WEEI (AM)
This article needs additional citations for verification. (December 2007) |
Sports gambling | |
Affiliations | |
---|---|
Ownership | |
Owner |
|
History | |
First air date | June 20, 1929[1] |
Former call signs | WHDH (1929–1994) |
Former frequencies | 830 kHz (1929–1941) |
Call sign meaning | Callsign originally used on WEEI (590 AM), which was founded by Edison Electric Illuminating |
Technical information[2] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
Facility ID | 1912 |
Class | B |
Power | 50,000 watts |
Transmitter coordinates | 42°16′41.4″N 71°16′0.2″W / 42.278167°N 71.266722°W |
Links | |
Public license information | |
Webcast | Listen live (via Audacy) |
Website | www |
WEEI (850
Historically, the station is perhaps best known by its former WHDH call letters, under which it operated from its establishment in 1929 until 1994; it then became the second home to WEEI following an intellectual property purchase. After WEEI's local programming was moved to 93.7 FM in 2011, the station became a full-time ESPN Radio affiliate in 2012, and a sports gambling-focused station in 2021.
History
WHDH (850 AM)
Early years
Originally located in Gloucester, Massachusetts, WHDH was founded on June 20, 1929, by Ralph Matheson.[1] It was a daytime-only station broadcasting at 830 kHz (leaving the air at local sunset in Denver, about two hours after sunset in Boston, to protect the signal of KOA in the Colorado capital city). WHDH was Matheson's second station; he had started WEPS on November 26, 1926.[1] Much of WEPS' programming consisted of broadcasts to, for, or about fisherman, given Gloucester's status as a major port for the fishing industry. The WHDH license was issued in December 1928, a month after WEPS was forced to share time with WKBE in Webster on 1200 kHz;[1] WEPS was sold to Alfred Kleindienst, owner of its share-time partner (which became WORC in Auburn, near Worcester, a year earlier), in February 1930, with WEPS being moved to Auburn and consolidated with WORC on May 5.[3] Matheson kept WHDH, which moved its studios to Boston on November 6, 1930, though some programming had originated from Boston for some time beforehand, and the transmitter remained in Gloucester until a 1932 move to Saugus.[3] With the move, WHDH broadened its programming, but still included some reports for fishermen. In subsequent decades, WHDH would claim WEPS' history as its own.[4]
The 1941 North American Regional Broadcasting Agreement moved WHDH to 850 kHz, and allowed the station to broadcast on a full-time basis. WHDH was able to increase power to 5,000 watts and go full-time, but not without protests from KOA, one of the dominant class A clear channel stations on 850 AM. For two years, from 1943 until 1945, WHDH was the local affiliate of the Blue Network, the former "NBC Blue", replacing WBZ as Blue affiliate; WHDH ceded the affiliation to WCOP after the Blue Network also chose to affiliate with Lawrence's WLAW (the facilities of which were subsequently sold to WNAC).[5]
Purchase by the Herald-Traveler
In 1946, shortly after World War II, the Boston Herald-Traveler newspaper purchased WHDH, by this time again an independent station.[4] In 1948, the station moved its transmitter site from Saugus to Needham, west of Boston, where the station would be able to increase power to 50,000 watts with a directional signal aimed east to protect KOA and other stations on 850. The station also expanded into FM broadcasting on March 31, 1948, with the sign-on of WHDH-FM (94.5 FM, now WJMN).[4]
While not first in Boston to adopt a popular music and disc jockey format with hourly newscasts (WORL was the first), a combination of a powerful signal, top-notch personalities like Ray Dorey, Fred B. Cole,[6] Bob Clayton, Norm Nathan, news anchor John Day, and a mid-morning women's show hosted by Christine Evans (also billing herself as Chris); along with live coverage of Boston Red Sox baseball, Boston Bruins hockey, and Boston Celtics basketball, made WHDH one of the most popular stations in the region in the post-World War II era. In the late 1950s, Jess Cain joined the station, first co-hosting the morning show with Dorey, then as solo host when Dorey moved over to television. Cain would remain at WHDH for 34 years. By the early 1960s, Hank Forbes and Alan Dary had joined Cain, Clayton, and Nathan on the WHDH staff.
In the 1950s and 1960s, WHDH, along with WBZ, had among the strongest lineup of personality disc jockeys in Boston radio history. While the two stations for the most part programmed different kinds of music, both had very talented air personalities who were "household names" in the Boston area.
