| Broadcast area | Southern Maine |
|---|---|
| Branding | 96.3 The Big JAB SportsRadio WJAB |
| Frequency | WRED: 1440 (kHz) WJJB: 96.3 (MHz) |
| First air date | WRED: November 6, 1959 WJJB: 1975 |
| Format | Sports radio |
| Power | see table in article |
| ERP | see table in article |
| HAAT | see table in article |
| Class | see table in article |
| Facility ID | see table in article |
| Transmitter coordinates | see table in article |
| Callsign meaning | WRED: The color RED (call letters previously assigned to WPEI when it aired a rhythmic top 40 format) WJJB: similar to WJAB |
| Former callsigns | see table in article |
| Affiliations | Fox Sports Radio, Yahoo! Sports Radio, Boston Celtics Radio Network, Red Sox Radio Network |
| Owner | Atlantic Coast Radio |
| Sister stations | WLOB, WPEI, WPPI |
| Website | thebigjab.com |
The Big JAB is a network of sports radio stations in southern Maine, owned by Atlantic Coast Radio. It is on 1440 AM (WRED, licensed to Westbrook) and 96.3 FM (WJJB-FM, licensed to Gray). It is located on 779 Warren Avenue in Portland, Maine.
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The 1440 frequency first went on the air November 8, 1959 as WJAB, a (daytime-only) top 40 music station, giving major competition to cross-town WLOB. WJAB immediately became the top rated station in Portland, a position it held until 1965, when a resurgent WLOB, after having obtained night power, retook the top spot.[1] WJAB launched a similarly-formatted FM sister station, WJBQ-FM (106.3) in 1974[1]; the WJBQ callsign was eventually implemented on the AM station as well.[2] WJBQ-FM relocated to 97.9 in 1980, in a frequency swap with WDCS (a predecessor to WBACH; 106.3 is now occupied by WHXR); in the intervening years, the AM station would attempt several formats, including all-news (as WMER), a simulcast of what had become WWGT-FM (as WWGT), and hard rock and heavy metal via the Z Rock network (as WLPZ).[2] In the mid 1990s, the station settled on its current sports format; initially retaining the WLPZ callsign[2], it became WJAE in 1997 in an attempt to restore the WJAB identity to the station despite that callsign's assignment to another station.[3][4] (Then-owners Bob Fuller and J. J. Jeffrey had previously worked at WJAB during the 1960s[1]; Jeffrey retained WJAE by way of Atlantic Coast Radio upon the sale of Fuller-Jeffrey's FM stations to Citadel Broadcasting in 1999.[5])
The 96.3 frequency debuted in 1975 as WRUM-FM from its former city of license, Rumford. In 1981, the call letters were changed to WWMR, and by 1983 the format was a high-energy top 40/AOR hybrid with live DJs and the branding "96 WMR"; additionally, the station's power was boosted significantly, giving it regional coverage. In 1987, WWMR-FM was sold to Carter Broadcasting[6], and the station adopted a religious format.[2] Carter eventually consolidated the operations of WWMR with that of sister station WLOB, and in 1997 the callsign was changed to WLOB-FM.[7] After WLOB and WLOB-FM were sold to Atlantic Coast Radio in 2000, the religious programming was discontinued in favor of a news-talk format. In 2006, WLOB-FM relocated its transmitter from western Maine to South Paris to provide a clearer signal to the Portland area. Following the transmitter move, in 2008 WLOB-FM changed its city of license from Rumford to Gray. On August 25, 2008, WLOB-FM converted from the WLOB simulcast to a simulcast of The Big JAB.
From 1999[8] to 2008, The Big JAB's programming was also heard on 900 AM (WJJB, licensed to Brunswick). On April 25, 2008, that frequency (which became WWBK on March 18, 2008; the WJJB calls subsequently moved to WJAE[9]) was sold to Bob Bittner (owner of WJIB and WJTO) for $27,000.[10] Additionally, from 2000[11] to September 1, 2008, The Big JAB's FM frequency was on 95.5; initially, the station continued to broadcast under its previous WCLZ call letters[12]); on that date, it began airing programming from Boston's WEEI in a simulcast with WPEI[13] under the call letters WGEI.[14]
| Callsign | Frequency | City of license | Power/ERP | Class | HAAT | Facility ID | Former Callsigns | Transmitter Coordinates |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WRED | 1440 kHz | Westbrook, Maine | 5,000 watts | B | 3140 | WJJB (2008) WJAE (1997-2008) WLPZ (1990-1997) WWGT (1986-1990) WMER (1980-1986) WJBQ (1974-1980) WJAB (1959-1974) |
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| WJJB-FM | 96.3 MHz | Gray, Maine | 40,000 watts | C1 | 430 meters | 9180 | WLOB-FM (1997-2008) WWMR-FM (1983-1997) WWMR (1981-1983) WRUM-FM (1975-1981) |
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