Duke Union Community Television (Cable 13), Duke's student-run television station, grew out of Freewater Films' video programming group, following the purchase of a television camera. Cable 13 was the first student-owned and student-run television station in the country. Cable 13 became an official committee of the Duke University Union in 1976. It broadcasts on the Duke campus cable system. The collection consists of videocassettes and videotapes of events recorded at and around Duke between 1976 and 2009. It includes such figures as William S. Burroughs, Allen Ginsberg, Nikki Giovanni, Juanita Kreps, Terry Sanford, Ralph Nader, and Elie Wiesel, as well as performances from Dance Black, the Duke Symphony Orchestra, the Duke Wind Symphony, the Firesign Theatre, Jerry Garcia, and Hoof'n'Horn. Other events include men's and women's basketball, women's crew, football, soccer, men's and women's volleyball, and Joe College Weekend, as well as news and talk shows.

The collection consists of videocassettes and half-inch open reel videotapes of events recorded at and around Duke, as well as student-produced content, between 1976 and 2009. Interviewees and notable figures include William S. Burroughs, Allen Ginsberg, Nikki Giovanni, Juanita Kreps, Joseph Kruzel, Henry Kyemba, Peter Orlovsky, Terry Sanford, Daniel Schorr, Ralph Nader, Elie Wiesel, and Dave Thomas. Performances include Dance Black, the Duke Symphony Orchestra, the Duke Wind Symphony, Hoof'n'Horn, the Firesign Theatre, Jerry Garcia, Lotte Goslar's Pantomime Circus, and Roger McGuinn and Thunderbyrd. Events include men's and women's basketball, women's crew, football, soccer, men's and women's volleyball, and Joe College Weekend. Also included are news, talk shows, panel discussions, and many other shows.

The collection also includes a binder of materials related to the Cable 13 Show Labeling project as well as a sheet for the Cable 13 Programming Director.

The Duke Coffeehouse is a student-run coffee shop and performance venue located on East Campus near Wilson Dorm. The collection includes log books of accounts and shows, tally sheets for cash registers, flyers for the Brickside Music Festival, stickers, and other materials related to the business of the Coffeehouse.

The Duke Coffeehouse Records include log books of accounts and shows, tally sheets for cash registers, flyers for the Brickside Music Festival, stickers, and other materials related to the business of the Coffeehouse from the mid-1980s and the 2000s. Materials are arranged chronologically.

Collection contains records of the Duke University Union (1954-ongoing), a student-run organization at Duke University, concerning all manner of operations and events sponsored by the Union. Within the collection are records related to student life at Duke, symposia put on by the Union, and social and academic events sponsored by the Union. The collection also contains numerous scrapbooks documenting Union events, members, and history from the 1950s through the mid-2000s.

The earliest records in the collection date to the early 1950s, before the Duke University Union was officially founded. The bulk of the records date from the 1960s through the 1990s, and deal with general Union operations, as well as Union-sponsored events.

Among the events represented in the collection are numerous concerts and symposia. During the 1960s and 1970s, the Union sponsored an annual symposium that dealt with contemporary issues and problems. These events frequently drew notable speakers, ranging from Allen Dulles to Ralph Ellison. Concerts were also regularly scheduled and sponsored by the Union. Some of the bands represented in the collection include the Grateful Dead, the Dave Matthews Band, Gordon Lightfoot, and R.E.M. Among the recurring events that the Union sponsored and are represented in the collection are Joe College, Oktoberfest, an annual tree lighting in December, and Springfest (now the Last Day of Classes celebration).

Finally, performing and visual arts are both well-represented in the collection. The Union sponsored frequent performances of plays and musicals, as well as shows by local, national, and international artists. The Broadway at Duke series was also sponsored by the Union and is represented in the collection.

Materials are organized in a loose chronological fashion. There are instances wherein it made more intellectual sense to deviate from strict chronological order at both the folder and box level, and this is represented in the arrangement.

