WSMN

Last updated

WSMN
WSMN logo.png
Broadcast area Merrimack Valley
Frequency 1590 kHz
Programming
Format Talk radio; brokered programming
Affiliations
Ownership
Owner
  • Robert Bartis/George Russell
  • (Bartis and Russell Broadcasting, LLC)
WLMW
History
First air date
March 9, 1958;66 years ago (1958-03-09)
Call sign meaning
"We Serve Manchester and Nashua", or Salem, Manchester, and Nashua
Technical information [1]
Licensing authority
FCC
Facility ID 102
Class D
Power
  • 770 watts day
  • 58 watts night
Transmitter coordinates
42°45′34.32″N71°28′35.24″W / 42.7595333°N 71.4764556°W / 42.7595333; -71.4764556
Translator(s) 95.3 W237FA (Nashua)
Links
Public license information
Webcast
Website www.wsmn.live

WSMN (1590 AM) is a commercial radio station broadcasting a talk radio format. It is licensed to Nashua, New Hampshire, and serves the Merrimack Valley. Its owners since March 2017 are on-air personalities George Russell and Bob Bartis. [2] WSMN has some local talk shows and also features paid brokered programming.

Contents

WSMN transmits with 770 watts daytime, 58 watts nighttime. [3] It uses a non-directional antenna at all times. Programming is also heard on 250-watt FM translator W237FA at 95.3 MHz.

History

Early years

WSMN first signed on March 9, 1958. [4] The first voice heard was that of Manchester, New Hampshire, native Frank G. Teas who spent the next 44 years with the station until he retired in December 2002. The original owner was the Merrimack Valley Broadcasting System. [5] It sold the station only one year later, to 1590 Broadcasting Corporation. [6]

For most of its early years, WSMN had a middle-of-the-road format, mixed in with talk. [7] This format remained in place through the decade. [4] The organization also published an advertiser-supported, free tabloid called the 1590 Broadcaster. [8]

Country, adult standards and talk

During the mid-1990s, WSMN attempted a country music format. But country on AM radio became less viable after Boston country station WKLB-FM moved from 96.9 FM (now WBQT) to 99.5 FM (now WCRB). WSMN switched to adult standards in December 1997. [9] This was short lived; in March 1998, the station changed to news/talk, though some timeslots were temporarily filled with adult contemporary music for a time. [10]

Initially locally oriented, [10] in June WSMN began adding nationally-produced programming, including Talk America shows and business news from Bloomberg Radio. [11] Two years later, Tom O'Brien signed a local marketing agreement (LMA) to take over the station's operations. [12]

Time off the air

WSMN was forced off the air February 1, 2005, after losing the lease to its transmitter and studio site on West Hollis Street (Route 111). [13] The license was sold to Absolute Broadcasting, owner of WSNH (900; now WGHM) that July. [14]

WSMN returned to the air in October from the WSNH tower, running a low-power special temporary authority signal. [15] It initially simulcast WSNH's ESPN Radio programming. [15] The station began shifting back to a news/talk format in early 2006. [16] It began featuring programing from Talk Radio Network and Westwood One.

Bartis and Russell Broadcasting

Absolute Broadcasting sold WSMN to Bartis and Russell Broadcasting LLC [2] for $200,000. [17] The sale took effect on March 16, 2017. The proprietors are George Russell and Bob Bartis, who had both hosted shows on WSMN. They promised "more local programming and a refocus on the community." [2]

WSMN formerly held a construction permit from the U.S. Federal Communications Commission to build a new three-tower array west of the old location. Instead of using the same directional pattern full-time, there would be different directional patterns for day and night. In July 2020, the station put an FM translator on the air at 95.3 MHz.

Translator

Call sign Frequency City of license FID ERP (W) Class Transmitter coordinatesFCC info
W237FA95.3 FM Nashua, New Hampshire 202373250D 42°44′4.4″N71°23′35.8″W / 42.734556°N 71.393278°W / 42.734556; -71.393278 (W237FA) LMS

Programming

WSMN airs Nashua This Morning with George Russell during morning drive time, with a mix of talk shows and brokered programming at other times. Bob Bartis continues to host shows on several topics. In timeslots where a talk show is not scheduled, the station airs blocks of music. [18] WSMN is an affiliate of USA Radio News.

