| City of license | WFCR: Amherst, Massachusetts WNNZ: Westfield, Massachusetts |
|---|---|
| Broadcast area | Primarily: Pioneer Valley (Springfield, Massachusetts) |
| Branding | 88.5 WFCR |
| Slogan | New England Public Radio |
| Frequency |
WFCR: 88.5 MHz (also on HD Radio) WNNZ: 640 kHz |
| First air date | May 6, 1961 |
| Format | Public Radio |
| ERP | WFCR: 13,000 watts WNNZ: 50,000 watts (day), 1,000 watts (night) WNNZ-FM: 100 watts |
| HAAT | WFCR: 295 meters |
| Class | WFCR: B WNNZ: B WNNZ-FM: A |
| Facility ID | WFCR: 69304 WNNZ: 9736 WNNZ-FM: 68194 |
| Callsign meaning | Five College Radio |
| Owner | University of Massachusetts |
| Webcast | Listen Live |
| Website | www.nepr.net |
WFCR is a U.S. radio station operating at 88.5 MHz in the FM band.
It is located at the University of Massachusetts Amherst in Amherst, Massachusetts and its broadcasting range extends to western and central Massachusetts, northern Connecticut and southern Vermont and New Hampshire. A NPR member, WFCR's studios are located at Hampshire House on the UMass campus.
The station signed on May 6, 1961 as a repeater of WGBH in Boston, but soon added its own programming. The call letters represent Five College Radio. The station is licensed to UMass, but operated by funding from the Five Colleges (Smith College, Mount Holyoke College, Amherst College, Hampshire College, and UMass itself). WFCR bills itself as New England Public Radio.[1]
WFCR claims the distinction of being the first radio station in western Massachusetts to transmit a signal using iBiquity's HD Radio system. They transmit two digital streams, the first being their standard programming (including locally originated material), the second being primarily NPR programming and classical music.
Contents |
In addition to the main station, WFCR is relayed by an additional 5 translators to widen its broadcast area.
| Call sign | MHz | City of license | Power (W) |
Class |
Additional Information |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W291CH | 106.1 | Pittsfield, Massachusetts | 10 | D | FCC |
| W242AT | 96.3 | Williamstown, Massachusetts | 250 | D | FCC |
| W252BG | 98.3 | Lee, Massachusetts | 13 | D | FCC |
| W254AU | 98.7 | Great Barrington, Massachusetts | 250 | D | FCC |
| W266AW | 101.1 | North Adams, Massachusetts | 10 | D | FCC |
WFCR provides a full-time NPR news/talk programming feed on WNNZ, 640 kHz, licensed to Westfield, Massachusetts, which was owned by Clear Channel Communications. WNNZ's grade B signal reaches into the Capital District of New York State.
Until 2010, WFCR provided the station's programming, while Clear Channel sold underwriting advertisements.[2][3] However in July, 2010, WFCR purchased WNNZ from Clear Channel for $525,000. The sale does not include the transmission towers, but rather has a lease clause in the sale agreement in which Clear Channel will own them and lease them to WFCR.[4] WFCR purchased the license from Clear Channel under the name of "WFCR Foundation Inc." The FCC approved the sale August 25, 2010.[5][6] Prior to 2007 , the programming heard on WNNZ was heard on WPNI, 1430 kHz, in Amherst, which is owned by Pamal Broadcasting.
WFCR, again, under the licensee name of "WFCR Foundation Inc.", acquired the license of WGAJ 91.7 in Deerfield, MA from Deerfield Academy. The license transfer was granted on August 19, 2010.[7] WFCR paid Deerfield Academy $10,000 for the signal.[8][9] The call letters of the station were changed to WNNZ-FM as of September 1, 2010.[10]
WFCR recently won the allocation of 98.9A in Adams, MA., in FCC Auction #91 (under the applicant name, WFCR Foundation Inc.).[11]. WFCR won it for $189,750. WFCR has filed the application for new station with the FCC, to transmit the new signal from the top of West Summit, in North Adams, MA. (Where the current WUPE-FM transmitter site is located. WFCR already has a translator, W266AW, located there).[12]
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