WHTA (FM)
Encyclopedia
WHTA FM
107.9, "Hot 107.9") is a mainstream urban
radio station
that plays hip-hop & R&B. It has done so since the autumn of 2001, after the programming format
and callsign were moved by owner Radio One from "Hot 97.5" (now WUMJ FM, "Majic 97.5"). Its city of license
is Hampton, Georgia
, and its radio tower is located in Tyrone
, while its studios are located in downtown Atlanta. It also launched the career of the now famous rapper, Ludacris
, when he was known as on-air personality, "Chris Lova Lova" and the careers of MTV VJ La La
and former VJ K-K Holiday.
coverage, Lite Rock WPEZ FM ("Z108") in Macon
moved its format from 100,000 watt
s ERP
at 107.9 to an existing frequency at 93.7 in Jeffersonville
. The original top-40 format then on 93.7 moved to new Macon-area station WMGB FM 95.1. The broadcast license
for 107.9 was then realloted by the FCC, at the request of the original owner, from Macon to Hampton. Prior to this, "Hot 97.5" was to simulcast
on (and already had banner
s printed for) "Hot 107.5", which is now occupied by Radio One's WAMJ
instead.
The station signed on with Atlanta coverage as WEGF "107.9 the End" with a modern rock
format. Stunting on its first day, it played "Smooth Criminal
" by Alien Ant Farm
and "Rollin'" by Limp Bizkit
continuously. After several weeks with the rock format, "Hot 97.5" morning show host Ryan Cameron announced to his audience that his station was moving to 107.9, and it was realized that the rock format was a publicity stunt
.
The station has had many complaints to it and the FCC
from residents near its radio tower
, because the station's audio has been coming through on just about every electronic device imaginable, from telephone
s to computer
loudspeaker
s. It got a subsequent construction permit
from the FCC to increase the height of the antenna
on the tower, but this only reduced the problem rather than eliminating it.
On July 31, 2007, they began a new concept: "Digital Hip Hop". Their new slogan is "Hot 107.9 Your Digital Hip Hop Station."
This station is broadcasting in IBOC digital radio
, using the HD Radio
system from iBiquity
.
As of October 2008, WHTA is the Atlanta affiliate of the Rickey Smiley
Morning Show, based from its sister station
KBFB FM in Dallas/Fort Worth.
As Radio One moved WAMJ from 102.5 to 107.5 (and also simulcast 107.5 on 97.5's signal), and WPZE from 97.5 to 102.5, WHTA is the only station in the company's Atlanta cluster that is left intact by the change.
The station is also heard on 102.9 via "translator" station W275BK
, which came to Radio One via an unusual legal saga. While it could be used to serve the community with entirely different programming according to FCC rules, it is still broadcasting WHTA entirely within its own city-grade
broadcast range. Thus, it appears the only purpose of that station is to cause radio tuners doing a channel scan to stop immediately before getting to competitor V-103 (WVEE
FM 103.3), two channels (0.4MHz) directly above the "translator".
FM broadcasting
FM broadcasting is a broadcasting technology pioneered by Edwin Howard Armstrong which uses frequency modulation to provide high-fidelity sound over broadcast radio. The term "FM band" describes the "frequency band in which FM is used for broadcasting"...
107.9, "Hot 107.9") is a mainstream urban
Mainstream Urban
Mainstream Urban is a term used to describe a radio format similar to an Urban Contemporary format. The format differentiates itself due to two factors: playlist composition and target demographic...
radio station
Radio station
Radio broadcasting is a one-way wireless transmission over radio waves intended to reach a wide audience. Stations can be linked in radio networks to broadcast a common radio format, either in broadcast syndication or simulcast or both...
that plays hip-hop & R&B. It has done so since the autumn of 2001, after the programming format
Radio format
A radio format or programming format not to be confused with broadcast programming describes the overall content broadcast on a radio station. Radio formats are frequently employed as a marketing tool, and constantly evolve...
and callsign were moved by owner Radio One from "Hot 97.5" (now WUMJ FM, "Majic 97.5"). Its city of license
City of license
A city of license or community of license, in American and Canadian broadcasting, is the community that a radio station or television station is officially licensed to serve by that country's broadcast regulator....
is Hampton, Georgia
Hampton, Georgia
Hampton is a city in southwestern Henry County, Georgia, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 6,987. Census Estimates for 2005 show a population of 4,743. Hampton mailing addresses also dip into eastern Clayton County and northern Spalding County.The Atlanta Motor...
, and its radio tower is located in Tyrone
Tyrone, Georgia
Tyrone is a town in Fayette County, Georgia, United States. The population was 3,916 at the 2000 census. Census Estimates for 2005 show a population of 5,789.It was named after County Tyrone in Ireland.-Geography:...
