WHOM

WHOM (94.9 FM, "94-9 HOM") is an American radio station which airs an adult contemporary radio format. WHOM is owned by Townsquare Media and transmits from atop Mount Washington in New Hampshire, which is its community of license. Mount Washington is the tallest peak in the Northeast. WHOM's signal is among the strongest FM signals in the world, and the station can be heard in five states and one Canadian Province. Under proper weather conditions, the station's signal can reach as far East as Acadia National Park in Eastern Maine, as far north as Southern Quebec in Canada, as far south as Boston, Massachusetts and as far West as the Adirondack Mountains in New York. Although the station can be heard all over Northern New England, WHOM broadcasts from and considers itself part of the Portland, Maine radio market. WHOM claims on its website and on the air that it has the largest coverage area of any FM station in the United States.[1] Sister station WPKQ also broadcasts from atop Mount Washington, but its signal is not as strong as WHOM's.

For the pronoun "whom", see Who (pronoun).
WHOM
CityMount Washington, New Hampshire
Broadcast areaNorthern New England/Portland, Maine
Frequency94.9 MHz
Branding94-9 HOM
SloganThe Best Mix of the 80s, 90s, and Today
Programming
FormatAdult contemporary
Ownership
OwnerTownsquare Media
(Townsquare Media Portland License, LLC)
Sister stationsWBLM, WCYY, WJBQ, WPKQ
History
First air dateJuly 9, 1958 (as WMTW-FM)
Former call signsWMTW-FM (1958–1971)
WWMT (1971–1973)
WMTQ (1973–1976)
Call sign meaningWe're High On the Mountain
Technical information
Facility ID49687
ClassC
ERP50,000 watts
HAAT1,141 meters (3,743 ft)
Links
WebcastListen Live
Website949whom.com

WHOM promotes its programming as "safe for the whole family." In addition to local DJs, the station also airs the syndicated John Tesh radio show. From late November to December 25, WHOM switches to an all-Christmas music format.

History

Early years

WHOM traces its call letter history back to the mid-1920s: it was originally known as WIBS; at that time, it was licensed to Elizabeth, New Jersey and made its debut on June 29, 1925. Then, on April 12, 1930, WIBS officially became WHOM,[2] operated by the New Jersey Broadcasting Company, with studios in Jersey City.[3] Among the personalities who broadcast on WHOM was African-American sportscaster Jocko Maxwell; by the time he joined the station in 1934, it had studios in Newark,[4] and would later add a studio in New York. The station's format was a combination of educational programming, ethnic programming, sports, and some music. By 1940, the station was known for mainly its foreign language programming.[5] In 1944, WHOM was sold to the Iowa Broadcasting Company.[6] But the new parent company, better known as Cowles Broadcasting, did not own the station long. Arrangements were made to sell it to Generoso Pope, owner of the Italo-Americano Publishing Company, in late 1946.[7] Pope finalized the acquisition, and then operated the station with a combination of news, ethnic music, and educational programs, as before. Then, in the late 1940s, WHOM introduced a new popular music program;[8] it featured the city's only interracial deejay team, Willie Bryant and Ray Carroll.[9] Their WHOM program lasted until 1954, at which time the general manager decided he wanted a change; Bryant believed it was due to a complaint from a sponsor.[10]

WMTW-FM

The station that is today WHOM signed on the air July 9, 1958, as WMTW-FM.[11] Along with Channel 8 WMTW-TV, which had signed on in 1954, WMTW-FM was owned by Mount Washington Television, an ownership group that included former Maine governor Horace Hildreth.[12] The WMTW stations were sold to Jack Paar of Tonight Show fame in 1963.[13] For most of its early years, WMTW-FM broadcast instrumental beautiful music. Jack Paar, in turn, sold WMTW-FM-TV to Mid New York Broadcasting in 1967.[14]

In 1971, WMTW-FM was sold to Alpine Broadcasting with Mid New York retaining WMTW-TV. As a result the radio station changed its call letters first to WWMT,[15] then to WMTQ in 1973,[16] and then finally to the current WHOM in 1976.[17] That call sign previously was used by New York City radio stations 1480 AM (now WZRC) and 92.3 FM (now WNYL). The station offered an easy listening format consisting of instrumental versions of pop songs from artists like Henry Mancini, Ray Conniff, Percy Faith, Chet Atkins, and Herb Alpert, as well as several soft vocals per hour like The Carpenters, Dionne Warwick, Johnny Mathis, and Perry Como. This format continued through the 1980s.