Other programing includes:

Former personalities

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WXKS (AM)</span> Radio station in Newton, Massachusetts

WXKS – branded Talk 1200 – is a commercial conservative talk radio AM 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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WCRN</span> Radio station in Massachusetts, United States

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WHTP (AM)</span> Radio station in Maine, United States

WHTP is a commercial AM radio station licensed to Gardiner, Maine, United States. It serves the Lewiston-Auburn and Augusta metropolitan areas. The station is owned by MaineInvests LLC. It airs a rhythmic contemporary format, branded as Hot Radio Maine, simulcast with WHTP-FM (104.7) in Kennebunkport and WHZP in Veazie.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WBFB</span> Radio station in Bangor, Maine

WBFB is a commercial radio station in Bangor, Maine. The station is owned by Blueberry Broadcasting and airs a country music radio format, simulcast on sister stations WBFE in Bar Harbor and WMCM in Rockland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WMOS</span> Radio station in Connecticut, United States

WMOS is a classic rock radio station that targets the Connecticut and Rhode Island coastlines from New London, Connecticut, to Wakefield, Rhode Island and it is licensed to Stonington, Connecticut. It broadcasts at 102.3 MHz with 3 kilowatts ERP from a tower located in Westerly, Rhode Island. The station is owned and operated by Cumulus Media and is "powered by Mohegan Sun", the casino in Uncasville. The Mohegan Sun casino also hosts the station's studios.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WGIR (AM)</span> Radio station in New Hampshire, United States

WGIR is a commercial AM radio station in Manchester, New Hampshire, with a news/talk radio format. The station is owned by iHeartMedia, Inc. WGIR's studios and offices are on Foundry Street in Manchester. Much of the programming and news, but not the commercials, can be heard on co-owned WQSO 96.7 MHz in Rochester, serving the New Hampshire Seacoast.

WXZO is a commercial FM radio station licensed to Willsboro, New York. Owned by Vox AM/FM, it primarily serves the Champlain Valley, including Burlington, Vermont, and Plattsburgh, New York. Its studios are located in Colchester, Vermont. The station broadcasts a soft oldies radio format using the syndicated music service known as "MeTV FM." In morning drive time, the station carries Intelligence for Your Life with John Tesh.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WEAV</span> Radio station in New York, United States

WEAV is an English-language American radio station in Plattsburgh, New York, with studios in Colchester, Vermont. The station broadcasts a sports format.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WPKX</span> Radio station in New Hampshire, United States

WPKX is a commercial AM radio station licensed to Rochester, New Hampshire, that broadcasts a sports radio format, largely supplied from Fox Sports Radio. The station is owned by iHeartMedia, Inc. and serves the Portsmouth-Dover-Rochester media market, also heard in Southern Maine. WPKX broadcasts at 5000 watts around the clock from a transmitter off Route 108 in Rochester. To protect other stations on 930 kHz, WPKX uses a directional antenna at night.

WLVP is a radio station broadcasting an adult standards and oldies format. Licensed to Gorham, Maine, United States, it serves southern Maine, including Portland. Established in 1980 as WDCI, the station is owned by Robert Bittner through licensee Blue Jey Broadcasting Co..

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WFNQ</span> Radio station in New Hampshire, United States

WFNQ is a radio station in Nashua, New Hampshire, serving the Manchester area with a classic hits radio format. It is owned by Binnie Media. The station's studios are on Church Street in Concord, and its transmitter is located in Merrimack, just west of the Merrimack Premium Outlets.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WCVR</span> Radio station in Randolph, Vermont

WCVR is a radio station broadcasting a hybrid country music format to Randolph, Vermont, United States. Established in 1968, the station is owned by Robert and John Landry, through licensee Sugar River Media.

WLAM is a radio station broadcasting an adult standards and oldies format. Licensed to Lewiston, Maine, United States, the station serves the Lewiston-Auburn area. Established in 1947, the station is owned by Robert Bittner through licensee Blue Jey Broadcasting Co. Its 5,000-watt signal can be heard at day throughout most of Southern Maine and portions of New Hampshire and Massachusetts, and at night throughout most of New England and portions of New York and Canada.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WHMP</span> Radio station in Northampton, Massachusetts

WHMP is a radio station broadcasting a news/talk format. Licensed to Northampton, Massachusetts, it serves the Pioneer Valley. It is owned by Saga Communications, and operates as part of its Northampton Radio Group. Its programming is also heard on translator station W268CZ in Northampton, and the second HD Radio channel of WRSI in Turners Falls.

