process will begin when the new management team is in place in June. He said that they're considering current WDUQ employees as well as outside candidates for jobs with the new venture. They expect to hire a content director who'll oversee programming by mid-June.

Mr. Ferraro said that no decision has been made on whether to keep WDUQ's locally produced specialty shows such as "Rhythm Sweet and Hot" and "Music From India."

People who rely on NPR for national news will be getting what they had before, along with additional NPR programming that doesn't currently air here, Mr. Cardamone said. And the station's online jazz programming is scheduled to expand in scope and diversity as it migrate online and onto HD.

Essential Public Media's management describes the new format as a work in progress. "We won't be fully formed on July 1, but we'll be setting in motion something that's going to be tremendously beneficial for the region," Mr. Ferraro said.

Rich Haverlack has been a WDUQ supporter for 20 years and a volunteer answering phones during pledge drives for the past 10. He isn't a jazz fan, but believes the existing station staff and format should have been kept intact.

He's disappointed that the seller turned down a higher bid from the management team that was already in place at the station.

"These people have been running the station for the past 20 years and running it well. They've grown the place and demonstrated a track record, and yet they're not going to be the people who take it forward." Mr. Haverlack said.

The new leadership feels that there's room for improvement. "We weren't just going to buy a radio station and have an asset like that and maintain the status quo," Mr. Cardamone said. "We had an obligation and a responsibility to add a service that is not in the marketplace and complement two other public radio stations."

The new station is poised to become a regional voice well beyond the bounds of the Pittsburgh radio market. Included in the sale, besides the 90.5 Pittsburgh signal, are a number of repeater transmitters in Johnstown, Somerset, Ligonier and New Baltimore that extend WDUQ's programming to the east. Construction permits have been granted to WDUQ for new facilities in Marion Center/Indiana and Bedford/Everett that would expand the station's reach even farther north and east of the city.

But one of the station's greatest assets is intangible, and that's its listeners. Former WDUQ general manager Scott Hanley has left the station, but stresses that maintaining ties to the loyal community WDUQ has built up over the years is crucial: "The biggest challenge any public broadcasting operation faces in the future is why it should exist at all in a world of many devices and many media outlets. It's the community of people that work there, volunteers, listeners. If you don't have that, you're just another media outlet.

"Public radio should always be about service and stewardship. If you win this radio station, you win an obligation to serve. I wish them all the success in the world."