WHOM

In January 1990, WHOM abruptly dropped the easy listening music for a soft adult contemporary format, dubbed "soft and easy favorites" by the station. It continued to market itself as an easy listening station and retained its air staff. In the mid 1990s, the station began adding softer songs by contemporary hit artists and began playing current product. By 2000, WHOM was more of a mainstream adult contemporary station.

The station was sold to Fuller-Jeffrey Broadcasting by Barnstable Broadcasting in 1996.[18] Fuller-Jeffrey then sold most of its stations, including WHOM, to Citadel Broadcasting in 1999.[19] Citadel merged with Cumulus Media on September 16, 2011.[20]

Sale to Townsquare Media

On August 30, 2013, a deal was announced in which Townsquare Media would acquire 53 Cumulus stations, including WHOM, for $238 million. The deal was part of Cumulus' acquisition of Dial Global; Townsquare and Dial Global are both controlled by Oaktree Capital Management.[21][22] The sale to Townsquare was completed on November 14, 2013.[23]

References
  1. "HOM's Signal Is HUGE!". 94.9 HOM. Retrieved 5 February 2018.
  2. "Last Night with the One Dialer." (Jersey City) Jersey Journal, April 11, 1930, p. 28
  3. "Larson on Air at Dinner to Hoffman." (Hackensack NJ) The Record, March 31, 1930, p. 8.
  4. "Jocko Maxwell Will Broadcast over WHOM." Matawan (NJ) Journal, January 5, 1934, p. 6
  5. "Advertisement for WHOM." Broadcasting, May 11, 1942, p. 112.
  6. "FCC Approves Sale of WHOM." (Jersey City) Jersey Journal, July 26, 1944, p. 8.
  7. "Cowles-Pope Deal Seems Set Despite Immanent Fireworks." Billboard, September 7, 1946, p. 5.
  8. "Advertisement in Cashbox Magazine," October 29, 1949, p. 15.
  9. "A Salute to the Disk Jockeys." (New York) Amsterdam News, August 25, 1951, p. 24.
  10. "Willie Bryant Fired from New York Radio Job." Jet, May 6, 1954, p. 58.
  11. Broadcasting Yearbook 1981 (PDF). 1981. p. C-147. Retrieved February 23, 2010.
  12. Broadcasting Yearbook 1958 (PDF). 1958. p. A-320. Retrieved February 23, 2010.
  13. Marsters, Jack (October 11, 1963). "Jack Paar Buys WMTW-TV". The Gazette (Montreal). p. 6. Retrieved March 12, 2010. Included in the deal, … is the affiliated FM radio station WMTW-FM.
  14. "Bits of Show Business". The Milwaukee Journal. November 10, 1967. p. 15. Retrieved March 12, 2010.
  15. Broadcasting Yearbook 1973 (PDF). 1973. p. B-125. Retrieved February 23, 2010.
  16. Broadcasting Yearbook 1974 (PDF). 1974. p. B-132. Retrieved February 23, 2010.
  17. Broadcasting Yearbook 1977 (PDF). 1977. p. C-132. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 8, 2010. Retrieved February 23, 2010.
  18. Fybush, Scott (June 18, 1996). "Portland Consolidates". New England RadioWatch. Retrieved March 12, 2010.
  19. Fybush, Scott (April 30, 1999). "Fuller-Jeffrey Sells Out". North East RadioWatch. Retrieved February 23, 2010.
  20. "Cumulus now owns Citadel Broadcasting". Atlanta Business Journal. September 16, 2011. Retrieved September 16, 2011.
  21. "Official: Cumulus Buys Dial Global, Spins Some Stations To Townsquare; Peak Stations Sold To Townsquare, Fresno Spun To Cumulus". All Access. August 30, 2013. Retrieved August 30, 2013.
  22. "Cumulus Makes Dial Global And Townsquare Deals Official". RadioInsight. August 30, 2013. Retrieved August 30, 2013.
  23. "Cumulus-Townsquare-Peak Deal Closes". All Access. November 15, 2013. Retrieved November 16, 2013.

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