WTAG
Encyclopedia
WTAG is an AM
radio station
broadcasting on 580 kHz in Paxton
, Massachusetts
. WTAG programming is also simulcast on FM
translator W235AV at 94.9 MHz, licensed to Tatnuck, Massachusetts
. http://www.wtag.com/pages/history.html WTAG is operated by Clear Channel Communications
.
from 5-9am, Glenn Beck from 9am-noon, Rush Limbaugh from noon-3pm, and Jordan Levy from 3pm-6pm. While Glenn Beck and Rush Limbaugh are nationally syndicated, Jim Polito and Jordan Levy are local to the Central Massachusetts region.
department store received the license
for WDBH. WDBH began operation May 24, 1924 with a power of 100 watt
s on a frequency
of 268 meters (1120kc.). The call letters was assigned by the Commerce Department as the next available block of sequential letters. The station used a play on words and represented that they stood for We Do Business Honestly.
The call letters were changed to WCTS in March 1925. Its power went up to 500 watts in April 1925. WCTS joined the WEAF network run by AT&T about the same time.
The station was purchased by Theodore Ellis, then the owner of the Worcester Telegram & Gazette
, on September 23, 1925. The call letters were changed to WTAG in October 1925 and have not changed since.
Ellis sold the newspapers and radio station in December 1925 to Harry Stoddard and George F Booth. Their families would own the station until 1987.
A studio was constructed on the fourth floor of the newspaper building at 18 Franklin Street. Broadcasting began there in May 1926. The transmitter was still at Sherer's department store on Front Street. The transmitter was a Western Electric IB and the antenna an inverted L.
In July 1926 the wavelength
was changed to 545.1 meters (550kc.). It remained there briefly until June 15, 1927 when the wavelength was changed to 516.9 meters (580kc.). It has remained on 580kHz ever since.
WTAG was a charter member of the NBC Radio Network. It carried their first broadcast November 15, 1926.
From 1927 until 1934 the station ran various power levels on 580kHz. finally ending up with 500 watts from a T antenna at 20 Franklin Street, the T&G building. An RCA 1-B transmitter was put on the air in 1931 and was used occasionally until the mid-1960s.
Limited by the downtown location, a site was located that would allow for construction of towers. A farm on Shrewsbury Street in Holden, about 5 miles (8 km) north of the center of Worcester, was purchased in 1934. Construction of a new transmitting facility was begun in 1935. On February 2, 1937 WTAG began transmitting with a power of 1000 watts using a three tower directional antenna
system. This transmitter site has been in continuous use since that time. The transmitter used was an RCA 1-D which was kept until 1977.
September 21, 1938 saw the infamous 1938 New England hurricane
which leveled all three towers between 5:00 and 5:20 P.M. WTAG operated from the 20 Franklin Street location until May 19, 1939 when the replacement of all three towers was completed. The replacement towers, self-supported 375 feet (114 m) tall built by the Blaw-Knox company, are still in use today.
WTAG's master control and studios were substantially renovated in 1939. The acoustics of the studio were much improved and theater seating allowed for an audience for live programming. The custom RCA mixing console
was one of the largest built by RCA for a radio station. WTAG had its own orchestra and originated many music and dramatic shows from studio A.
April 9, 1940 marked the beginning of day time operation with power of 5,000 watts. Night time operation with 5,000 watts began January 2, 1942. Two additional Blaw-Knox towers were added to allow 5 kW directional night time operation. The five towers at the Holden site survived the Worcester Tornado in 1953. However, one of the towers was lost to Hurricane
Carol in 1954. The nighttime directional pattern was reworked to use the four remaining towers. The fallen one was never replaced. Those four towers are still in use today.
WTAG serves as the radio broadcast home of the Worcester Sharks
who play in the American Hockey League
. The station was the radio home of the Boston Red Sox
in the Worcester
area for forty years, from 1967-2006. The Red Sox' Worcester affiliation moved to WVEI and WCRN
in 2007.
