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WZBA

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Coordinates:39°26′50.4″N76°46′46.9″W/ 39.447333°N 76.779694°W/39.447333; -76.779694(WZBA)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

WZBA
Broadcast areaBaltimore metropolitan area
Frequency100.7MHz
Branding100.7 The Bay
Programming
Language(s)English
FormatClassic rock
Ownership
Owner
History
First air date
November 1, 1959(64 years ago)(1959-11-01)(as WTTR-FM)
Former call signs
  • WTTR-FM (1959–1984)
  • WGRX (1984–1999)
Call signmeaning
"Bay"
Technical information[1]
Licensing authority
FCC
Facility ID59985
ClassB
ERP25,000watts
HAAT210 meters (690 ft)
Transmitter coordinates
39°26′50.4″N76°46′46.9″W/ 39.447333°N 76.779694°W/39.447333; -76.779694(WZBA)
Translator(s)See § Translators
Links
Public license information
WebcastListen live
Websitewww.thebayonline

WZBA(100.7FM,"100.7 The Bay" ) is a commercialFMradio stationlicensed to serveWestminster, Maryland.The station is owned byTimes-Shamrock Communicationsand broadcasts aclassic rockformat. Its studios are inHunt Valleyand its broadcast tower is located nearOwings Millsat (39°26′49.9″N76°46′47.2″W/ 39.447194°N 76.779778°W/39.447194; -76.779778).[2]

The station's service contour covers theBaltimore metropolitan areaand southern portions ofSouth Central Pennsylvania.[3]The station markets itself as the only station in the Baltimore market dedicated to theclassic rockformat.

History

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Engineer Russ Morgan signed on the station for the first time on November 1, 1959, as WTTR-FM.[4][5]

Shamrock Communications purchased the station on April 7, 1981, and changed the format toeasy listening.The station's call sign was changed to WGRX in 1984, with a format change to "Eclectic Oriented Rock",[5]a hybrid format created by Radio Consultant John Sebastian.[6]The format changed toclassic rockin May 1987.[5]

WGRX changed its format tomodern rockon December 2, 1994, branded asThe X.[7]In April 1996, the station fired its program director and six DJs,[8]then aired a weekend-long stunt of disco music as "Polyester 101"[9]before switching to acountry musicformat on May 6, 1996,[10][11]branded as "Froggy 100.7". The station later rebranded as "New Country 100.7".[12]

On December 1, 1999, due to declining ratings, the station switched its call sign to WZBA, rebranded as100.7 The Bayand changed formats to "Rock AC" (Rock Adult Contemporary), similar toWMMOinOrlando[13]with the slogan "Rock Without the Hard Edge".[14]

In 2001, WZBA relocated its transmitter closer to Baltimore.[14]

The station changed its format toclassic rock[14]whenWXFBchanged formats from classic rock tosmooth jazzon September 5, 2003.

Jefferson Ward, the station's general manager, retired in 2021.[15] DJ Mike Brilhart has been with the station since September 2003.

Signal note

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WZBA is short-spaced to two otherClass Bstations operating on 100.7 MHz:WLEV100.7 WLEV(licensed to serveAllentown, Pennsylvania) andWZXL100.7 ZXL(licensed to serveWildwood, New Jersey). The distance between WZBA's transmitter and WLEV's transmitter is only 105 miles (169 km), while the distance between WZBA's transmitter and WZXL's transmitter is only 110 miles (180 km), as determined by FCC rules.[16]The minimum distance between two Class B stations operating on the same channel according to currentFCCrules is 150 miles.[17]

Translators

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WZBA programming is broadcast on the followingtranslator:[18]

Call sign Frequency City of license FID ERP(W) HAAT Class Transmitter coordinates FCC info
W261CD 100.1 FM Baltimore, Maryland 59981 2 93m(305ft) D 39°17′12.3″N76°36′30.8″W/ 39.286750°N 76.608556°W/39.286750; -76.608556(W261CD) LMS

References

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  1. ^"Facility Technical Data for WZBA".Licensing and Management System.Federal Communications Commission.
  2. ^"FM Query Results for WZBA".fcc.gov.Federal Communications Commission.RetrievedMay 21,2016.
  3. ^"54 dBu Service Contour for WZBA, 100.7 MHz, Westminster, MD".bing.Federal Communications Commission.RetrievedMay 21,2016.
  4. ^Rollye James (Borenstein) (1989).Mediatrix Market Profile(PDF)(Report). Mediatrix, Inc. p. 15.RetrievedMay 21,2016.
  5. ^abcRollye James (Borenstein) (1989).Mediatrix Market Profile(PDF)(Report). Mediatrix, Inc. p. 56.RetrievedMay 21,2016.
  6. ^Cosper, Alex (June 22, 2015)."Interview with Radio Consultant John Sebastian".playlistresearch.RetrievedMay 21,2016.
  7. ^McKerrow, Steve (December 17, 1994)."2 rock stations seek same audience in format changes".The Baltimore Sun.RetrievedMay 21,2016.
  8. ^Kaltenbach, Chris (April 27, 1996)."WGRX, switching formats, fires DJs".The Baltimore Sun.RetrievedMay 21,2016.
  9. ^Norton, Kristin."22 Things You'll Never See In Baltimore Again".movoto.RetrievedMay 21,2016.
  10. ^"Baltimore's WGRX Leaps To Country"(PDF).R&R The Industry's Newspaper.No. 1145. May 10, 1996. p. 3.RetrievedMay 21,2016.
  11. ^Kaltenbach, Chris (May 18, 1996)."WGRX-FM goes country".The Baltimore Sun.RetrievedMay 21,2016.
  12. ^West, Steve (July 19, 1999)."Danny Carlisle & Roy Sampson, New Country 100.7 WGRX Westminster/Baltimore July 19, 1999".airchexx.RetrievedMay 21,2016.
  13. ^Lance."COUNTRY 100.7 WGRX BECOMES ROCK AC" THE BAY "WZBA".formatchange.RetrievedMay 21,2016.
  14. ^abc"Baltimore Radio".centrevillemaryland.us.RetrievedMay 21,2016.
  15. ^Ink, Radio (September 15, 2021)."Jefferson Ward WZBA GM Retiring".Radio Ink.RetrievedSeptember 15,2021.
  16. ^"Reference points and distance computations. 47 CFR § 73.208".RetrievedJuly 12,2021.
  17. ^"Minimum distance separation between stations. 47 CFR § 73.207 (1)"(PDF).RetrievedJuly 12,2021.
  18. ^"Station Search Details, W261CD".fcc.gov.Federal Communications Commission.RetrievedMay 21,2016.
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