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Broadcast area | Greater Boston |
Frequency | 590 kHz |
Branding | 590 AM The Word |
Programming | |
Language(s) | English |
Format | Christian radio |
Affiliations | Salem Radio Network |
Ownership | |
Owner |
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WROL | |
History | |
First air date | September 29, 1924 [1] |
Former call signs |
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Former frequencies |
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Call sign meaning | Taken from the former WEZE (1260 AM), now WBIX |
Technical information [2] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
Facility ID | 3594 |
Class | B |
Power | 5,000 watts (unlimited) |
Transmitter coordinates | 42°24′24.35″N71°5′12.19″W / 42.4067639°N 71.0867194°W |
Links | |
Public license information | |
Webcast |
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Website | wezeradio |
WEZE (590 AM) – branded 590 AM The Word – is a commercial Christian radio station licensed to Boston, Massachusetts, serving Greater Boston and much of surrounding New England. Owned by Salem Communications, WEZE is the Boston affiliate for the Salem Radio Network. The WEZE studios are located in the Boston suburb of North Quincy, and the station transmitter resides in neighboring Medford. Besides a standard analog transmission, WEZE is available online.
It is the aim of the officials of WEEI to make the station individual and original. Although WEAF of New York has been borne in mind while the plans were being made, the Edison Light Station will not be copied from WEAF. It is intended to make the station outstanding in the broadcasting field.
The Edison Electric Illuminating Company of Boston built and signed on this station as the first incarnation of WEEI, from which the call sign was derived. [3] The electric company established WEEI as a public relations vehicle and extensively promoted the new venture weeks before launching, highlighting the usage of the latest and most advanced radio equipment. [4] A Boston Globe profile specifically cited AT&T's success with WEAF as Edison Light's inspiration for WEEI; while the company stressed that WEEI would not be a direct copy of WEAF, [3] WEEI agreed to simulcast programming from the New York station via a direct phone line. [5] WEEI's debut on September 29, 1924, included a four-hour commencement program including a dedicatory address from Edison Light president Charles L. Edgar, in addition to live classical music selections, operating at 303 meters (990 kHz) [6] with 500 watts of power. [3] WEEI's alliance with WEAF included airing the New York station's coverage of the 1924 World Series, headlined by Graham McNamee. WJAR in Providence, Rhode Island, was added to the simulcast, while WNAC suspended operations during the games to avoid any potential interference. [7]
The station broadcast on various frequencies over the next several years, settling on 590 kHz in 1927. [1] In 1926, WEEI became a charter member of the NBC Red Network [1] and remained an NBC Red affiliate until 1936, when the station was leased by CBS and became an affiliate of that network. [8] CBS bought WEEI outright from Boston Edison on August 31, 1942. [9] An FM sister station, WEEI-FM (103.3 FM, now WBGB), went on the air in 1948. [10]
Until 1960, WEEI, through CBS Radio, was the last Boston radio station to devote a large amount of its program schedule to "traditional" network radio programming of daytime soap operas, comedy shows, variety shows, and similar fare.
For the remainder of the 1960s, WEEI was New England's first talk radio station (though the station also played middle-of-the-road music) [10] and home of such hosts as Howard Nelson, Jim Westover and of Paul Benzaquin, one of the most popular radio talk show hosts in Boston history. In the 1960s, the daily WEEIdea feature presented cleaning and cooking tips from housewives.
By May 1972, WEEI had six full days of call-in talk programming. On weekdays, morning drive time from 6 am to 10 am was hosted by newsman Len Lawrence (Leonard Libman), followed by Ellen Kimball from 10 am to 2 pm. Kimball was hired from WIOD in Miami, where she had replaced broadcaster Larry King after he was arrested on December 20, 1971. Ellen is believed to be one of the first women to host a daily, four-hour, call-in talk show, six days a week.[ citation needed ] Originally called Boston Forum with Ellen Kimball, the name was eventually changed to The Ellen Kimball Show. Later, newsman Ben Farnsworth took over the Saturday call-in segment from 10 am to 2 pm. Paul Benzaquin handled 2 pm to 6 pm weekdays.
