WBZ (AM)
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| WBZ | |
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| Broadcast area | Boston, Massachusetts |
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| Branding | "WBZ NewsRadio 1030" |
| Slogan | "Every Day" |
| First air date | September 19, 1921 |
| Frequency | 1030 (kHz) |
| Format | News/Talk |
| ERP | 50,000 watts |
| Class | A |
| Callsign meaning | sequentially assigned |
| Affiliations | CBS Radio Network ABC News Radio AP Radio Boston Bruins |
| Owner | CBS Radio |
| Website | www.wbz1030.com |
WBZ is the callsign for an AM radio station in Boston, Massachusetts which is owned by CBS Radio (formerly Infinity Broadcasting), which itself is owned by the CBS Corporation. Originally based in Springfield, Massachusetts, WBZ swapped callsigns with sister station WBZA in 1931, a move that placed the station at its current location.
WBZ radio, which broadcasts at 1030 kHz, is the oldest surviving commercial radio station in New England, as it began broadcasting in 1921 (a smaller operation that had existed before WBZ has been forgotten by history). It currently runs an all-news format during the day, with popular news anchors like Gary LaPierre in the morning, and a talk radio format at night, with hosts like Paul Sullivan. The station is the most listened-to radio station in the Boston area, and covers much of the eastern United States at night with its 50,000-watt signal from their transmitter location in Hull, Massachusetts, which has been used by the station since the early 1940s.
During the daytime hours, WBZ is also well-known for Traffic on the 3s, which provides a detailed summary of traffic on all major highways in Boston and throughout Massachusetts. In addition, national and international news, as well as some segments, are provided by the ABC Information network and the CBS Radio Network (until December 2005, this included noted radio raconteur Paul Harvey, which was provided by ABC), but almost all programming, including the nighttime talk shows, are produced in-house. WBZ has also been heavily involved in charitable work, with its annual Christmastime fund drive for Boston's Children's Hospital (which it does along with sister TV station WBZ-TV) being the most high-profile.
WBZ has consistently been the #1 station in the Boston market for approximately the past 15 years, and was the home for a great many years of talkmaster David Brudnoy until the day before his death in 2004. Other notable personalities included talk show host Bob Kennedy, famed disc jockey Larry Justice, jazz DJ turned talkmaster Norm Nathan, late-night talker and humorist Larry Glick, and morning personalities Tom Bergeron and Dave Maynard.
During the 1940s, WBZ operated a shortwave station using the callsign WBOS; this station has long been dark and the callsign has since been reassigned to what is now an AAA station. Group W made half-hearted attempts to launch FM service, at various points operating FM service on 100.7 (now WZLX, ironically a current sister to WBZ-AM) and 106.7 (now WMJX owned by Greater Media), before selling each to other chains. Additionally, during the 1970s, WBZ was one of a number of clear channel AM stations that petitioned to be allowed to increase their power; WBZ would have used half a megawatt out of Provincetown, Massachusetts to reach all of New England during the day. A backlash from smaller stations led to the petition being denied and station protections limited to a 750 miles radius, as well as the cancellation of the entire clear channel service [1].
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[edit] History
WBZ 1030 Boston is the oldest surviving broadcaster in New England, and was the first licensed "commercial" radio station. It was first licensed as WBZA by Westinghouse in September of 1921. It later swapped callsigns with its sister station in Springfield, Massachusetts to become WBZ. The original format was general entertainment and information which included dramas, sports, news, talk shows, special events, some music, and public affairs programming.
In 1926 WBZ became one of the first affiliates of the first network, NBC, becoming Boston's home of the "NBC Blue" network. In the early 1930s, a call-letter swap sent WBZ to Boston and WBZA to Springfield. In 1931, WBZ built a transmitter complex in Millis, Massachusetts which allowed the station to boost power to 50,000 watts. But WBZ didn't stay in Millis for long; the station moved its transmitter site to Hull, Massachusetts in 1940 a move which allowed Westinghouse to launch a shortwave station and have the transmitters and antennas for both at the same site. WBZ moved to its present dial location, 1030 kilocycles (kilohertz) on March 29, 1941. WBZ continued to be an NBC Radio affiliate, although when the Justice Department ordered NBC to divest of one its two radio networks, NBC kept the "Red", which simply became NBC Radio. WBZ switched affiliations from the "Blue" to the "Red" to remain with NBC. Like other major-market network-affiliated radio stations of the time, WBZ also broadcast a few hours of local programming during those hours when NBC wasn't feeding programs to affiliates. On June 9, 1948, WBZ-TV Channel 4 signed on and took NBC Television affiliation (switching to CBS on January 2, 1995). Later that month, WBZ Radio moved its studios from the Hotel Bradford in downtown Boston to join WBZ-TV in a newly-completed building at 1170 Soldiers Field Road in the Allston section of Boston. In 1951 Don Kent (meteorologist) started as a meteorologist at the station, for a tenure that would endure for over three decades.
