The unveiling of "The Penn State Football Show" on ComRadio last year also marked the debut of Peter Chalfin's first radio show experience.

"I was pretty nervous and was just introduced to all the little radio controls," Chalfin (sophomore-journalism) said.

Within the first five minutes of his radio show, Chalfin noticed the volume needle remained stationary, signaling to him that his words were not transferring to the audience.

"I freaked out, but I kept doing the show," Chalfin said. "As soon as the show went to a commercial break, I ran and got [General Manager] Jeff Brown."

It turns out Chalfin was on the air during the confusion, but now he can look back and laugh at the experience.

"I still don't know what I did wrong, but hopefully I don't do it again," Chalfin said.

After several shows and more experience, Chalfin continues his weekly radio show featured on ComRadio, Penn State's student-run radio station.

After two years on the air, ComRadio is making some changes, which include the beginning of a music format this semester.

Until its recent demise, the Associated Press all-news radio broadcasts were looped in the times between student shows, College of Communications Dean Douglas Anderson said.

"[The AP] informed us last semester their operations were to shut down," Anderson said. "It caught us by surprise originally."

Producer Rob Arcamona (junior-broadcast journalism) said with the playlist of adult contemporary and jazz tunes, ComRadio hopes to target both the student and alumni market.

"[The music choice] is not too specific to any age group," Arcamona said. "Anyone can enjoy it."

He added that the majority of the student-broadcast shows, and not music, are aired after 3 p.m., when students are most likely to tune in.

ComRadio has grown tremendously in the past three years since its inception in the fall of 2002, Brown said.

"We went from a couple of students to where we are now, with 147 students and 83 new recruits this year," Brown said.

He added that on any given week, ComRadio airs nearly 30 student talk shows.

Arcamona said that a testament to ComRadio's growth was the recent in-person broadcast of the away football game against Northwestern.

"We flew the guys out and it went great," Arcamona said. "Not just how the game ended, but they got to travel."

Arcamona said he hopes ComRadio will provide in-person broadcasts for all major Penn State sports within a few years.

Sports Director Mike Wolf, who broadcasts two shows, "Suicide Squeeze" and "In the Paint," said all of the shows can be listened to through the Web site, comradio.psu.edu.

Reports show the station has been accessed through the Web site in such faraway continents as South America and Asia. Specific countries include Russia, China, Brazil, Singapore, Italy and the United Kingdom, Wolf added.

"It shows how everyone wants to stay in touch with Penn State even if they are on the other side of the world," he said.

In addition to providing a news and music forum for listeners, the ultimate goal of ComRadio is to bring together students with a passion for news broadcasting, Brown said.

"This is a great learning ground," he said. "...When they go out, they are better prepared and can move seamlessly into their first professional job."

Pointing to the increase in call-ins and hits to ComRadio Web site, Brown said that this year holds the potential for tremendous growth.

"We're literally doubling our audience every week," Brown said.