WBZU
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| WBZU | |
 |
|
| City of license | Scranton, Pennsylvania |
|---|---|
| Broadcast area | Scranton/Wilkes-Barre/Hazleton |
| Branding | WILK Newsradio |
| Frequency | 910 kHz (analog) |
| First air date | 1925 |
| Format | News Radio |
| Power | 900 Watts (day) 440 Watts (night) |
| Class | B |
| Former callsigns | WGBI |
| Owner | Entercom Communications (Entercom Wilkes-Barre Scranton, LLC) |
| Sister stations | WILK-FM/AM, WKZN |
| Website | http://www.wilknewsradio |
WBZU is a News/Talk AM broadcasting radio station licensed to the city of Scranton, Pennsylvania. The station currently relays the programming of WILK and the "WILK News Radio" network. WBZU is currently owned by Entercom Communications. The radio station's call signs were changed by Entercom in 2005[1] from its long time original call signs of WGBI which the station held since its sign on date of 1925[2].
[edit] History
WGBI originally signed on the frequency of 1250 kHz in 1925[3]. In 1927, the station moved to 1300 kHz[4] which it time shared with the other AM broadcasting station located in Scranton at the time WQAN. The two stations which were time sharing a single frequency, moved to 880 kHz in 1931[5], and then again to 910 kHz by 1941[6] (the later move, forced by a nationwide frequency reassignment which took place in 1941). WGBI remained at 910 kHz when WQAN moved on to its own broadcast tower and new frequency of 630 kHz in 1948. This meant that WGBI had full time use of the 910 kHz frequency where it remains to this day. WGBI was a CBS Radio network affiliated station by the 1940s[7].
Ironically, WBZU in 2007 recently moved its transmitter to the tower location atop the Times Building at 149 Penn Avenue in downtown Scranton[8] currently being used by WEJL's transmitter. The full time switch over to the new transmitter facility and tower location happened on August 2, 2007[9]. This tower sharing arrangement repeats an arrangement the stations shared over 60 years ago in their early history. The efficiency of the new transmitter tower location also caused WBZU to slightly reduce their daytime and nighttime power to keep within Federal Communication Commission rules on signal strength and coverage.
[edit] References
- ^ A selection from a decade of visits to tower and studio sites in the Northeast and beyond
- ^ U. S. Radio Stations as of June 30, 1925
- ^ U. S. Radio Stations as of June 30, 1925
- ^ U. S. Radio Stations as of June 30, 1927
- ^ U. S. Radio Stations as of June 30, 1930
- ^ U. S. AM Stations as of 1942
- ^ U. S. Network-Affiliated AM Radio Stations, 1949
- ^ Wow...910am
- ^ Wow...910am
[edit] External links
- Query the FCC's AM station database for WBZU
- Radio Locator Information on WBZU
- Query Arbitron's AM station database for WBZU
- WBZU Daytime Signal Coverage Map according to Radio-Locator.com
- WBZU Nighttime Signal Coverage Map according to Radio-Locator.com
- WBZU is at coordinates Coordinates:
|
||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||
