In this week’s issue… Hip-hop arrives in central PA – Boston gets ready to Rumba – Limbaugh’s “forever” to end – Hamilton TV station moves – Remembering KB’s Tom Shannon
By SCOTT FYBUSH
*Memorial Day weekend typically comes with some substantial format changes around the country. This year, it seems to be just the beginning of some larger shuffles for a few big groups, most notably iHeart.
One of the first signs of change came last Monday, when WKAF (97.7 Brockton) in the Boston market dropped its classic R&B format, replacing “97-7 the Beat” with a one-day stunt with Spanish-language music before flipping Tuesday at noon to “Rumba 97.7,” playing Spanish-language hits with a heavy emphasis on reggaeton.
The move returned iHeart’s “Rumba” brand to the market a year after it had disappeared with the donation of WKOX (1430 Everett), the most recent of several iHeart “Rumba” signals on AM. It’s the first time a Spanish-language format has been on a full-power FM signal in the core of the Boston market, though the limited reach of 97.7 to the north means WKAF probably won’t pose much threat to the established Spanish-language players in the Merrimack Valley, such as Costa-Eagle’s WNNW (800/102.9) in Lawrence.
While iHeart was moving one of its signals away from the Black audience in greater Boston, it brought new service to that community in central Pennsylvania on Friday. At 11, WHKF (99.3) dropped its “Alt” modern rock format and began looping “It’s The End of the World (As We Know It)” by REM, and an hour later the signal relaunched as “Real 99.3,” bringing a Black-focused format back to the Harrisburg market for the first time in almost a decade. (Back then, it was more of an R&B sound, via “The Touch” on WTCY 1400 and its FM translator at 95.3.)
The new “Real” is really syndicated, in keeping with iHeart’s current practices – Big Sue (WHRK Memphis) in middays, followed by Papa Keith (WMIB Miami) and then T-Roy (WJBT Jacksonville) at night. For now, mornings are music-only, but expect the New York-based “Breakfast Club” to take that slot starting next week.
And if you don’t have your Tower Site Calendar, now’s the time!
If you’ve been waiting for the price to come down, it’s now 30 percent off!
This year’s cover is a beauty — the 100,000-watt transmitter of the Voice Of America in Marathon, right in the heart of the Florida Keys. Both the towers and the landscape are gorgeous.
And did you see? Tower Site of the Week is back, featuring this VOA site as it faces an uncertain future.
Other months feature some of our favorite images from years past, including some Canadian stations and several stations celebrating their centennials (buy the calendar to find out which ones!).
We still have a few of our own calendars left – as well as a handful of Radio Historian Calendars – and we are still shipping regularly.
The proceeds from the calendar help sustain the reporting that we do on the broadcast industry here at Fybush Media, so your purchases matter a lot to us here – and if that matters to you, now’s the time to show that support with an order of the Tower Site Calendar. (And we have the Broadcast Historian’s Calendar for 2025, too. Why not order both?)
Visit the Fybush Media Store and place your order now for the new calendar, get a great discount on previous calendars, and check out our selection of books and videos, too!
In this week’s issue… After NAB, hope and confusion - WZLX, WBEB relaunch morning shows - WJTO, WLAM stay alive for now - MBC takes over Bell stations - Remembering Mimi Griswold, Herb Squire By SCOTT FYBUSH Jump to: ME...
In this week’s issue… Fear and Uncertainty in Las Vegas - Memory Stations to sign off - WNED, WBFO rebrand - Najman out at WDEV - Zoomer expands in Ontario By SCOTT FYBUSH Jump to: ME - NH - VT...
A visit to many of the sites in Pennsylvania's Poconos, plus Bold Gold's stations in Scranton
In this week’s issue… Remembering Pittsburgh's Quinn - Seven Mountains enters Harrisburg - My launches new brands - Ryan out at B101 - More cuts at Radio Vermont - Another AM deleted
