| City of license | Newberry, Florida |
|---|---|
| Broadcast area | Gainesville-Ocala, Florida |
| Branding | 100.5 The Buzz |
| Slogan | North Florida's Pure Rock |
| Frequency | 100.5 MHz |
| First air date | November 18, 1994 |
| Format | Active Rock |
| ERP | 44,000 watts |
| HAAT | 143 meters |
| Class | C2 |
| Facility ID | 48703 |
| Former callsigns | WNFQ (1990-1998) WBXY (1998-1999) WRKG (1999-2001) |
| Owner | MARC Radio Gainesville, LLC |
| Sister stations | WDVH, WPLL-FM, WKZY, WRZN, WTMG, WTMN |
| Webcast | Listen Live |
| Website | thebuzz.fm |
WHHZ (100.5 FM), branded as "100.5 The Buzz", is a commercial radio station licensed to Newberry, Florida, broadcasting to the Gainesville-Ocala, Florida area. The station is owned by MARC Radio Gainesville, LLC and transmits with an Effective radiated power of 44 KW from a tower site 2 miles west of Trenton, Florida.[1]
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The FCC added 100.5 MHz class A allocation for Newberry, Florida to the table of allotments on December 17, 1986. Newberry Broadcasting Corporation applied for and was granted the construction permit on January 10, 1990. During the construction phase, the allotment was upgraded to a class C3. The station first signed on the air on November 18, 1994. Originally, as a class C3 FM station broadcasting from a tower site west of High Springs, Florida, it never had good penetration into its primary target market of Gainesville.
After several call letter changes and format changes; WBXY in 1998, WRGK in 1999,[2] it was sold to Astrisk Communications who then sold the station to Pamal Broadcasting. The sale was consummated in February 2001. Pamal immediately co-located the station with its other market stations in the WLUS building on SE 27th Street. The format was changed briefly to CHR before finally settling on Active Rock.
In July 2004, the transmitter was relocated to sister station WKZY's tower and the signal was upgraded to a class C2 FM allocation.[3] This greatly improved coverage of the Gainesville city metro. Unfortunately, the improved signal never translated to higher ratings or higher revenue for the station.
In October 2005 the studios were moved across town to the Sunshine Broadcasting building on 100 NW 76th drive in the Tower Hill Office Park along with Pamal's other Gainesville stations.
In July 2011, WHHZ and all of its sister stations were sold by Pamal Broadcasting to MARC Radio Gainesville, LLC.
The station that once billed itself as "Gainesville's Rock Alternative," and from 2004 until March 2008 had a playlist that avoided most Top 40 and mainstream rock tracks. The station was at the time anchored by "The Morning Buzz," hosted by Mojo, and an afternoon drive segment hosted by Leroy the Lovetoy. WHHZ was noted for its station identification drop that referenced Linkin Park, Disturbed, and Creed, and ended with Leroy the Lovetoy declaring "We're proud to say that we don't play any of that dogs***."
While this format may have been unique, targeting the younger University of Florida students, it never made a good showing in the Arbitron ratings. The station often placed below its AM sister station, WDVH, which has a smaller signal but is programmed with a classic country format.
In March 2008, the station abruptly began playing more mainstream rock tracks, including artists that were previously referred to on-air as "dogs***." WHHZ also dropped some of its more unique programs, such as the independent hip-hop show "The Swank Manifesto," One of its more popular shows, "The Independent" was moved from Wednesday night to Sunday night and now plays the music that WHHZ previously played in heavy rotation. The Buzz is now known as North Florida's Pure Rock.
Sunday Nights
Spanish (Mornings / Nights): 2004-2008 *Now At CBS Radio West Palm Beach, Florida)
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