Perhaps the station's best-known on-air personalities outside of Boston were the comedy team of Bob and Ray, who did a comedy-and-records show at WHDH before they departed for national fame in New York City. The station employed a popular MOR (what today would be called "adult standards") music format, which would also include soft rock songs by the end of the 1960s. The station also had specialty shows playing jazz and big band music.
Sports coverage
While WHDH was never "all sports", it was easily Boston's top sports station during the 1950s through the end of the 1960s. It referred to itself "The Voice of Sports", a sub-branding of the station's overall imaging as "The Sound of the City". For 30 consecutive years, from 1946 to 1975, WHDH was the flagship station of the Boston Red Sox, featuring play-by-play announcers such as
The station also aired one of the first sports-oriented talk programs, although without telephone calls. "The Voice of Sports" was a Saturday night feature for years, usually hosted by Don Gillis and featuring sports reporters from the Herald-Traveler. It was a panel discussion program featuring lively debate about sports for an hour and represented the sum total of sports talk on Boston radio in that era. The title was also used for a sports talk program when telephone sports talk began to take hold in the early 1970s. It was an afternoon telephone sports talk hosted by Leo Egan which ended after the station was sold to John Blair Broadcasting.
During the winter months, WHDH and WHDH-FM were the flagship stations of the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association and the Boston Bruins of the National Hockey League, employing such announcers as Johnny Most, Fred Cusick, and Bob Wilson. For a single season, Jim Laing was the announcer for Bruins games and brought candor to the job. He was fired for being too frank about a team that finished sixth in a six-team league. In the mid- and late 1960s, when both the Bruins and Celtics played, one of the teams (usually the one playing at home) was heard on AM; while the other (usually the team playing on the road) was heard on FM. WHDH also was the radio home of Harvard University football in the autumn, including 1968, the year of Harvard's famous 29-29 "win" against arch-rival Yale, considered one of the greatest college-football games ever played.
In addition, the original
Impact from loss of television license
WHDH began to lose its valuable properties in 1969, when the Bruins and Celtics were wooed away by WBZ. Soon afterward, the Boston Herald-Traveler Corporation's license to operate channel 5 was revoked by the
Blair modernized the WHDH format, bringing it from the adult standards-oriented MOR sound to more of an
By the mid-1980s, WHDH was moving toward more of a talk format and on August 22, 1988, the station dropped music abruptly; although the station had been playing more music than WBZ, that station would gradually phase out music over the next several years.
David Mugar era
On August 7, 1989, WHDH was sold to local businessman
Atlantic Radio made an attempt to distinguish WHDH and WRKO in 1993 by relaunching WHDH as an "information station", with the feature-oriented Boston This Morning premiering in the morning drive slot on March 8;
On August 15, 1994, American Radio Systems announced the purchase of WEEI (590 AM)'s intellectual property (call letters, programming, and staff) from Back Bay Broadcasters, who had acquired WEEI from the Boston Celtics back in March.[24] ARS then announced plans to move WEEI to the stronger 850 AM, replacing WHDH.[25] ARS concurrently moved the Rush Limbaugh and Howie Carr shows, in addition to the "Skyway Patrol" traffic report brand, from WHDH to WRKO. The Money Experts, a daily financial talk show also previously heard on WHDH, would move to WBNW, a new business talk station that would take over WEEI's old frequency.[25] WHDH's final broadcast, on August 28, 1994, concluded at midnight with "Taps" and the sound of a flushing toilet; these were played by a disgruntled board operator who was laid off in the transition, and subsequently led to a formal apology from ARS.[4][26]
WEEI (850 AM)
SportsRadio 850
As part of this complex transaction, ARS changed the station's format to sports radio on August 29, 1994, rebranded the station "SportsRadio 850 WEEI", and reassigned on- and off-air personnel;[25] the WHDH call sign was officially changed to WEEI on August 31.[27] In effect, this new WEEI (850 AM) became the successor to the previous WEEI (590 AM),[25] which had changed its call sign to WBNW on August 25, 1994.[27]
WEEI simulcast with WBNW for a week before WBNW debuted its business news format. With the move to 850, WEEI retained Boston Celtics broadcasts,[25] which ARS had acquired the rights to earlier in the year,[28] and also inherited WHDH's rights to Boston College Eagles men's basketball; WEEI's existing rights to BC football were also carried over to 850 AM. Due to conflicts with BC basketball, Boston Bruins broadcasts, which WEEI had carried on 590 AM, remained on that frequency even after the launch of WBNW;[25] the team had already announced its move to WBZ effective with the 1995–96 season.[28] The new WEEI also continued WHDH's CBS Radio Network affiliation until early 1995, when it moved to WBZ. The move to the 850 frequency allowed WEEI to broadcast at 50,000 watts, as opposed to 5,000 watts on 590.[29] ARS also moved Red Sox broadcasts to WEEI from WRKO starting in 1995, marking their return to the 850 kHz frequency.[30] Conversely, Celtics broadcasts were moved to WRKO for the 1995–96 season; they returned to WEEI the following season.[31]
Concurrent with the move to 850, WEEI ceased an affiliation with
WEEI again lost the Celtics broadcast rights in 2001, this time to WWZN (the former WNRB).[42] Entercom reacquired the rights to the broadcasts in 2005; initially heard on WRKO,[43] Celtics games moved back to WEEI in 2007[44] (though Celtics coaches and players appeared on WEEI regularly during WRKO's time as flagship).[43] In April 2005, WEEI began streaming its broadcasts live online by way of a free membership at its official website; a previous stream was offered from 1997 until 2002. The exception is for Red Sox and Celtics games, as these are streamed only through the team and league websites as part of subscription packages.[45] Around the same time, the station again lost ESPN Radio programming when the affiliation was acquired by WAMG and WLLH;[46] the station then expanded an affiliation with Fox Sports Radio that began in 2002.
