WAEB (AM)
WAEB is a news, talk and sports radio station in Allentown, Pennsylvania, in the Lehigh Valley region of Pennsylvania, in the United States. WAEB broadcasts at 790 kHz AM.
 | |
| City | Allentown, Pennsylvania |
|---|---|
| Broadcast area | Allentown/Bethlehem/Easton (Lehigh Valley) |
| Frequency | 790 kHz (A.M.) |
| Branding | NewsRadio 790 WAEB |
| Slogan | "Allentown, Easton, Bethlehem's News Station" |
| Programming | |
| Format | News/Talk/Sports |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | iHeartMedia, Inc. (Capstar TX LLC) |
| Sister stations | WAEB-FM, WSAN, WZZO |
| History | |
| First air date | 1949 |
| Call sign meaning | Allentown Easton Bethlehem |
| Technical information | |
| Facility ID | 14371 |
| Class | B |
| Power | 3,600 Watts daytime, 1,500 Watts nighttime |
| Transmitter coordinates | 40°39′37″N 75°30′50″W |
| Links | |
| Webcast | Live Streaming |
| Website | WAEB Official Web Site |
The station is owned by iHeartMedia, Inc..
History
WAEB began operations in 1949. The station was sold to Rust Broadcasting in 1957, adopting a Top 40 format and the slogan Music Radio 79 WAEB.
In 1983, the station began to evolve into more of a Hot Adult Contemporary format, and by 1985, more of a straight Adult Contemporary format beginning to emphasise Oldies. In 1986 WAEB added evening syndicated Talk shows. Overnight talk was added by 1989 and the station was playing oldies during the day at that point.
WAEB and WAEB-FM were sold to CRB Broadcasting in the late 1980s. In 1993 WAEB evolved into a Talk Format, and in 1995 the station along with WAEB were sold to Capstar along with WZZO and WKAP. The stations all went to AM/FM Broadcasting as a result of the Chancellor/Capstar merger in 1999.
When AM/FM merged with Clear Channel (which owned WODE and WEEX), the company would be forced to sell an AM and FM station to be under legal ownership limits. Clear Channel would give Nassau cash plus WODE and WEEX in exchange for New Jersey stations WSUS, WNNJ, WNNJ-FM, WHCY, WDLC LMA, and WTSX LMA. As a result, WAEB, WAEB FM, WZZO and WKAP were now Clear Channel Stations.
In January 2007, after WKAP dropped the Oldies format in favor of religious programming (also changing its call letters to WYHM), WAEB launched an Internet radio station playing Oldies music on its Web site. Strong demand still exists for an AM or FM station dedicated to the Oldies format lost when WKAP changed its format.
On September 4, 2009, the northern-most tower mast of the station's five-tower antenna array located in Whitehall Township was toppled when a vandal or vandals cut the tower's guy wires.[1]
Programming
WAEB currently runs a standard slate of news talkers typical of Clear Channel Communications owned stations. This includes Glenn Beck Program, The Rush Limbaugh Show, The Sean Hannity Show, The Savage Nation, and Coast to Coast AM. In addition, the station also airs a local morning show hosted by Bobby Gunther Walsh.
See also
References
- WAEB radio tower toppled in Whitehall, FBI investigates http://www.mcall.com/news/all-a8_5tower.7011612sep05,0,7619214.story
External links
- WAEB in the FCC's AM station database
- WAEB on Radio-Locator
- WAEB in Nielsen Audio's AM station database