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WETA (FM)
Encyclopedia
WETA is a non-commercial
, public radio station in Washington, DC broadcasting
a classical music
radio format
on 90.9 FM. Its studios are located in
Arlington, Virginia. The station covers the Washington metro area with the highest effective radiated power of any FM station in the area at 75,000 watts. It has an HD Radio
simulcast at 90.9 FM HD and operates simulcasting stations WGMS-FM 89.1 in Hagerstown, Maryland
and at W205BL-FM 88.9 in Frederick, Maryland
.
through early 2005
, WETA featured a mixed radio format of classical music, folk music, jazz, and news. It switched to a predominantly news and talk radio format from February 28, 2005 until January 22, 2007, when it switched to its current all-classical radio format. The switch was part of an unusual deal between the public radio station and commercial station WGMS (FM)
, which abandoned the classical music format it had aired for decades after an attempt to sell WGMS to Washington Redskins
owner Dan Snyder
failed. The FCC subsequently granted WETA permission to use the WGMS call letters for its Hagerstown, Maryland, repeater station, formerly known as WETH.
As of April 2007 WETA reduced the number of hourly NPR
newscasts, which had continued to be heard every hour since the change to the classical music format. Newscasts are now heard on the hour during drive time
and at selected hours at other times. WETA also airs audio from the PBS NewsHour Monday through Friday evenings, for the benefit of area commuters unable to arrive home in time to view the program on television.
WETA airs opera programming on Saturday afternoons, including the Metropolitan Opera radio broadcasts
during the Met's regular December–April broadcast season. They inherited from WGMS an all-vocal classical music format branded, "VivaLaVoce, the station that sings", on HD2.
WETA's only competition in the market area is WBJC
(91.5 FM), also a non-commercial station, which broadcasts a classical music format from Baltimore, Maryland.
and visually impaired. Listeners tune in to the service using special receivers provided free to qualifying individuals and can receive audio from more than 200 current publications, including newspapers, magazines, and bestselling books.
Non-commercial
Non-commercial refers to an activity or entity that does not in some sense involve commerce, at least relative to similar activities that do have a commercial objective or emphasis...
, public radio station in Washington, DC broadcasting
Broadcasting
Broadcasting is the distribution of audio and video content to a dispersed audience via any audio visual medium. Receiving parties may include the general public or a relatively large subset of thereof...
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...
radio 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...
on 90.9 FM. Its studios are located in
Arlington, Virginia. The station covers the Washington metro area with the highest effective radiated power of any FM station in the area at 75,000 watts. It has an 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...
simulcast at 90.9 FM HD and operates simulcasting stations WGMS-FM 89.1 in Hagerstown, Maryland
Hagerstown, Maryland
Hagerstown is a city in northwestern Maryland, United States. It is the county seat of Washington County, and, by many definitions, the largest city in a region known as Western Maryland. The population of Hagerstown city proper at the 2010 census was 39,662, and the population of the...
and at W205BL-FM 88.9 in Frederick, Maryland
Frederick, Maryland
Frederick is a city in north-central Maryland. It is the county seat of Frederick County, the largest county by area in the state of Maryland. Frederick is an outlying community of the Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is part of a greater...
.
Past formats and format changes
From 19701979 in radio
The year 1979 in radio involved some significant events.-Events:*September - KDWB-FM in Minneapolis, Minnesota breaks away from their Top 40 AM sister, becoming album-oriented rock as "K101"...
through early 2005
2005 in radio
The year 2005 in radio involved some significant events.-Events:*April 29 - KFRC 610 AM in San Francisco, switches formats as a result of ownership change. KFRC becomes KEAR, the "Sound of the New Life", a listener-supported, gospel/religious only station. It had been previously KFRC from...
