WWSW-FM
Encyclopedia
WWSW-FM, is a classic hits
radio station
based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
. The Clear Channel Communications
station broadcasts at 94.5 MHz with an ERP of 50 kW. Its transmitter is located in Pittsburgh. The current airstaff is made up of Jonny Hartwell, Sheri Van Dyke, Mike Frazer, Steve Grenato, and Kate Harris.
, and was a classical music
station until the early 1960s. The station eventually changed its call letters to match its AM sister station, WWSW. The station became WPEZ in 1973 and was a successful top 40 station for the next seven years. On Labor Day
, 1980, the station gave up top 40 for an adult contemporary format, changing its identity at that time to "3WS." The AM and FM stations both flipped to oldies
in 1988, simulcast for much of the time. The AM split from the FM in 2000 and adopted a sports radio
format as WBGG
. In 2006, it was announced that Pitt Panthers football and basketball games would be aired on WWSW-FM.
Like many oldies stations, WWSW-FM recently had been de-emphasizing music of the 1950s
and 1960s
in favor of more songs from the 1970s
(and even a few from the 1980s
), while declining to use the word "oldies" on the air. In 2006, the music was abruptly adjusted forward with more emphasis on the '70s and even more from the '80s. The station started to play artists it had ignored before, like Styx
, Huey Lewis & the News
, Supertramp
and Bruce Springsteen
, while dropping long-time staples of an earlier vintage like the Dave Clark Five, Gary Lewis and the Playboys and Herman's Hermits
. (However, The Beatles
continue to be a staple of the station's on air playlist.)
For more than a month prior to Christmas
, WWSW switches to a holiday music format. Much of the evening and overnights as well as most of the weekend shows are voice tracked without a live person.
Some of the disc jockeys that broadcast at 3WS were Jim Merkel, Gary Dickson, Steve Hansen, Cris Winter, Bumper Morgan (deceased) RD Summers (deceased) Theresa Colaizzi, Ray Walker, Bonnie Diver, and Lani Daniels. During the prime years at 3WS the morning show featured Merkel and Dickson, the station had oldies concerts that filled 3 rivers stadium many times with oldies acts, and even Wolfman Jack made an appearance on February 23, 1991. The station received 3 Marconi awards for best oldies station in the United States, while the morning show received 5 AIR awards (achievement in radio) for best morning show in Pittsburgh. Longtime air personality Jim Merkel was released from 3WS on October 4, 2010 after more than 31 years on the staff.
Classic hits
Classic hits is a radio format which generally includes rock and pop music from 1964 to 1989. The term is sometimes erroneously used as a synonym for the adult hits format, but is more accurately characterized as a contemporary style of the oldies format...
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...
based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh is the second-largest city in the US Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Allegheny County. Regionally, it anchors the largest urban area of Appalachia and the Ohio River Valley, and nationally, it is the 22nd-largest urban area in the United States...
. The 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...
station broadcasts at 94.5 MHz with an ERP of 50 kW. Its transmitter is located in Pittsburgh. The current airstaff is made up of Jonny Hartwell, Sheri Van Dyke, Mike Frazer, Steve Grenato, and Kate Harris.
History
The station signed on as WMOT in the late 1940s1940s
File:1940s decade montage.png|Above title bar: events which happened during World War II : From left to right: Troops in an LCVP landing craft approaching "Omaha" Beach on "D-Day"; Adolf Hitler visits Paris, soon after the Battle of France; The Holocaust occurred during the war as Nazi Germany...
, and was a classical music
Classical music
Classical music is the art music produced in, or rooted in, the traditions of Western liturgical and secular music, encompassing a broad period from roughly the 11th century to present times...
station until the early 1960s. The station eventually changed its call letters to match its AM sister station, WWSW. The station became WPEZ in 1973 and was a successful top 40 station for the next seven years. On Labor Day
Labor Day
Labor Day is a United States federal holiday observed on the first Monday in September that celebrates the economic and social contributions of workers.-History:...
, 1980, the station gave up top 40 for an adult contemporary format, changing its identity at that time to "3WS." The AM and FM stations both flipped to oldies
Oldies
Oldies is a term commonly used to describe a radio format that concentrates on music from a period of about 15 to 55 years before the present day....
in 1988, simulcast for much of the time. The AM split from the FM in 2000 and adopted a sports radio
Sports radio
Sports radio is a radio format devoted entirely to discussion and broadcasting of sporting events. A popular format with an almost exclusively male demographic in most areas, sports radio is characterized by an often-boisterous on-air style and extensive debate and analysis by both hosts and...
format as WBGG
WBGG (AM)
WBGG is a sports radio station based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, owned by Clear Channel Communications. The station broadcasts at 970 kHz with 5,000 watts day and night.- History :...