AM broadcasting
AM broadcasting is the process of radio broadcasting using amplitude modulation. AM was the first method of impressing sound on a radio signal and is still widely used today. Commercial and public AM broadcasting is carried out in the medium wave band world wide, and on long wave and short wave...
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...
broadcasting on 580 kHz in Paxton
Paxton, Massachusetts
Paxton is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 4,806 at the 2010 census.-History:Paxton was first settled in 1749 and was officially incorporated in 1765....
, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
. WTAG programming is also simulcast on FM
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"...
translator W235AV at 94.9 MHz, licensed to Tatnuck, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
. http://www.wtag.com/pages/history.html WTAG is operated by Clear Channel Communications
Clear Channel Communications
Clear Channel Communications, Inc. is an American media conglomerate company headquartered in San Antonio, Texas. It was founded in 1972 by Lowry Mays and Red McCombs, and was taken private by Bain Capital LLC and Thomas H. Lee Partners LP in a leveraged buyout in 2008...
.
Programming
WTAG's weekday program schedule begins with Jim PolitoJim Polito
Jim Polito is a radio talk show host for WTAG in Worcester, Massachusetts .Polito graduated from Saint John's High School in Shrewsbury, Massachusetts and Worcester State College where he majored in Urban Studies with a concentration in Communications.His past work includes serving as Chief...
from 5-9am, Glenn Beck from 9am-noon, Rush Limbaugh from noon-3pm, and Jordan Levy from 3pm-6pm. While Glenn Beck and Rush Limbaugh are nationally syndicated, Jim Polito and Jordan Levy are local to the Central Massachusetts region.
History
WTAG's history begins May 1, 1924 when the C T Sherer Co. a WorcesterWorcester
The City of Worcester, commonly known as Worcester, , is a city and county town of Worcestershire in the West Midlands of England. Worcester is situated some southwest of Birmingham and north of Gloucester, and has an approximate population of 94,000 people. The River Severn runs through the...
department store received the license
License
The verb license or grant licence means to give permission. The noun license or licence refers to that permission as well as to the document recording that permission.A license may be granted by a party to another party as an element of an agreement...
for WDBH. WDBH began operation May 24, 1924 with a power of 100 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 on a frequency
Frequency
Frequency is the number of occurrences of a repeating event per unit time. It is also referred to as temporal frequency.The period is the duration of one cycle in a repeating event, so the period is the reciprocal of the frequency...
of 268 meters (1120kc.). The call letters was assigned by the Commerce Department as the next available block of sequential letters. The station used a play on words and represented that they stood for We Do Business Honestly.
The call letters were changed to WCTS in March 1925. Its power went up to 500 watts in April 1925. WCTS joined the WEAF network run by AT&T about the same time.
The station was purchased by Theodore Ellis, then the owner of the Worcester Telegram & Gazette
Worcester Telegram & Gazette
The Telegram & Gazette is Worcester, Massachusetts's only daily newspaper. The paper, known locally as the Telegram or the T & G is owned by the Worcester Telegram & Gazette Corp., a wholly owned subsidiary of The New York Times Company .It offers coverage of all of...
, on September 23, 1925. The call letters were changed to WTAG in October 1925 and have not changed since.
Ellis sold the newspapers and radio station in December 1925 to Harry Stoddard and George F Booth. Their families would own the station until 1987.
A studio was constructed on the fourth floor of the newspaper building at 18 Franklin Street. Broadcasting began there in May 1926. The transmitter was still at Sherer's department store on Front Street. The transmitter was a Western Electric IB and the antenna an inverted L.
In July 1926 the wavelength
Wavelength
In physics, the wavelength of a sinusoidal wave is the spatial period of the wave—the distance over which the wave's shape repeats.It is usually determined by considering the distance between consecutive corresponding points of the same phase, such as crests, troughs, or zero crossings, and is a...
was changed to 545.1 meters (550kc.). It remained there briefly until June 15, 1927 when the wavelength was changed to 516.9 meters (580kc.). It has remained on 580kHz ever since.