WGAM and WGHM are simulcasting radio stations in southern New Hampshire, United States, broadcasting an oldies format named "Oldies Radio WGAM". WGAM is licensed to serve Manchester, and WGHM is licensed to serve Nashua. The stations are locally owned by Absolute Broadcasting, LLC.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WCME</span> Radio station in Maine, United States

WCME is a commercial AM radio station licensed to Brunswick, Maine, and serving Maine's Mid Coast; on-air, the station is currently known as "Radio Midcoast WCME 99-5 FM & 900 AM". Established in 1955, the station is owned by veteran radio news anchor and talk host Jim Bleikamp, and programs a locally-oriented, full-service oldies/soft rock radio format emphasizing news and local events. WCME's studios are in the Fort Andross complex in Brunswick. WCME's transmitter is located along U.S. Route 1 near Durham Road in Brunswick.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WNNW</span> Radio station in Massachusetts, United States

WNNW is a commercial radio station licensed to Lawrence, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1947 as WCCM, the station is owned by Costa-Eagle Radio Ventures, LP, a partnership between Pat Costa and the Lawrence Eagle-Tribune newspaper. WNNW airs a Spanish-language tropical music format.

WQVD is a radio station licensed to serve Orange–Athol, Massachusetts, United States. The station is owned by Kurt Jackson's Hampden Communications Co. It simulcasts the classic hits format of commonly-owned WQVR in Webster.

WUTI was a radio station broadcasting a talk format. Licensed to Utica, New York, United States, the station, established in 1948 as WRUN, was last owned by Leatherstocking Media Group, Inc., and simulcast with WFBL in Syracuse until going off the air in 2013.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WWEI</span> Radio station in Easthampton, Massachusetts

WWEI is a radio station in Easthampton, Massachusetts, serving Springfield with a sports radio format. The station is owned by Audacy, Inc. Most programming is provided by Boston sister station WEEI-FM.

References

  1. "Facility Technical Data for WSMN". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
  2. 1 2 3 Kimberly Houghton (March 27, 2017). "Gate City radio personalities team up to buy WSMN". Manchester Union-Leader.
  3. Radio-Locator.com/WSMN
  4. 1 2 Broadcasting Yearbook 1981 (PDF). 1981. p. C-147. Retrieved February 17, 2010.
  5. Broadcasting Yearbook 1958 (PDF). 1958. p. A-320. Retrieved February 17, 2010.
  6. Broadcasting Yearbook 1959 (PDF). 1959. p. B-186. Retrieved February 17, 2010.
  7. Broadcasting Yearbook 1971 (PDF). 1971. p. B-130. Retrieved February 17, 2010.
  8. "About 1590 broadcaster". Library of Congress. Retrieved November 18, 2018.
  9. Fybush, Scott (December 18, 1997). "North East RadioWatch" . Retrieved February 17, 2010.
  10. 1 2 Fybush, Scott (March 19, 1998). "More Layoffs in N.H." North East RadioWatch. Retrieved February 17, 2010.
  11. Fybush, Scott (June 4, 1998). "Tornado Topples WIVT". North East RadioWatch. Retrieved February 17, 2010.
  12. Fybush, Scott (December 4, 2000). "North East RadioWatch: December 4, 2000". North East RadioWatch. Retrieved February 17, 2010.
  13. Fybush, Scott (February 7, 2005). "Qantum Buys the Cape; Cherry Creek Buys the East End; WSMN Goes Dark". NorthEast Radio Watch. Retrieved February 17, 2010.
  14. Fybush, Scott (July 4, 2005). "Pop Goes "Cool Pop" in Harrisburg". NorthEast Radio Watch. Retrieved February 17, 2010.
  15. 1 2 Fybush, Scott (October 24, 2005). "A WILD Shift For Radio One/Boston". North East RadioWatch. Retrieved February 19, 2010.
  16. Fybush, Scott (January 9, 2006). "New Troubles for Maynard's WAVM". North East RadioWatch. Retrieved February 19, 2010.
  17. "WSMN/Nashua, NH Sold". AllAccess.com. December 5, 2016. Retrieved March 28, 2018.
  18. "Program Schedule". WSMN. Retrieved March 30, 2018.
  19. "WSMN1590am WSMN95.3fm Watch! Listen! Stream!".
  20. "Around the Town". The Telegraph. March 13, 1958. Retrieved December 30, 2011.