WEEI was awarded its first Marconi Award in September 2006 for sports station of the year. WEEI was also named large market station of the year.[47]
The station had an ongoing feud with The Boston Globe. In 1999, the Globe's executive sports editor, Don Skwar, banned the newspaper's sports writers from appearing on the station's afternoon The Big Show after columnist Ron Borges used a racial slur while on the air in reference to New York Yankees pitcher Hideki Irabu. Two weeks later, the ban was extended to WEEI's Dennis and Callahan morning show. WEEI retaliated by banning Globe staffers from all its shows. Nevertheless, WEEI host Michael Holley is a former Globe columnist.[48] The ban came to an end on August 4, 2009, when Bob Ryan appeared on The Big Show, with host Glenn Ordway stating that "we have all come to our senses".[49]
ESPN on WEEI
In September 2009, The Boston Globe reported that ESPN Radio was in negotiations to clear some of its night and weekend programming on WEEI, with speculation suggesting that WEEI could subsequently move to one of Entercom's properties on the FM dial (such as the 93.7 FM facility then occupied by WMKK), with the AM 850 signal switching to ESPN Radio. The report followed WAMG's decision to end its ESPN Radio affiliation and go silent, along with the launch of an FM competitor, WBZ-FM, the previous month—the first serious threat to WEEI's dominance in Boston sports radio.[50] Entercom confirmed on October 7, 2009, that ESPN Radio programming would return to WEEI effective November 2 (though most programming would remain local). WEEI began to carry ESPN Radio's overnight programming, including AllNight with Jason Smith, and some weekend programming.[51] As late as December 2010, station management continued to deny occasional reports of a move of WEEI's programming to WMKK.[52] Ultimately, WEEI began to simulcast on 93.7 FM on September 12, 2011,[53] a decision that came after WBZ-FM began outrating WEEI in three key demographics,[52] even when its ratings were combined with those of Boston-area listeners of its simulcast on 103.7 FM in Providence, Rhode Island.[53]
On September 18, 2012, Entercom and announced that AM 850 would become "ESPN on WEEI", a full-time affiliate of ESPN Radio.[54] The simulcast of WEEI and WEEI-FM was split on October 4, 2012; the existing local programming and sports broadcasts remained on WEEI-FM, while AM 850 aired a redirection loop for one day before joining ESPN Radio on October 5.[55] ESPN Radio's morning show, Mike and Mike, marked its new affiliate with a live broadcast from Gillette Stadium.[55] While the bulk of the station's programming after the change came from the national ESPN Radio schedule,[55] WEEI indicated that it might also air some locally produced weekend long-form specialty programs that do not necessarily fit on WEEI-FM.[56] WEEI also aired Boston Celtics games that conflicted with Boston Red Sox games on WEEI-FM through the 2012–2013 season; if the conflict involved a Celtics playoff game, the Celtics aired on WEEI-FM and the Red Sox game was on WEEI.
Sports betting
In October 2021, WEEI dropped ESPN Radio in favor of sports betting programming from the Audacy-owned BetQL Network. The station also carries some programming from CBS Sports Radio. Unlike the other Audacy stations with a sports betting format, which brand as "The Bet", WEEI continues to brand using its call sign.[57][58]
References
- ^ a b c d Halper, Donna; Wollman, Garrett. "The Eastern Massachusetts Radio Timeline: The First Fifteen Years". The Archives @ BostonRadio.org. Retrieved October 13, 2012.