Although its talk radio format was popular, the station went all-news in 1974, following the lead of several other CBS-owned stations. [10] At first, WEEI was not 24/7 all-news; the station's late-night schedule featured the CBS Radio Mystery Theater , an attempt to revive radio drama, as well as a local overnight talk show with Bruce Lee (no relation to the martial-arts actor), a holdover from the previous format. But by the end of the 1970s, WEEI was all-news around the clock.
On December 27, 1977, while engaged in traffic reporting, a Hughes 269B helicopter operated by WEEI lost power and crashed into an apartment building in Quincy while attempting an emergency landing, killing pilot Richard Banks and reporter Chip Whitmore. A fire developed in the building following the crash. [11]
WEEI was put up for sale in April 1983, after CBS reached a deal to acquire KRLD in Dallas–Fort Worth from Metromedia; [12] that September, a deal was reached to sell the station to Helen Broadcasting; the company was owned by the Valerio family, who also owned Papa Gino's. [13] Although Metromedia canceled the sale of KRLD after it was granted permission to own both the radio station and KNBN-TV in Dallas–Fort Worth, the sale of WEEI still went forward. [14] Helen Broadcasting continued the all-news format. [10] CBS retained WEEI's FM sister station until the 2017 sale of its radio division to Entercom.
The station was acquired by Boston Celtics Communications (a group that shared ownership with the Boston Celtics basketball team) on May 10, 1990; the Celtics also simultaneously purchased WFXT (channel 25) from Fox Television Stations. [15] [16] The Celtics initially pledged to continue the all-news format, hiring a new morning anchor [17] and shifting the station to a 30-minute clock (it previously followed a one-hour clock); [18] however, the CBS Radio Network's decision to shift its Boston affiliation to WRKO effective September 3, 1990 (ending a 54-year link with WEEI) for reasons that included WRKO having a stronger news commitment, [19] which compelled WEEI to join the ABC Direction Network, [20] led to speculation that the station was shifting to an all-sports format. [17]
Though this was played down by station officials, [17] WEEI, which had already carried Celtics broadcasts since 1987, [21] expanded its sports programming after the sale; WEEI became the flagship station of the Boston Bruins (replacing WPLM-FM) in 1990 [22] (however, Celtics broadcasts were given priority, resulting in some Bruins broadcasts moving to WVBF or WMEX [23] ), and a nightly sports talk show with Craig Mustard was launched on August 20, 1990. [24] WEEI also carried Sports Byline USA and CBS Radio Sports broadcasts not cleared by WRKO. [15] The all-news format continued in other dayparts until September 3, 1991, when WEEI became an all-sports station. [15] [25] [26] Following the format change, the station began simulcasting its programming on WVEI in Worcester to reach central Massachusetts.
Upon the change to all-sports, WEEI featured the Andy Moes show and Glenn (Ordway) and Janet (Prensky), a short-lived experiment in bringing a "Bickersons"-type format to sports radio. Also part of the roster was Boston sports talk pioneer Eddie Andelman. [27] WEEI also began to carry Boston College Eagles football in 1992, replacing WBZ. [28] However, the change was followed by a dramatic drop in its ratings; [29] additionally, the station struggled financially, at one point losing $80,000 a week, leading to rumors of a sale of WEEI. [29] Still, WEEI improved its morning ratings after it became one of the earliest affiliates of Imus in the Morning from WFAN in New York City on July 12, 1993. [30] [31]
On March 16, 1994, the Boston Celtics reached a deal to sell WEEI to Back Bay Broadcasting; [32] shortly afterward, the rights to Celtics broadcasts passed to American Radio Systems (ARS, which would shortly become part of CBS Radio), owner of WRKO and WHDH, effective with the 1994–95 season, while the Bruins signed a deal with WBZ to carry its broadcasts starting in 1995. [33] Sister station WFXT was sold back to Fox Television Stations soon afterward.
