WLKZ

WLKZ
City of license Wolfeboro, New Hampshire
Broadcast area Lakes Region
Branding 104.9 The Hawk
Slogan Rockin' The Lakes Region
Frequency 104.9 MHz
First air date February 1, 1985
Format Classic rock
ERP 560 watts
HAAT 324.7 meters
Class A
Facility ID 65624
Transmitter coordinates 43°32′46.0″N 71°22′42.0″W / 43.546111°N 71.378333°W
Callsign meaning LaKeZ Region
Owner Great Eastern Radio, LLC
Sister stations WTPL, WZEI
Webcast Listen Live
Website thehawkrocks.com

WLKZ is an American licensed radio station in Wolfeboro, New Hampshire, serving the Lakes Region. The station is owned by Jeffrey Shapiro's Great Eastern Radio and carries a classic rock format, under the "104.9 The Hawk" branding.

History

The original construction permit for the station was granted on July 1, 1983,[1] and the WLKZ call letters were assigned on October 11;[2] it took to the air on February 1, 1985,[3] and a license to cover was granted on June 4, 1985.[4]

Former logo under the "Oldies 105" branding
Former logo under the "Frank FM" branding

During the 1980s, WLKZ offered an adult contemporary format;[3] by 1996, it was offering an oldies format.[5] Initially, the station aired the format on its own; however, in 2000, original owner Jay Williams sold the station to Tele-Media, owner of similarly-formatted WNNH in the nearby Concord market.[6] Tele-Media sold WLKZ, WNNH, and WHOB (now WFNQ) to Nassau Broadcasting Partners in 2004.[7] Nevertheless, the station continued to be programmed and branded separately from WNNH until 2007, when Nassau consolidated the two stations into a simulcast. That December, the stations shifted to Nassau's Frank FM classic hits format as a result of an unsuccessful attempt to convert WWHQ and WWHK (the then-homes for the "Hawk" classic rock format) to sports radio programming from WEEI.[8][9]

After a corporate reorganization required Nassau to spin off WWHQ and WNNH,[10] WLKZ discontinued the simulcast with WNNH, and dropped classic hits in favor of WWHQ's prior classic rock format on November 4, 2009.[11] WLKZ, along with 29 other Nassau stations in northern New England, was purchased at bankruptcy auction by Carlisle Capital Corporation, a company controlled by Bill Binnie (owner of WBIN-TV in Derry), on May 22, 2012. The station, and 12 of the other stations, were then acquired by Vertical Capital Partners, controlled by Jeff Shapiro.[12][13] The deal was completed on November 30, 2012.[14] The Vertical Capital Partners stations were transferred to Shapiro's existing Great Eastern Radio group on January 1, 2013.[15][16]

References

  1. ↑ "Application Search Details (1)". CDBS Public Access. Federal Communications Commission. Retrieved November 4, 2009.
  2. ↑ "Call Sign History". CDBS Public Access. Federal Communications Commission. Retrieved November 4, 2009.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Broadcasting/Cablecasting Yearbook 1989 (PDF). 1989. p. B-189. Retrieved April 5, 2010.
  4. ↑ "Application Search Details (2)". CDBS Public Access. Federal Communications Commission. Retrieved November 4, 2009.
  5. ↑ Fybush, Scott (May 21, 1996). "New England Radio Watch". Retrieved April 5, 2010.
  6. ↑ Fybush, Scott (January 28, 2000). "Welcome Back WMEX, and We Take On LPFM". North East RadioWatch. Retrieved November 4, 2009.
  7. ↑ Fybush, Scott (January 19, 2004). "Anchor in Florida Lands 'BZ in Headlines". NorthEast Radio Watch. Retrieved November 5, 2009.
  8. ↑ "Nassau Broadcasting Brings A Championship To New Hampshire" (Press release). Nassau Broadcasting Partners. October 26, 2007.
  9. ↑ Fybush, Scott (January 7, 2008). "Entercom/Nassau WEEI Deal is Dead". NorthEast Radio Watch. Retrieved November 5, 2009.
  10. ↑ Fybush, Scott (June 1, 2009). "Severin Returns to WTKK". NorthEast Radio Watch. Retrieved November 5, 2009.
  11. ↑ Fybush, Scott (November 2, 2009). "Pulse Fades Out - Now It's A Party". NorthEast Radio Watch. Retrieved November 5, 2009.
  12. ↑ "Carlisle Capital Corp. Wins Bidding For Rest Of Nassau Stations". All Access. May 22, 2012. Retrieved May 22, 2012.
  13. ↑ Venta, Lance (May 22, 2012). "Nassau Broadcasting Auction Results". RadioInsight. Retrieved May 24, 2012. (updated May 23, 2012)
  14. ↑ Kitch, Michael (December 1, 2012). "Binnie closes on purchase of WLNH". Laconia Daily Sun. Retrieved December 1, 2012.
  15. ↑ "APPLICATION FOR CONSENT TO ASSIGN BROADCAST STATION CONSTRUCTION PERMIT OR LICENSE OR TO TRANSFER CONTROL OF ENTITY HOLDING BROADCAST STATION CONSTRUCTION PERMIT OR LICENSE". CDBS Public Access. Federal Communications Commission. December 11, 2012. Retrieved June 8, 2013.
  16. ↑ "Consummation Notice". CDBS Public Access. Federal Communications Commission. January 4, 2013. Retrieved June 8, 2013.

External links