WTAG was a charter member of the NBC Radio Network. It carried their first broadcast November 15, 1926.
From 1927 until 1934 the station ran various power levels on 580kHz. finally ending up with 500 watts from a T antenna at 20 Franklin Street, the T&G building. An RCA 1-B transmitter was put on the air in 1931 and was used occasionally until the mid-1960s.
Limited by the downtown location, a site was located that would allow for construction of towers. A farm on Shrewsbury Street in Holden, about 5 miles (8 km) north of the center of Worcester, was purchased in 1934. Construction of a new transmitting facility was begun in 1935. On February 2, 1937 WTAG began transmitting with a power of 1000 watts using a three tower directional antenna
Directional antenna
A directional antenna or beam antenna is an antenna which radiates greater power in one or more directions allowing for increased performance on transmit and receive and reduced interference from unwanted sources....
system. This transmitter site has been in continuous use since that time. The transmitter used was an RCA 1-D which was kept until 1977.
September 21, 1938 saw the infamous 1938 New England hurricane
New England Hurricane of 1938
The New England Hurricane of 1938 was the first major hurricane to strike New England since 1869...
which leveled all three towers between 5:00 and 5:20 P.M. WTAG operated from the 20 Franklin Street location until May 19, 1939 when the replacement of all three towers was completed. The replacement towers, self-supported 375 feet (114 m) tall built by the Blaw-Knox company, are still in use today.
WTAG's master control and studios were substantially renovated in 1939. The acoustics of the studio were much improved and theater seating allowed for an audience for live programming. The custom RCA mixing console
Mixing console
In professional audio, a mixing console, or audio mixer, also called a sound board, mixing desk, or mixer is an electronic device for combining , routing, and changing the level, timbre and/or dynamics of audio signals. A mixer can mix analog or digital signals, depending on the type of mixer...
was one of the largest built by RCA for a radio station. WTAG had its own orchestra and originated many music and dramatic shows from studio A.
April 9, 1940 marked the beginning of day time operation with power of 5,000 watts. Night time operation with 5,000 watts began January 2, 1942. Two additional Blaw-Knox towers were added to allow 5 kW directional night time operation. The five towers at the Holden site survived the Worcester Tornado in 1953. However, one of the towers was lost to Hurricane
Carol in 1954. The nighttime directional pattern was reworked to use the four remaining towers. The fallen one was never replaced. Those four towers are still in use today.
WTAG serves as the radio broadcast home of the Worcester Sharks
Worcester Sharks
The Worcester Sharks are a professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League . The franchise is located in Worcester, Massachusetts and play their home games at the DCU Center in Downtown Worcester. The Sharks and the city of Worcester hosted the 2009 AHL All-Star Classic.-History:On...
who play in the American Hockey League
American Hockey League
The American Hockey League is a 30-team professional ice hockey league based in the United States and Canada that serves as the primary developmental circuit for the National Hockey League...
. The station was the radio home of the Boston Red Sox
Boston Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox are a professional baseball team based in Boston, Massachusetts, and a member of Major League Baseball’s American League Eastern Division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight charter franchises, the Red Sox's home ballpark has been Fenway Park since . The "Red Sox"...
in the Worcester
Worcester
The City of Worcester, commonly known as Worcester, , is a city and county town of Worcestershire in the West Midlands of England. Worcester is situated some southwest of Birmingham and north of Gloucester, and has an approximate population of 94,000 people. The River Severn runs through the...
area for forty years, from 1967-2006. The Red Sox' Worcester affiliation moved to WVEI and WCRN
WCRN
WCRN is an AM radio station in Worcester, Massachusetts, owned by Carter Broadcasting.The station broadcasts at 830 AM at a transmitter power output of 50,000 watts and can be heard from Maine to Providence, Rhode Island, and from Boston to Springfield, Massachusetts...
in 2007.