, WETA featured a mixed radio format of classical music, folk music, jazz, and news. It switched to a predominantly news and talk radio format from February 28, 2005 until January 22, 2007, when it switched to its current all-classical radio format. The switch was part of an unusual deal between the public radio station and commercial station WGMS (FM)
WGMS (FM)
WGMS was a radio station in Washington, D.C. that maintained a classical music format from 1946 to 2007. Last owned by Bonneville International, it was known on air for many years as Classical 103.5...
, which abandoned the classical music format it had aired for decades after an attempt to sell WGMS to Washington Redskins
Washington Redskins
The Washington Redskins are a professional American football team and members of the East Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team plays at FedExField in Landover, Maryland, while its headquarters and training facility are at Redskin Park in Ashburn,...
owner Dan Snyder
Dan Snyder
Daniel Snyder was a professional Canadian ice hockey player. He played as a centre in the National Hockey League for the Atlanta Thrashers...
failed. The FCC subsequently granted WETA permission to use the WGMS call letters for its Hagerstown, Maryland, repeater station, formerly known as WETH.
Current format
WETA changed to a classical music format on January 22, 2007, at 8 p.m. EST, with classical music now offered for more of the broadcast day than ever before in the station’s history. Its current classical format is primarily mainstream orchestral, with a smattering of early and baroque music and chamber music. Aside from Saturday afternoon opera, very few vocal performances are aired on WETA.As of April 2007 WETA reduced the number of hourly NPR
NPR
NPR, formerly National Public Radio, is a privately and publicly funded non-profit membership media organization that serves as a national syndicator to a network of 900 public radio stations in the United States. NPR was created in 1970, following congressional passage of the Public Broadcasting...
newscasts, which had continued to be heard every hour since the change to the classical music format. Newscasts are now heard on the hour during drive time
Drive time
Drive time is the daypart analog to prime time for radio broadcasting. It consists of the morning hours when listeners wake up, get ready, and/or head to work or school, and the afternoon hours when they are heading home and before their evening meal. These are the periods where the number of...
and at selected hours at other times. WETA also airs audio from the PBS NewsHour Monday through Friday evenings, for the benefit of area commuters unable to arrive home in time to view the program on television.
WETA airs opera programming on Saturday afternoons, including the Metropolitan Opera radio broadcasts
Metropolitan Opera radio broadcasts
The Metropolitan Opera radio broadcasts are a regular series of weekly broadcasts on network radio of full-length opera performances. They are transmitted live from the stage of the Metropolitan Opera in New York City...
during the Met's regular December–April broadcast season. They inherited from WGMS an all-vocal classical music format branded, "VivaLaVoce, the station that sings", on HD2.
WETA's only competition in the market area is WBJC
WBJC
WBJC is a public, non-commercial, radio station owned by Baltimore City Community College, in Baltimore, Maryland.-History:WBJC was originally on 88.1 MHz and broadcast with 250 watts effective radiated power...
(91.5 FM), also a non-commercial station, which broadcasts a classical music format from Baltimore, Maryland.
Other services
For many years, WETA has provided a sub-carrier channel for The Metropolitan Washington Ear, Inc., which offers news for the blindBlindness
Blindness is the condition of lacking visual perception due to physiological or neurological factors.Various scales have been developed to describe the extent of vision loss and define blindness...
and visually impaired. Listeners tune in to the service using special receivers provided free to qualifying individuals and can receive audio from more than 200 current publications, including newspapers, magazines, and bestselling books.
Management
- Daniel C. DeVany, Vice President and General Manager, Radio
- Jim Allison, Program Director, Radio
- Michael Byrnes, Chief Engineer, Radio
External links
- Classical WETA Website
- Classical WETA Live Stream
- Classical WETA "Classical Blog for Music Lovers" by Critic-at-Large, Jens F. Laurson
- The Segue from WGMS to WXGG
- The Segue from News/NPR to Classical WETA
- Coverage Map for WETA-FM
- Coverage Map for WGMS-FM
- Coverage Map for W205BL-FM
- WETA FM Press Release describing January 22, 2007 format change to all classical
- List of "grandfathered" FM radio stations in the U.S.