, while its studios are located in downtown Atlanta. It also launched the career of the now famous rapper, Ludacris
Ludacris
Christopher Brian Bridges , better known by his stage name Ludacris, is an American rapper and actor. Along with his manager, Chaka Zulu, Ludacris is the co-founder of Disturbing tha Peace, an imprint distributed by Def Jam Recordings...
, when he was known as on-air personality, "Chris Lova Lova" and the careers of MTV VJ La La
La La (entertainer)
Alani Vazquez Anthony is an American actress, disc jockey, and television personality.-Early years:Vazquez's parents were both Nuyorican. They lived in Brooklyn, where Alani, Vazquez's brother, and her two sisters were born...
and former VJ K-K Holiday.
History
To facilitate a move-in to add metro AtlantaMetro Atlanta
The Atlanta metropolitan area or metro Atlanta, officially designated by the US Census Bureau as the Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta Metropolitan Statistical Area, is the most populous metro area in the U.S. state of Georgia and the ninth-largest metropolitan statistical area in the United States...
coverage, Lite Rock WPEZ FM ("Z108") in Macon
Macon, Georgia
Macon is a city located in central Georgia, US. Founded at the fall line of the Ocmulgee River, it is part of the Macon metropolitan area, and the county seat of Bibb County. A small portion of the city extends into Jones County. Macon is the biggest city in central Georgia...
moved its format from 100,000 watt
Watt
The watt is a derived unit of power in the International System of Units , named after the Scottish engineer James Watt . The unit, defined as one joule per second, measures the rate of energy conversion.-Definition:...
s ERP
Effective radiated power
In radio telecommunications, effective radiated power or equivalent radiated power is a standardized theoretical measurement of radio frequency energy using the SI unit watts, and is determined by subtracting system losses and adding system gains...
at 107.9 to an existing frequency at 93.7 in Jeffersonville
Jeffersonville, Georgia
Jeffersonville is a city in and the county seat of Twiggs County, Georgia, United States. The population was 1,209 at the 2000 census.Jeffersonville is part of the Macon Metropolitan Statistical Area.-History:...
. The original top-40 format then on 93.7 moved to new Macon-area station WMGB FM 95.1. The broadcast license
Broadcast license
A broadcast license or broadcast license is a specific type of spectrum license that grants the licensee the privilege to use a portion of the radio frequency spectrum in a given geographical area for broadcasting purposes. The licenses are generally straddled with additional restrictions that...
for 107.9 was then realloted by the FCC, at the request of the original owner, from Macon to Hampton. Prior to this, "Hot 97.5" was to simulcast
Simulcast
Simulcast, shorthand for "simultaneous broadcast", refers to programs or events broadcast across more than one medium, or more than one service on the same medium, at the same time. For example, Absolute Radio is simulcast on both AM and on satellite radio, and the BBC's Prom concerts are often...
on (and already had banner
Banner
A banner is a flag or other piece of cloth bearing a symbol, logo, slogan or other message. Banner-making is an ancient craft.The word derives from late Latin bandum, a cloth out of which a flag is made...
s printed for) "Hot 107.5", which is now occupied by Radio One's WAMJ
WAMJ (FM)
WPZE is a radio station located in Atlanta, Georgia. Operating on 102.5 MHz, it is assigned Mableton as its city of license, and transmits from a location in southwest Atlanta, near I-285 and Langford Parkway...
instead.
The station signed on with Atlanta coverage as WEGF "107.9 the End" with a modern rock
Modern rock
Modern rock is a rock format commonly found on commercial radio; the format consists primarily of the alternative rock genre...
format. Stunting on its first day, it played "Smooth Criminal
Smooth Criminal
"Smooth Criminal" is the seventh single from Michael Jackson's 1987 Bad album. The song contains a fast-paced beat intertwined with Jackson's lyrics about a woman named Annie, who has been attacked in her apartment by a "smooth" assailant. It was released as a single on October 24, 1988 and peaked...
" by Alien Ant Farm
Alien Ant Farm
Alien Ant Farm is an American alternative rock band that formed in Riverside, California, in 1995. Their name comes from an idea original guitarist Terry Corso had about aliens and the earth: "I was daydreaming at my dull desk job with my feet up, and I thought to myself, 'Wouldn't it be cool if...
and "Rollin'" by Limp Bizkit
Limp Bizkit
Limp Bizkit is an American rock band from Jacksonville, Florida. Formed in 1995, the group's lineup consists of Fred Durst , Wes Borland , Sam Rivers , John Otto and DJ Lethal . The band achieved mainstream success with their second studio album Significant Other, released in 1999...
continuously. After several weeks with the rock format, "Hot 97.5" morning show host Ryan Cameron announced to his audience that his station was moving to 107.9, and it was realized that the rock format was a publicity stunt
Publicity stunt
A publicity stunt is a planned event designed to attract the public's attention to the event's organizers or their cause. Publicity stunts can be professionally organized or set up by amateurs...