ARS then announced on August 15, 1994, that it would purchase the programming and call letters of WEEI from Back Bay Broadcasting, effective August 29. As part of this transfer, WHDH's call letters were changed to WEEI and its format was changed from talk radio to sports radio, with on- and off-air personnel also being reassigned; 590 AM's call letters were concurrently changed to WBNW. [34] WBNW simulcast the "new" WEEI for a week before Back Bay Broadcasting launched a business news format. The ownership transfer also saw WVEI break from its simulcast of WEEI to become a separate sports radio station for Worcester, WWTM; [10] WWTM was acquired by ARS in 1996 and gradually returned to a simulcast of WEEI, returning to the WVEI call sign in 2000.
As a business news station, WBNW's programming was mostly supplied by Bloomberg; the station was the first affiliate of Bloomberg Radio, which had previously only aired on its New York City flagship station, WBBR. Local news segments were outsourced to Metro Networks. WBNW's lineup also included a local talk show, The Money Experts, and Bruce Williams' syndicated talk show; both programs previously aired on WHDH.
WBNW also carried Boston Bruins games during the 1994–95 season; the games did not move with WEEI to 850 AM due to conflicts with Boston College basketball. [34] In 1995, Peter Ottmar, who ran Back Bay Broadcasting, consolidated his broadcast holdings, which also included WARA in Attleboro, WWKX in Woonsocket, Rhode Island, and WICE in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, under the Back Bay name; that July, WICE was relaunched as WPNW, which largely simulcast WBNW but featured its own Metro Networks-produced local inserts for the Providence market. [10]
American Radio Systems, which had held an option to buy WBNW since its launch, traded this option to Salem Communications in 1996 in exchange for KDBX in Banks, Oregon. While WBNW initially announced that "there will be no change of owner" and that "as far as Peter Ottmar is concerned, no one has an option on the station", [35] Salem exercised this option to purchase the station in December 1996. As part of this transaction, that December 15, Salem changed WBNW's call letters to WEZE and changed the station's format to Christian radio; in effect, this new WEZE licensed to Boston became the successor to the previous WEZE (1260 AM) licensed to Boston. Concurrently, the previous WEZE changed its call letters to WPZE, and, after both simulcasting WEZE and airing a separate Christian format, was later divested (and became WMKI). [10]
WADN (1120 AM) in Concord started adding financial programming in 1997, eventually changing its format to business news/talk entirely; WADN's call letters were changed to WBNW in December 1998 – a move to reinforce that station format's link to the former WBNW. [36] Incidentally, a format similar to WBNW's was installed onto 1260 AM, renamed WBIX, in September 2015 after Salem reacquired the frequency.
For a short period, Salem Communications operated WEZE-FM in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, billed as "Easy 104.7". Though unusual, FCC rules allow co-owned stations in different cities to share call letters between themselves. Salem purchased the Pittsburgh station as part of a strategic move to compete against a Christian-formatted AM/FM competitor, but would have to run another format until the contracts with the client ministries could be obtained. Salem chose to run an easy-listening format until the contracts were obtained in October 1991, when WEZE-FM evolved into WORD-FM.
WBZ is a commercial AM radio station, licensed to Boston, Massachusetts, and owned and operated by iHeartMedia, Inc. Its studios and offices are located on Cabot Road in the Boston suburb of Medford.
WXKS – branded Talk 1200 – is a commercial conservative talk radio station licensed to Newton, Massachusetts, serving the Greater Boston area. Owned by iHeartMedia, WXKS serves as the Boston affiliate for Fox News Radio, The Glenn Beck Program, The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show, The Sean Hannity Show and The Mark Levin Show; and the home of syndicated personalities Bill Handel, Ron Wilson, Gary Sullivan and Leo Laporte. The WXKS studios are located in the Boston suburb of Medford, while the station transmitter resides in Newton. Besides its main analog transmission, WXKS streams online via iHeartRadio.