In 1952, WBZ radio expanded its broadcasting schedule to 24-hour-a-day programming. By then, entertainment shows were moving to television and WBZ radio began to play more music. WBZ Radio itself dropped its NBC affiliation in 1956 after three decades, deciding to program popular music around-the-clock. The best known personality in WBZ Radio's history, Dave Maynard, joined the station in 1958. Another beloved WBZ Radio host was Carl DeSuze, whose career at WBZ began in the 1940s and continued into the early 1980s. DeSuze was the station's morning man for over three decades. Another popular WBZ voice is longtime news anchor Gary LaPierre, who has been at the station since 1964. LaPierre, who anchored WBZ's morning newscasts for over 35 years, retired from WBZ at the end of 2006. Governor Mitt Romney declared the day of his final broadcast, December 29, 2006, "Gary LaPierre" day. Romney, Senator Ted Kennedy, Mayor Tom Menino, former Mayor Ray Flynn, former Governor Michael Dukakis, and other notables called in during his final broadcast.[1]
By 1960 WBZ offered a full service music format leaning toward MOR music but also featuring an increasing amount of rock and roll. Within a few years, WBZ was a top 40 rock and roll station, and with its combination of hit music, popular personalities, powerful signal, and top-notch news coverage, WBZ was "the" radio station in the market. However, due to increased competition - first from rival WMEX, then from WRKO - in the top 40 arena, WBZ adopted a more full-service adult approach.
WBZ wasn't Group W/Westinghouse's only Top-40 music station; for a while, WINS New York and KFWB Los Angeles were as well, although they were both top-40 stations when Westinghouse purchased them. In 1965, WINS dropped rock-and-roll to become the nation's third all-news radio station (after XETRA serving Los Angeles and San Diego from Tijuana, Mexico, and WAVA in Arlington, Virginia). Westinghouse eventually took KFWB down that path as well.
By the beginning of the 1970s, WBZ evolved into an Adult Contemporary Full Service format playing several songs an hour between 6 and 9 a.m., 10 to 12 songs an hour between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. and 4 to 6 songs an hour between 4 and 7 p.m.. At night WBZ programmed talk shows with such personalities as Guy Mainella, a pioneer in sports talk; Jerry Williams, in the evenings; and Larry Glick's entertaining overnight show. They also programmed music during the day on weekends. Westinghouse offered a similar format on 1020 KDKA Pittsburgh.
Beginning in the late 1960s, WBZ made a major push into live play-by-play sports. From 1966 through the seventies, and again for a time in the early nineties, WBZ was home to radio broadcasts of New England Patriots football. In the Fall of 1969, WBZ became the radio flagship of both the Boston Bruins (NHL) and the Boston Celtics (NBA). The Bruins stayed through the 1977-78 season; the Celtics left WBZ after the team's 1980-81 NBA Championship season. During the years when the Bruins and Celtics were both on WBZ and both playing at the same time, one of them (usually the Celtics) would be heard on then-sister station WBZ-FM (now WMJX).
In the 1980s WBZ cut back the music slightly. WBZ continued the Full Service AC format until January of 1991 when they began wall to wall Gulf War coverage along with other news during the day. After that WBZ became strictly talk and news. At that point WBZ began a morning news block until 10 a.m. and also ran all news from 4 to 7 p.m.. In 1992 WBZ dropped the midday talk shows and became an all news station during the day and talk at night. During the 1990s, David Brudnoy had a popular nighttime show on WBZ radio, but his career was cut short by AIDS.
In recent years, the all-news format on weekdays has been extended until 8 p.m. The Boston Bruins returned to WBZ in October of 1995, and have remained there ever since. The 2006/2007 NHL season will mark WBZ's eleventh season as the Bruins' flagship station (the 2004/2005 season was cancelled due to a labor dispute).
[edit] Hall of Fame
IN February 2007, the station created the WBZ Radio Hall of Fame. Gary Lapierre is the first honoree. [2]
[edit] Programming Schedule
[edit] Monday-Friday
- 5:00 a.m. - 8:00 p.m. All News, Traffic on the 3s, Weather on the 10s
- 8:00 p.m. - 12:00 a.m. Paul Sullivan Show
- 12:00 a.m. - 5:00 a.m. The Steve LeVeille Broadcast
[edit] Friday-Early Saturday
- 12:00 a.m. - 5:00 a.m. The Jordan Rich Show
[edit] Saturday
- 5:00 a.m. - 7:00 p.m. All News, Traffic on the 3s, Weather on the 10s
- 7:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m. The Pat Desmarais Show
- 9:00 p.m. - 12:00 a.m. The Lovell Dyett Show
- 12:00 a.m. - 4:35 a.m. The Jordan Rich Show
[edit] Sunday
- 4:35 a.m. - 5:00 a.m. Public Affairs
- 5:00 a.m. - 7:00 p.m. All News, Traffic on the 3s, Weather on the 10s
- 7:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m. 60 Minutes
- 8:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m. Looking at the Law
- 10:00 p.m. - 12:00 a.m. The Jordan Rich Show
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- Official website
- Query the FCC's AM station database for WBZ
- The Norm Nathan Page by Buffalonian Steve Cichon
- The Larry Glick Page by Buffalonian Steve Cichon
[edit] References
| AM radio stations in the Boston, Massachusetts region (Arbitron #11) | |
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(Arbitron #11) |
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(Arbitron #38) |
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Satellite Radio Local Traffic/Weather: XM Channel 210 | Sirius Channel 149 |
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