WEZF

WEZF

Burlington, Vermont United States
Broadcast area	Vermont,Northern New York,Greater Montreal
Frequency	92.9MHz
Branding	Star 92.9
Programming
Format	Adult contemporary
Affiliations	Premiere Networks
Ownership
Owner	Vox AM/FM, LLC
Sister stations	WCPV,WEAV,WXZO,WVTK
History
First air date	July 19,1969(as WVNY-FM)
Former call signs	WVNY (1969–1973)
Call signmeaning	"EZ Favorites"(previous format)
Technical information
Licensing authority	FCC
Facility ID	35232
Class	C
ERP	46,000watts
HAAT	828 meters (2,717 ft)
Transmitter coordinates	44°31′32.1″N72°48′56.4″W
Links
Public license information	Public file LMS
Webcast	Listen Live
Website	star929.com

WEZF(92.9FM,"Star 92.9" ) is acommercialradio stationlocated inBurlington, Vermont.The station airs anadult contemporaryradio formatand is owned and operated by Vox AM/FM. WEZF has studios and offices on Hegeman Avenue inColchesterand itstransmitteris on top ofVermont's highest mountaintop,Mount Mansfield,using anomnidirectional antenna.WEZF carries thesyndicatedDelilahevening show fromPremiere Networks.Almost all of the station's weekday air shifts are either hosted or co-hosted by women.From mid-November to December 25 each year, WEZF switches to an all-Christmas musicformat.

WEZF is the only full-powered commercialClass Cradio station in Vermont. WEZF transmits with aneffective radiated power(ERP) of 46,000wattsat aheight above average terrain(HAAT) of 2,717 feet. It covers a large area, including much of Vermont, theAdirondacksandNorth Countryof New York, northwesternNew Hampshireand much of southernQuebec(includingGreater MontrealandSherbrooke).

History

Early years: beautiful music and soft adult contemporary (1969–1999)

On July 19, 1969, WEZF firstsigned onas WVNY, owned by Vermont New York Broadcasting, Inc.Thecall signwas shared withWVNY-TV(channel 22), which signed on a year before its FM counterpart. WVNY was unusual in that it was originally launched as an offshoot of aTV stationand never had a companionAMstation. This situation made it the first FM station in Vermont without an AM counterpart.

WVNY originally had abeautiful musicformat, playing sets of soft instrumental music with limiteddisc jockeypatter. In 1973, to reflect the FM station'seasy listeningformat, the call sign was changed to WEZF;the television station would itself become WEZF-TV a year later. In 1982, the two stations were sold to Champlain Communications Corporation.The TV station returned to its original WVNY call sign, while the FM station moved to asoft adult contemporarysound as "93 WEZF". In1995,the station switched to a mainstream AC format and rebranded as "92.9 WEZF".

WEZF still broadcasts from historicFort Ethan AlleninColchester, Vermont,where it had been co-located with WVNY-TV. (WVNY, which is now owned byMission Broadcastingand operated byNexstar Media Group,moved to other studios in Colchester.)

The Clear Channel era (1999–2008)

In1999,the station turned up the tempo again, now as ahot ACoutlet, and was rebranded as "Star 92.9". In August 2000, WEZF was acquired by Clear Channel Communications, the forerunner to today'siHeartMedia, Inc.By2003,the station reverted to adult contemporary after previous AC station 103.3 The Lake (nowWIXM) flipped formats. In addition,Christmas musicbegan airing on the station from mid-November to December 25, a tradition that has remained.

Vox takeover (2008–2010)

In 2007, Clear Channel, America's largest owner of radio stations, announced it would sell off hundreds of its stations in smaller markets. WEZF, along withsister stationsWCPV,WXZO,WEAV,WVTK,WXZO,WCVR-FM,andWTSJ,were all involved in a sale to locally-owned Vox Communications. One of the current principal owners in Vox Communications originally launched both WCPV in late 1994, and after that the radio station now known as WXZO. In July 2008, Vox Communications took control of WEZF and its sister stations.

Moving towards a hot adult contemporary direction (2010–2012)

By September2010,a few months after itsclassic hits-formattedFeel Good Flashback Weekendshow was dropped and as sister station WXZO becomeTop 40"Planet 96.7", WEZF moved back to hot AC. Management explained the Feel Good Flashback Weekend show was discontinued due to rival WWMP returning toadult hitswhile Star 92.9 moved to a younger sound.

By September2011,WEZF was moved to theNielsen BDShot adult contemporarypanel, but the station was still listed asadult contemporarybyMediabasereports.

In late 2011, WEZF began pursuing listeners and advertisers in the Montreal radio market, taking advantage of 92.5CFQR-FM's change in format, becomingrhythmic ACCKBE-FM, "92-5 The Beat". That left Montreal without anEnglish-languageAC station, a void that WEZF wanted to fill.Martz Communications Group,which handles advertising sales for WEZF, orchestrated the effort.

Return to hot adult contemporary (2012–present)

The hosts of the morning show changed in late2011.As of March2012,WEZF was switched to thehot adult contemporarypanel perMediabasereports, its second run in the hot AC format. More than a week after the station flipped formats to hot AC, the station made schedule readjustments, moving Tara to drive time, while bringing a new short-lived morning show with hosts Tim & Mary. Tim was soon replaced by market veteran Mike Czarny who had a 16 year run as morning show host at 95 Triple X. He was paired with Mary Cenci for "Mike and Mary in the Morning" which is still airing today and is #1 in the market. Mike's former morning show partner, Chantal, also joined Star 92.9 for afternoons. Star 92.9 continues it's A/C format along with switching to Christmas music each November through midnight on Christmas Day.

External links

• Star 92.9 WEZF official website
• Facility details for Facility ID 35232 (WEZF)in theFCCLicensing and Management System
• WEZFinNielsen Audio's FM station database