- ^ "Facility Technical Data for WEEI". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
- ^ a b Halper, Donna; Wollman, Garrett. "The Eastern Massachusetts Radio Timeline: the 1930s". The Archives @ BostonRadio.org. Retrieved October 13, 2012.
- ^ a b c d e f g "The Boston Radio Dial: WEEI(AM)". The Archives @ BostonRadio.org. August 16, 2009. Retrieved October 13, 2012.
- ^ Halper, Donna; Wollman, Garrett. "The Eastern Massachusetts Radio Timeline: the 1940s". The Archives @ BostonRadio.org. Retrieved October 13, 2012.
- ^ Marquard, Bryan (December 11, 2007). "Fred B. Cole, 92; mouthpiece of big-band era". The Boston Globe.
- ^ "Epilogues to Boston story" (PDF). Broadcasting. May 22, 1972. p. 40. Retrieved October 13, 2012.
- ^ "Blair agrees to buy majority in WHDH Corp" (PDF). Broadcasting. April 9, 1973. pp. 56–7. Retrieved October 13, 2012.
- ^ "The Red Sox are hot, but radio sales cold" (PDF). Broadcasting. June 30, 1975. p. 39. Retrieved March 5, 2020.
- ^ "Picking up the Sox" (PDF). Broadcasting. October 6, 1975. p. 47. Retrieved March 5, 2020.
- ^ "Starting next season, Boston Red Sox games will be..." United Press International. December 9, 1982. Retrieved March 5, 2020.
- ^ "Sox move down dial to WRKO". The Sun. November 23, 1985. p. 6. Retrieved March 5, 2020.
- ^ "RR-1988-08-19" (PDF). americanradiohistory.com.
- ^ "Moving and shaking at John Blair & Co" (PDF). Broadcasting. November 24, 1986. pp. 68–9. Retrieved October 14, 2012.
- ^ "Sconnix buys eight Blair radio stations for $152 million" (PDF). Broadcasting. March 9, 1987. pp. 54–5. Retrieved October 14, 2012.
- ^ Kadzis, Diane (May 4, 1992). "Mugar rumored to be selling WHDH-AM to pay off debt". Boston Business Journal. Retrieved October 14, 2012.
- ^ Bickelhaupt, Susan (December 2, 1992). "It's official: 2 talk stations, 1 owner". The Boston Globe. Archived from the original on May 2, 2013. Retrieved October 14, 2012. (pay content preview)
- ^ a b Bickelhaupt, Susan (March 5, 1993). "Prose to replace Clapprood in WHDH's lineup". The Boston Globe. Archived from the original on May 2, 2013. Retrieved October 14, 2012. (pay content preview)
- ^ Johnson, Dean (December 16, 1993). "A.M. news show debuts on WHDH". Boston Herald. Retrieved October 14, 2012. (pay content preview)
- ^ Bickelhaupt, Susan (October 1, 1993). "Howie Carr's back, and 'HDH has him". The Boston Globe. Archived from the original on May 2, 2013. Retrieved October 14, 2012. (pay content preview)
- ^ "Here's Howie". Boston Herald. October 1, 1993. Retrieved October 14, 2012. (pay content preview)
- ^ "Three radio chains plan a merger". The New York Times. June 25, 1993. Retrieved October 14, 2012.
- ^ "Around the Dial". Boston Herald. November 2, 1993. Retrieved October 14, 2012. (pay content preview)
- ^ Boston Globe, article, "Celtics Sell WEEI for $3.8m", by Jack Craig, March 17, 1994, Sec. 1. pg. 41
- ^ The Telegraph. Associated Press. Retrieved October 10, 2012.
- ^ Craig, Jack (August 30, 1994). "Apology issued for WHDH sendoff". The Boston Globe. Archived from the original on May 2, 2013. Retrieved October 14, 2012. (pay content preview)
- ^ a b "Call Letter Changes" (PDF). The M Street Journal. September 7, 1994. p. 4. Retrieved October 25, 2021.