.
The station has had many complaints to it and the FCC
Federal Communications Commission
The Federal Communications Commission is an independent agency of the United States government, created, Congressional statute , and with the majority of its commissioners appointed by the current President. The FCC works towards six goals in the areas of broadband, competition, the spectrum, the...
from residents near its radio tower
Radio masts and towers
Radio masts and towers are, typically, tall structures designed to support antennas for telecommunications and broadcasting, including television. They are among the tallest man-made structures...
, because the station's audio has been coming through on just about every electronic device imaginable, from telephone
Telephone
The telephone , colloquially referred to as a phone, is a telecommunications device that transmits and receives sounds, usually the human voice. Telephones are a point-to-point communication system whose most basic function is to allow two people separated by large distances to talk to each other...
s to computer
Computer
A computer is a programmable machine designed to sequentially and automatically carry out a sequence of arithmetic or logical operations. The particular sequence of operations can be changed readily, allowing the computer to solve more than one kind of problem...
loudspeaker
Loudspeaker
A loudspeaker is an electroacoustic transducer that produces sound in response to an electrical audio signal input. Non-electrical loudspeakers were developed as accessories to telephone systems, but electronic amplification by vacuum tube made loudspeakers more generally useful...
s. It got a subsequent construction permit
Construction permit
A construction permit or building permit is a permit required in most jurisdictions for new construction, or adding on to pre-existing structures, and in some cases for major renovations. Generally, the new construction must be inspected during construction and after completion to ensure compliance...
from the FCC to increase the height of the antenna
Antenna (radio)
An antenna is an electrical device which converts electric currents into radio waves, and vice versa. It is usually used with a radio transmitter or radio receiver...
on the tower, but this only reduced the problem rather than eliminating it.
On July 31, 2007, they began a new concept: "Digital Hip Hop". Their new slogan is "Hot 107.9 Your Digital Hip Hop Station."
This station is broadcasting in IBOC digital radio
Digital radio
Digital radio has several meanings:1. Today the most common meaning is digital radio broadcasting technologies, such as the digital audio broadcasting system, also known as Eureka 147. In these systems, the analog audio signal is digitized into zeros and ones, compressed using formats such as...
, using the HD Radio
HD Radio
HD Radio, which originally stood for "Hybrid Digital", is the trademark for iBiquity's in-band on-channel digital radio technology used by AM and FM radio stations to transmit audio and data via a digital signal in conjunction with their analog signals...
system from iBiquity
IBiquity
iBiquity Digital Corporation is a company formed by the merger of USA Digital Radio and Lucent Digital Radio, with the goal of creating an in-band on-channel digital radio system for the United States and around the world...
.
As of October 2008, WHTA is the Atlanta affiliate of the Rickey Smiley
Rickey Smiley
Rickey Smiley is a standup comedian, television host, actor, and radio personality best known for his prank phone calls. The calls feature Smiley disguising his voice and carrying on a conversation with the recipient of the call....
Morning Show, based from its sister station
Sister station
In broadcasting, sister stations or sister channels are radio and/or television stations operated by the same ownership....
KBFB FM in Dallas/Fort Worth.
As Radio One moved WAMJ from 102.5 to 107.5 (and also simulcast 107.5 on 97.5's signal), and WPZE from 97.5 to 102.5, WHTA is the only station in the company's Atlanta cluster that is left intact by the change.
The station is also heard on 102.9 via "translator" station W275BK
W275BK
W275BK FM 102.9 is a broadcast translator, that has Decatur, Georgia, as its city of license. Recently off-air, it is licensed to cover the central part of metro Atlanta....
, which came to Radio One via an unusual legal saga. While it could be used to serve the community with entirely different programming according to FCC rules, it is still broadcasting WHTA entirely within its own city-grade
Signal strength
In telecommunications, particularly in radio, signal strength refers to the magnitude of the electric field at a reference point that is a significant distance from the transmitting antenna. It may also be referred to as received signal level or field strength. Typically, it is expressed in...
broadcast range. Thus, it appears the only purpose of that station is to cause radio tuners doing a channel scan to stop immediately before getting to competitor V-103 (WVEE
WVEE (FM)
WVEE is one of the most popular urban-formatted radio stations in the country and the highest-rated station of the Atlanta radio stations by Arbitron. WVEE has Atlanta as its city of license, and is owned by CBS Radio, a subsidiary of the CBS Corporation...
FM 103.3), two channels (0.4MHz) directly above the "translator".