Freewater Films is a student-run programming committee within the Duke University Union (DUU) responsible for both screening and producing films. Film exhibitions have included weekly and summer series, as well as special event screenings featuring particular directors, actors, or genres. As a film production resource, Freewater has provided grants of film stock, equipment, processing, lab work, and technical instruction to members of the Duke community. The collection includes paper records and various film and tape elements produced by Duke students in the making of their original films. Formats include 35mm film, 16mm film, 8mm film, Betacam SP cassettes, audio cassettes, VHS cassettes, DAT tapes, as well as DVDs. The collection also includes some paper documentation associated with particular films, as well as publicity materials and subject files. Film topics include North Carolina environmental issues, poverty in Durham, political rallies, faculty interviews, campus construction, and student performances. Also included are fictional films on psychological, philosophical, or romantic themes, which feature familiar campus locations such as Perkins Library, the Duke Gardens, the Chapel, or the Duke Hospital. The collection also includes compilation tapes of entries from the annual Hal Kammerer Film Competition, as well as film experiments undertaken during Freewater film workshops. The collection is organized chronologically, then alphabetically by film title. In cases where the creators had grouped multiple reels of a particular film into a small box or a can, these groupings were denoted as reel 1-3 of 3, etc. Where available, synposes written on film cans were summarized and included in this finding aid. The majority of these synposes were written by Freewater Productions participant Benjamin Epps.

Major Attractions is a committee of Duke University Union. Its purpose is to present major events of contemporary entertainment with an emphasis on popular music. The collection contains files about attractions and artists brought to the Duke Campus by the Major Attraction committee. Materials present include administrative documents including annual reports, budgets, and policy notices, correspondence, committee minutes, performance contracts, hospitality/technical riders, publicity materials, and clippings. Dates in the collection range from 1957-1995.

The collection contains files about attractions and artists brought to the Duke Campus by the Major Attraction committee of Duke University Union. Materials present include administrative documents including annual reports, budgets, and policy notices, correspondence, committee minutes, performance contracts, hospitality/technical riders, publicity materials, and clippings. Not all attractions and artists actually came to or performed on campus on the dates indicated; some folders may contain information on proposed events that did not occur. The collection is arranged into the following groupings subject files, publicity, and performances. Dates in the collection range from 1957-1995.

Major Speakers is a committee of Duke University Union. Formerly the Educational Affairs Committee, the Major Speakers Committee is responsible for bringing to campus figures of national and international significance to speak upon the complex problems of the times. The collection contains files about speakers brought to the Duke Campus by the Major Speakers committee of Duke University Union. Materials present include administrative documents including budgets, policy notices, correspondence, performance contracts, publicity materials, and clippings. Dates in the collection range from 1956-2003.

The collection contains files about speakers brought to the Duke campus by the Major Speakers Committee of Duke University Union. Materials present include administrative documents including budgets, policy notices, correspondence, performance contracts, publicity materials, and clippings. The collection is arranged into the following groupings subject files, and speakers. Dates in the collection range from 1956-2003.

Quadrangle Pictures, also informally known as Q.P, Quad Pics, and Quad Flix, formed in 1928 to screen films on campus. It quickly became the central source of campus entertainment. Materials in the collection range from 1932 to 1991 and include programs, printed matter, annual reports, financial statements, and advertising campaign materials.

Materials range from 1932 to 1991 and include subject files, arranged alphabetically, relating to the work and programming of Quadrangle Pictures. The files on advertising campaigns detail the types of advertising done for numerous Quad Pics events, including their annual birthday parties at which famous bands frequently played. These files describe visits by bands such as Paul Whiteman and his Orchestra, Tommy Dorsey, and Benny Goodman. Also included are annual reports by manager Walter M. Upchurch, most of which date from the 1930s. Files of financial statements include budgets, film costs, and some attendance figures. The policies and procedures governing ushers, doormen, and other staff are well documented. Flyers, schedules, and programs including song programs of the organlogues and community sings held at Quadrangle Pictures events are also present.

WXDU, as a member of the Duke University Union, exists to inform, educate, and entertain both the students of Duke University and the surrounding community of Durham through quality progressive alternative radio programming. WXDU was founded in 1983 when former station WDUK-1600AM switched to a FM signal. Collection contains public records files, including correspondence and other materials related to FCC matters, program guides, clippings, a DJ handbook, and other materials. Materials range in date from 1977-2001.

Collection contains materials pertaining to FCC matters including correspondence, playlists, Music Forums notebooks containing comments by DJs and staff on station happenings, DJ manuals, event flyers and publicity, employment reports, insurance policies, license applications and renewal, public service announcements, program guides, board member and staff lists, clippings, and other materials concerning the operation of the station.