. In 2006, it was announced that Pitt Panthers football and basketball games would be aired on WWSW-FM.
Like many oldies stations, WWSW-FM recently had been de-emphasizing music of the 1950s
1950s
The 1950s or The Fifties was the decade that began on January 1, 1950 and ended on December 31, 1959. The decade was the sixth decade of the 20th century...
and 1960s
1960s
The 1960s was the decade that started on January 1, 1960, and ended on December 31, 1969. It was the seventh decade of the 20th century.The 1960s term also refers to an era more often called The Sixties, denoting the complex of inter-related cultural and political trends across the globe...
in favor of more songs from the 1970s
1970s
File:1970s decade montage.png|From left, clockwise: US President Richard Nixon doing the V for Victory sign after his resignation from office after the Watergate scandal in 1974; Refugees aboard a US naval boat after the Fall of Saigon, leading to the end of the Vietnam War in 1975; The 1973 oil...
(and even a few from the 1980s
1980s
File:1980s decade montage.png|thumb|400px|From left, clockwise: The first Space Shuttle, Columbia, lifted off in 1981; American President Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev eased tensions between the two superpowers, leading to the end of the Cold War; The Fall of the Berlin Wall in...
), while declining to use the word "oldies" on the air. In 2006, the music was abruptly adjusted forward with more emphasis on the '70s and even more from the '80s. The station started to play artists it had ignored before, like Styx
Styx (band)
Styx is an American rock band that became famous for its albums from the late 1970s and early 1980s. The Chicago band is known for melding the style of prog-rock with the power of hard rock guitar, strong ballads, and elements of American musical theater....
, Huey Lewis & the News
Huey Lewis & the News
Huey Lewis and the News is an American rock band based in San Francisco, California. They had a run of hit singles during the 1980s and early 1990s, eventually scoring a total of 19 top-ten singles across the Billboard Hot 100, Adult Contemporary and Mainstream Rock charts...
, Supertramp
Supertramp
Supertramp are a British rock band formed in 1969 under the name Daddy before renaming to Supertramp in early 1970. Though their music was initially categorised as progressive rock, they have since incorporated a combination of traditional rock and art rock into their music...
and Bruce Springsteen
Bruce Springsteen
Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen , nicknamed "The Boss," is an American singer-songwriter who records and tours with the E Street Band...
, while dropping long-time staples of an earlier vintage like the Dave Clark Five, Gary Lewis and the Playboys and Herman's Hermits
Herman's Hermits
Herman's Hermits are an English beat band, formed in Manchester in 1963 as Herman & The Hermits. The group's record producer, Mickie Most , emphasized a simple, non-threatening, clean-cut image, although the band originally played R&B numbers...
. (However, The Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
continue to be a staple of the station's on air playlist.)
For more than a month prior to Christmas
Christmas
Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...
, WWSW switches to a holiday music format. Much of the evening and overnights as well as most of the weekend shows are voice tracked without a live person.
Some of the disc jockeys that broadcast at 3WS were Jim Merkel, Gary Dickson, Steve Hansen, Cris Winter, Bumper Morgan (deceased) RD Summers (deceased) Theresa Colaizzi, Ray Walker, Bonnie Diver, and Lani Daniels. During the prime years at 3WS the morning show featured Merkel and Dickson, the station had oldies concerts that filled 3 rivers stadium many times with oldies acts, and even Wolfman Jack made an appearance on February 23, 1991. The station received 3 Marconi awards for best oldies station in the United States, while the morning show received 5 AIR awards (achievement in radio) for best morning show in Pittsburgh. Longtime air personality Jim Merkel was released from 3WS on October 4, 2010 after more than 31 years on the staff.
Disc Jockeys
- Jonny Hartwell (5:00AM–9:00AM) Mon-Fri
- Sheri Van Dyke (9:00AM–4:00PM) Mon-Fri
- Mike Frazer (4:00PM–10:00PM) Mon-Fri
- Kate Harris (Noon-5:00PM) Saturdays
- Steve Granato (Noon-5:00PM) Sundays
Other Shows
- Sunday Night Diner (7:00PM–10:00PM) Sundays
- All Request Cafe (Noon-1:00PM) Mon-Fri
- Casey Kasem's American Top 40 - The 70s (9:00AM-Noon) Sundays
- Beatles Brunch (8:30AM–9:00AM) Sundays
WWSW HD2
On April 25, 2006, Clear Channel announced that WWSW's HD2 subchannel will carry a format focusing on Rhythmic Oldies, which was originally on its sister station WPGB (when it was WJJJ).External links
- WWSW-FM official website
- List of "grandfathered" FM radio stations in the U.S.
- Sunday Night Oldies Diner Website.