WEEI is a commercial sports gambling AM radio station licensed to Boston, Massachusetts, serving Greater Boston and much of New England. Owned by Audacy, Inc., WEEI is the Boston affiliate for the Audacy-owned BetQL Network and Infinity Sports Network, serving as a gambling-focused brand extension of its main sports radio station in the market, WEEI-FM. The WEEI studios are located in Boston's Brighton neighborhood, while the station transmitter resides in the Boston suburb of Needham. In addition to a standard analog transmission, WEEI is available online via Audacy.
WKVB (107.3 FM) is a non-commercial radio station licensed to serve Westborough, Massachusetts, United States, carrying a contemporary Christian format known as "K-Love". Owned by the Educational Media Foundation (EMF), WKVB does not broadcast any local programming but functions as the network affiliate for K-Love in Greater Boston and Worcester. With its transmitter located in Hudson, 20 miles west of Boston, its signal is supplemented by WNKC in Gloucester, which serves the North Shore and Merrimack Valley, and WLVO from Providence, Rhode Island, which covers Southeastern Massachusetts. The station also has boosters in Boston, Lexington, and Waltham. In addition to a standard analog transmission, WKVB broadcasts in HD Radio and is available online.
WRKO is a commercial news/talk radio station licensed to Boston, Massachusetts, serving Greater Boston and much of surrounding New England. Owned by iHeartMedia, WRKO is a Class B AM station that provides secondary coverage to portions of Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New Hampshire and Maine during the day, but is highly directional at night to protect a number of clear-channel stations on adjacent frequencies. WRKO serves as the Boston affiliate for ABC News Radio, Coast to Coast AM and This Morning, America's First News with Gordon Deal; syndicated personalities Joe Pags, John Batchelor and Bill Cunningham; the flagship station of The Howie Carr Show, and the home of radio personality Jeff Kuhner. The WRKO studios are located in the Boston suburb of Medford, while the station transmitter resides in nearby Burlington. Besides its main analog transmission, WRKO simulcasts over the HD2 subchannel of sister station WZLX, and streams online via iHeartRadio.
WZLX is a classic rock radio station in Boston, Massachusetts. This station is owned and operated by iHeartMedia. WZLX was one of America's first classic rock FM stations. Its studios are in Medford, and its transmitter is atop the Prudential Tower.
WBOS is a commercial FM radio station licensed to Brookline, Massachusetts, and serving Greater Boston. WBOS is owned by Beasley Broadcast Group, with studios and offices in Waltham. WBOS airs a financial news radio format from Bloomberg Radio.
WBQT is a commercial FM radio station in Boston, Massachusetts, owned by the Beasley Broadcast Group and airing an urban-leaning rhythmic hot AC radio format. WBQT's studios and offices are located in Waltham, and it transmits from atop the Prudential Tower in Boston's Back Bay neighborhood.
WEEI-FM – branded SportsRadio 93.7 WEEI-FM – is a commercial sports radio station licensed to Lawrence, Massachusetts, serving Greater Boston and much of surrounding New England. Owned by Audacy, Inc., WEEI-FM is the Boston affiliate for Infinity Sports Network, the NFL on Westwood One Sports, the flagship station for the Boston Red Sox Radio Network; and the radio home of Greg Hill, Lou Merloni, Christian Fauria and Jermaine Wiggins.
WBGB – branded as Big 103 – is a commercial adult hits FM radio station licensed to Boston, Massachusetts. Owned by Audacy, Inc., the station serves Greater Boston. The WBGB studios are located in the Boston neighborhood of Brighton, while the station's transmitter resides in nearby Newton. Besides a standard analog transmission, WBGB broadcasts over two HD Radio channels, and is available online via Audacy.
