On Sunday, WVUM lost one of our biggest supporters and one of the best broadcasters of this century, Rick Buckley. 

School of Communication alumnus and Visiting Committee member Richard D. Buckley, the president of Buckley Broadcasting and a champion for radio and education in broadcasting, died of a brain hemorrhage on Sunday, July 31, 2011, in New York. He was 74.

A generous supporter of the University of Miami and the School of Communication, Buckley, B.A. ’62, had also been a member of the President’s Council and an alumni trustee on UM’s Board of Trustees. 

Buckley was a true fan of WVUM 90.5, the university’s student-run radio station, and the driving force behind current plans to increase the station’s broadcast power and coverage area. 

His legacy at the School of Communication includes:

The Richard D. Buckley, Jr. Audio Lab, where thousands of students learn essential radio broadcasting skills and go “on-air” with their reports.

“Rick Buckley’s involvement went well beyond his generous financial support and help in strategic planning,” says Paul Driscoll, vice dean of the UM School of Communication and the faculty advisor for WVUM 90.5 FM. “He touched the lives of many of our students in and out of the classroom and was a friend to many faculty members.  He worked with SoC students in our New York Experience this summer and just last week arranged visits to his N.Y. headquarters for our students. It saddens me to think I’ll never again be able to tell a student seeking career advice to “give Rick Buckley a call.”

A recent inductee into the New York State Broadcasters Hall of Fame, Buckley began a career in broadcasting in 1960 as a page at the NBC. In 1972, he succeeded his father as president of Buckley Broadcasting and headed the company that includes 20 radio stations in New York, California, and Connecticut, as well as WOR Radio Network.  The network syndicates programming to over 400 radio stations.

Buckley was a staunch believer in local radio stations and passed up numerous chances to sell the family-owned business — a bold move in the era of corporate-owned radio stations. Buckley Broadcasting is one of America’s few remaining privately owned and operated radio companies.

Buckley, who lived in Greenwich, CT, is survived by Constance “Connie” Buckley, his wife of 37 years and their daughter, Jennifer. A public memorial service will be held on Wednesday, September 8, 2011, at 11 a.m., at The Christ Church in Greenwich, CT. The family has requested that in lieu of flowers, donations be made to the Broadcasters’ Foundation of America (www.broadcastersfoundation.org) or to the Richard D. Buckley Memorial Fund to support radio broadcasting at the University of Miami. Please send donations to: Richard D. Buckley Memorial Fund, University of Miami, P.O. Box 248053, Coral Gables, FL 33124 or give online to the fund at www.miami.edu/rbuckley.