WPLY (AM)
Broadcast area | |
---|---|
Frequency | 610kHz |
Branding | Sports Radio Virginia |
Programming | |
Format | Sports |
Affiliations | |
Ownership | |
Owner | Mel Wheeler, Inc. |
WFIR,WPLI,WSLC-FM,WSLQ,WVBB,WVBE-FM,WXLK,WZZU | |
History | |
First air date | October 1, 1940 |
Former call signs |
|
Call signmeaning | PLaY |
Technical information[1] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
Facility ID | 41111 |
Class | B |
Power |
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Transmitter coordinates | 37°18′11.0″N80°2′33.0″W/ 37.303056°N 80.042500°W |
Translator(s) | 101.1W266CY (Roanoke) |
Repeater(s) | 1390WPLI(Lynchburg) |
Links | |
Public license information | |
Webcast | Listen Live |
Website | sportsradiova.com |
WPLY(610kHz) is acommercialAMradio stationlicensedtoRoanoke, Virginia,and servingSouthwest Virginiaand theNew River Valley.WPLYsimulcastsasports radioformatwithWPLI1390 AMinLynchburg.Both stations are owned and operated by Mel Wheeler, Inc.[2]Most programming is supplied byFox Sports Radio.
By day, WPLY transmits 5,000watts,but at night (when radio waves travel farther) it reduces power to 1,000 watts to protect other stations on610 AM.WPLY has adirectional antenna,using a five-tower array.Thetransmitteris at the end of Newman Drive inSalem.[3]Programming is also heard on 175-wattFM translatorW266CYat 101.1MHzin Roanoke.[4]
History
[edit]WSLC Country
[edit]Just before noon on October 1, 1940signed on.[5]The originalcall signwas WSLS.[6]During the "Golden Age of Radio,"the station carried programs from theNBC Blue Network,dramas, comedies, news, sports,soap operas,game showsandbig bandbroadcasts. (The Blue Network later becameABC.) A partner FM station, 99.1WSLS-FM,launched in 1947, largelysimulcastingthe AM station.WSLS-TVfollowed five years later on Channel 10.
,the stationAs network programming moved from radio to television, 610 WSLS switched to afull service,Country musicformat. In 1969,Park Communicationspurchased WSLS-AM-FM-TV. Due to FCC ownership restrictions, Park kept the television station and sold the radio stations to Bass Brothers Telecasters. As the stations could no longer share a call sign after the purchase, the AM became WSLC at midnight on August 1, 1972, keeping its country sound. The FM switched toalbum-oriented rockand briefly became WSLC-FM before settling on current call signWSLQ.Only the TV station still carries the original call letters.[7]Mel Wheeler purchased the two stations in 1976.[8]
Urban AC and Sports
[edit]At noon on May 25, 2000, WSLC began simulcasting with its newsister station94.9WSLC-FM,formerlyeasy listeningturnedclassic rockstation WPVR, after that station was purchased by Mel Wheeler Inc. This continued until March 13, 2002, when the country format moved full-time to WSLC-FM. 610 WSLC was flipped to new call letters as WVBE, simulcasting co-owned 100.1WVBE-FMLynchburg, and broughturban adult contemporaryandR&Bmusic full-time to Roanoke.[9]
![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/95/WPLY_Sportsradio610-101.1-98.5_logo.png/220px-WPLY_Sportsradio610-101.1-98.5_logo.png)
On January 20, 2016, the station dropped its Urban AC format forsports talkwith the new call sign WPLY. The station became an affiliate ofFox Sports Radio.[10][11][12]
References
[edit]- ^"Facility Technical Data for WPLY".Licensing and Management System.Federal Communications Commission.
- ^"WPLY Facility Record".Federal Communications Commission,audio division.
- ^Radio-Locator.com/WPLY
- ^Radio-Locator.com/W266CY
- ^"Wsls Am".Roanokeradio.com.Retrieved2016-01-30.
- ^Broadcasting Yearbook 1950page 311,Broadcasting & Cable
- ^"WSLC AM 610".Roanokeradio.com.1972-08-01.Retrieved2016-01-30.
- ^"FCC History Cards for WPLY".
- ^"610 WSLC drops country WSLC-FM for Urban AC WVBE-FM | Format Change Archive".Formatchange.com.12 March 2002.Retrieved2016-01-30.
- ^"Roanoke getting another all-sports radio station".www.roanoke.com.Retrieved2016-01-23.
- ^"Roanoke Gets Second Sports Station".Insideradio.com.Retrieved2016-01-23.
- ^"Wheeler Launches New Sports Station In Roanoke".RadioInsight.Retrieved2016-01-23.
External links
[edit]- WPLY Online
- Facility details for Facility ID 41111 (WPLY)in theFCCLicensing and Management System
- WPLYinNielsen Audio's AM station database
- Facility details for Facility ID 148906 (W266CY)in theFCCLicensing and Management System
- W266CYat FCCdata.org