WBIX branded Nossa Rádio USA is a commercial Brazilian Portuguese radio station licensed to Boston, Massachusetts, serving Greater Boston. Owned by the International Church of the Grace of God, the WBIX studios are located in the Boston suburb of Somerville, while the station transmitter resides in Quincy, on the southern banks of the Neponset River near the Southeast Expressway. Besides its main analog transmission, WBIX is available online.
WORD-FM is a Christian talk radio station based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Owned by the Salem Media Group, the station broadcasts with an ERP of 43 kW. Its transmitter is located in Reserve Township, Pennsylvania.
WMEX is a commercial radio station licensed to Quincy, Massachusetts, and serving the Greater Boston media market. It is owned by L&J Media, headed by Tony LaGreca and Larry Justice. WMEX broadcasts an oldies format of hits from the 1950s, 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, as well as full service features including local DJs, news, traffic and weather. Late nights and weekends, it carries MeTV FM, a syndicated music service. The station's studios and offices are on Enterprise Drive in Marshfield.
WCRN is a radio station in Worcester, Massachusetts, owned by Carter Broadcasting. The station broadcasts with a transmitter power output of 50,000 watts and can be heard from Maine to Providence, Rhode Island, and from Boston to Springfield, Massachusetts. The signal is directional, pointed away from such other stations at 830 kHz as WCCO in Minneapolis, Minnesota. After sunset, WCRN's signal is made further directional towards the east; as a result, it is not clearly audible in Western Massachusetts after sunset.
WWDJ is a Catholic radio station licensed to Boston, Massachusetts. Owned by Relevant Radio, Inc., the station serves Greater Boston. WWDJ does not broadcast any local programming, functioning as a repeater for the Relevant Radio network. WWDJ's studios and offices are co-located with the network in Lincolnwood, Illinois, and the station transmitter are located in Lexington.
WBNW is a business talk radio station in the Boston market. The station is owned by Money Matters Radio, Inc. and is licensed to Concord, Massachusetts. It is simulcast on translator station W275CM in Concord. WBNW's flagship program, The Financial Exchange, is syndicated to several other stations in New England through the Money Matters Radio Network. Among the talk hosts have been Michael Graham, Don Imus, and John Batchelor were added to the lineup.
WKOX is a commercial AM radio station owned by the Delmarva Educational Association. It broadcasts a Spanish-language Christian radio format. The station is licensed to Everett, Massachusetts and targets Boston and its suburbs. It broadcasts from radio studios in Medford. The transmitter site is in Saugus.
WZRM is a Spanish-language radio station in the Boston, Massachusetts, market, carrying a Spanish contemporary hits format. Owned and operated by iHeartMedia, it serves the Metro Boston and South Shore areas of Massachusetts, and is licensed to Brockton. The station's studios are located in Medford and the transmitter site is atop Great Blue Hill.
WSJW is a radio station licensed to Pawtucket, Rhode Island, serving the Providence area. Established in 1950 as WPAW, the station is owned by Relevant Radio, Inc. and airs Catholic talk radio programming.
WBZ-FM is a commercial sports radio station licensed to Boston, Massachusetts, serving Greater Boston and much of surrounding New England. Owned by the Beasley Broadcast Group, WBZ-FM is the Boston affiliate for Fox Sports Radio; the flagship station for the New England Patriots, Boston Bruins, Boston Celtics, and New England Revolution radio networks; and the radio home of Fred Toettcher, Scott Zolak, Mike Felger, Tony Massarotti, and Bob Socci. The WBZ-FM studios are located in Waltham, while the station transmitter resides in the Boston suburb of Newton. In addition to a standard analog transmission, WBZ-FM broadcasts over two HD Radio channels, and is available online.
…the WVBF chief who has seen his B's spillover deal go to WMEX for the upcoming season…(pay content preview)