- ^ a b Craig, Jack (May 13, 1994). "Bruins on WBZ Radio in '95-96". The Boston Globe. Archived from the original on May 6, 2016. Retrieved October 9, 2012. (pay content preview)
- ^ Boston Globe, City Edition, article, "Change in the air for WEEI", by Jim Greenidge, December 16, 1994, page A4
- ^ Craig, Jack (March 29, 1995). "Sox games in, Lutsk out at WEEI". The Boston Globe. Archived from the original on May 2, 2013. Retrieved October 14, 2012. (pay content preview)
- ^ Craig, Jack (July 19, 1996). "WEEI gets games". The Boston Globe. Retrieved August 20, 2013. (pay content preview)
- ^ Craig, Jack (September 4, 1994). "Throwing a changeup". The Boston Globe. Archived from the original on May 2, 2013. Retrieved October 11, 2012. (pay content preview)
- ^ Baker, Jim (September 12, 1995). "A-Team flunks WEEI debut". Boston Herald. Retrieved October 10, 2012. (pay content preview)
- ^ Baker, Jim (February 28, 1999). "Pats make waves". Boston Herald. Retrieved October 10, 2012. (pay content preview)
- ^ "Beloved voice a throwback". The Boston Globe. March 15, 2002. Retrieved October 15, 2012. (pay content preview)
- ^ Manly, Howard (September 30, 1997). "WEEI's morning menu: local flavor". The Boston Globe. Archived from the original on May 2, 2013. Retrieved October 11, 2012. (pay content preview)
- ^ Manly, Howard (August 18, 1999). "Dennis-Callahan to replace Imus". The Boston Globe. Archived from the original on May 2, 2013. Retrieved October 11, 2012. (pay content preview)
- ^ Shapira, Ian (July 9, 1999). "WEEI drops Imus, citing poor ratings". The Boston Globe. Archived from the original on May 2, 2013. Retrieved October 11, 2012. (pay content preview)
- Baltimore Sun. Bloomberg News. September 20, 1997. Retrieved October 7, 2021.
- ^ Yorke, Jeffrey (April 3, 1998). "$2.6 Bil. CBS/ARS Deal Clears DOJ Hurdle" (PDF). Radio & Records. pp. 1, 10. Retrieved October 26, 2021.
- ^ "CBS to Sell 5 Boston-Area Radio Stations". The New York Times. August 14, 1998. Retrieved October 13, 2012.
- ^ Baker, Jim (April 6, 2001). "C's switch from WEEI to 'The Zone'". Boston Herald. Archived from the original on March 9, 2016. Retrieved August 20, 2013. (pay content preview)
- ^ a b Banks, E. Douglas (June 23, 2005). "Celtics, Entercom sign flagship radio deal". Boston Business Journal. Retrieved August 20, 2013.
- ^ Noyes, Jesse (March 29, 2007). "Celtics will bounce to WEEI". Boston Herald. Archived from the original on March 9, 2016. Retrieved August 20, 2013. (pay content preview)
- ^ Simon, Clea (March 24, 2005). "WBZ begins online streaming". The Boston Globe. Archived from the original on March 24, 2005. Retrieved October 13, 2012.
- ^ Griffith, Bill (March 13, 2005). "ESPN Radio finally finds an outlet". The Boston Globe. Retrieved October 13, 2012.
- ^ "Marconi Firsts: Soleto, WEEI Among the Big Winners". Radio World. September 21, 2006. Archived from the original on October 23, 2008. Retrieved April 23, 2019.
{{cite news}}
: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link) - ^ "Don't Quote Me". Bostonphoenix.com. Archived from the original on December 25, 2007. Retrieved December 25, 2011.
- ^ "Bob Ryan – Boston Globe".
- ^ ESPN Radio's Boston Affiliate Set to Sign Off
- ^ Boston Radio Watch (October 7, 2009). "Boston Radio Watch". Bostonradiowatch.blogspot.com. Retrieved December 25, 2011.
- ^ a b Heslam, Jessica (September 8, 2011). "WEEI amps up ratings battle". Boston Herald. Retrieved October 25, 2021.
- ^ a b Finn, Chad (September 8, 2011). "WEEI to begin FM simulcast Monday". The Boston Globe. Retrieved September 8, 2011.
- ^ Finn, Chad (September 18, 2012). "WEEI reveals ESPN lineup on 850". Boston.com. Retrieved October 21, 2021.
- ^ a b c Finn, Chad (October 5, 2012). "ESPN's 'Mike and Mike' program back on Boston airwaves". The Boston Globe. Retrieved October 21, 2012.
- ^ Finn, Chad (September 21, 2012). "WEEI wins Marconi as top sports station". boston.com. Retrieved October 13, 2012.
- ^ https://www.fybush.com/nerw-20211018/ NorthEast Radio Watch Oct 18, 2021
- ^ Venta, Lance (October 18, 2021). "Audacy Expands The Bet To AM In Boston & HD In Four Other Markets". RadioInsight. Retrieved October 21, 2021.
External links
- Official website
- WEEI in the FCC AM station database
- WEEI in Nielsen Audio's AM station database
- FCC History Cards for WEEI