WNTN
Encyclopedia
WNTN is a daytime-only, 10,000 watt, omni-directional radio station
licensed to the city of Newton, Massachusetts
, serving the greater Boston area. It broadcasts on 1550 kHz on the AM
radio dial.
WNTN broadcasts a community based format that includes music, sports, talk and news shows. Much of the programming is aimed at the areas many ethnic cultures, including shows broadcast in Haitian Creole
, Greek
, Indian
and Arabic languages. Programming is also produced for Christian
audiences and the areas large Irish
population. Programming in the English language
includes local daily talk show "1550 Today with Sybil Tonkonogy and Paul Roberts".
In May 2007, a new Light Entertainment Irish Program began to air. The Irish Rambler Radio Show is now one of Bostons most popular Irish community programs. It is hosted every Saturday evening between 6 and 7 by Dan Hallissey who is also a well known Boston Irish Entertainer.
format. WNTN's post 2 PM programming featured an eclectic, freeform rock
-based format mixed with folk music
, progressive rock
, soul music
, jazz fusion
and various other musical genres. With FM radios still a rarity in cars at the time, the station received a boost in listenership and notoriety, primarily due to the Boston area's high concentration of college students and musicians. The "free-form rock" hours were later increased to include the entire broadcast day, by 1970. Two of the earliest members of the staff were Music Director John Gorman, and afternoon host Denny Sanders, both of whom later relocated to Cleveland, and were instrumental in the rise of that city's influential WMMS
in the early 1970s. The free form progressive rock format lasted until January, 1976, when the format reverted back to MOR after the station had been recently sold.
In 1977, the station became the first in the Boston radio market to adopt a disco
music format. With its unique sound and popular disc jockey
s, including Wendy Hunt and Vinnie 'Disco Vinnie' Peruzzi, WNTN experienced a ratings rise and attention from the areas newspapers and television stations. The formats success, however, was short lived. By the spring of 1978 crosstown FM station WBOS
began playing disco music in the evenings and adopted the format fulltime that autumn as "Disco 93". In addition, Wendy Hunt left WNTN to work at WBOS in 1978, followed by Vinnie Peruzzi who vacated in early 1979 to join another new FM disco station WXKS-FM
"Kiss 108".
Unable to compete with the two FM disco music stations, WNTN switched its format to adult contemporary music
mixed with local news and information in 1979.
In 1987, the station dropped music and changed to a talk radio
format consisting of syndicated national talk shows with local and national news updates.
By the 1990s many local AM stations, including WNTN, experienced a downturn in advertising revenue. WNTN responded by adding leased-time programming, allowing groups and individuals to pay for an allotted amont of time on the station and program it to their taste. The station now airs a variety of talk and music shows aimed at numerous ethnicities and age groups.
, future famous "shock jock" Howard Stern
was an on air personality at WNTN, his first professional job in the radio industry. Stern claimed that the manager of WNTN at the time never paid him for his first week of work.
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...
licensed to the city of Newton, Massachusetts
Newton, Massachusetts
Newton is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States bordered to the east by Boston. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the population of Newton was 85,146, making it the eleventh largest city in the state.-Villages:...
, serving the greater Boston area. It broadcasts on 1550 kHz on the AM
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 dial.
WNTN broadcasts a community based format that includes music, sports, talk and news shows. Much of the programming is aimed at the areas many ethnic cultures, including shows broadcast in Haitian Creole
Haitian Creole language
Haitian Creole language , often called simply Creole or Kreyòl, is a language spoken in Haiti by about twelve million people, which includes all Haitians in Haiti and via emigration, by about two to three million speakers residing in the Bahamas, Cuba, Canada, France, Cayman Islands, French...
, Greek
Modern Greek
Modern Greek refers to the varieties of the Greek language spoken in the modern era. The beginning of the "modern" period of the language is often symbolically assigned to the fall of the Byzantine Empire in 1453, even though that date marks no clear linguistic boundary and many characteristic...
, Indian
Languages of India
The languages of India belong to several language families, the major ones being the Indo-European languages—Indo-Aryan and the Dravidian languages...
and Arabic languages. Programming is also produced for Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
audiences and the areas large Irish
Irish people
The Irish people are an ethnic group who originate in Ireland, an island in northwestern Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded having legends of being descended from groups such as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolg, Tuatha...
population. Programming in the English language
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
includes local daily talk show "1550 Today with Sybil Tonkonogy and Paul Roberts".
In May 2007, a new Light Entertainment Irish Program began to air. The Irish Rambler Radio Show is now one of Bostons most popular Irish community programs. It is hosted every Saturday evening between 6 and 7 by Dan Hallissey who is also a well known Boston Irish Entertainer.
History
WNTN signed on April 1, 1968 broadcasting a "middle of the road" format. After a year of poor ratings, management was convinced, in 1969, to initiate an original format of free-form "Adult Rock" after 2 PM, somewhat similar in style to the radio industries current adult album alternativeAdult album alternative
Adult album alternative is a radio format. A spinoff from the album-oriented rock format, its roots trace to the 1960s and 1970s from the earlier freeform and progressive formats....
format. WNTN's post 2 PM programming featured an eclectic, freeform rock
Freeform (radio format)
Freeform, or freeform radio, is a radio station programming format in which the disc jockey is given total control over what music to play, regardless of music genre or commercial interests. Freeform radio stands in contrast to most commercial radio stations, in which DJs have little or no...
-based format mixed with folk music
Folk music
Folk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....
, progressive rock
Progressive rock
Progressive rock is a subgenre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s as part of a "mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility." John Covach, in Contemporary Music Review, says that many thought it would not just "succeed the pop of...
, soul music
Soul music
Soul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
, jazz fusion
Jazz fusion
Jazz fusion is a musical fusion genre that developed from mixing funk and R&B rhythms and the amplification and electronic effects of rock, complex time signatures derived from non-Western music and extended, typically instrumental compositions with a jazz approach to lengthy group improvisations,...
and various other musical genres. With FM radios still a rarity in cars at the time, the station received a boost in listenership and notoriety, primarily due to the Boston area's high concentration of college students and musicians. The "free-form rock" hours were later increased to include the entire broadcast day, by 1970. Two of the earliest members of the staff were Music Director John Gorman, and afternoon host Denny Sanders, both of whom later relocated to Cleveland, and were instrumental in the rise of that city's influential WMMS
WMMS
WMMS — branded 100.7 WMMS: The Buzzard — is a commercial radio station licensed to Cleveland, Ohio, widely recognized as one of the most influential rock stations in America throughout much of the history of FM broadcasting...
in the early 1970s. The free form progressive rock format lasted until January, 1976, when the format reverted back to MOR after the station had been recently sold.
In 1977, the station became the first in the Boston radio market to adopt a disco
Disco
Disco is a genre of dance music. Disco acts charted high during the mid-1970s, and the genre's popularity peaked during the late 1970s. It had its roots in clubs that catered to African American, gay, psychedelic, and other communities in New York City and Philadelphia during the late 1960s and...
music format. With its unique sound and popular disc jockey
Disc jockey
A disc jockey, also known as DJ, is a person who selects and plays recorded music for an audience. Originally, "disc" referred to phonograph records, not the later Compact Discs. Today, the term includes all forms of music playback, no matter the medium.There are several types of disc jockeys...
s, including Wendy Hunt and Vinnie 'Disco Vinnie' Peruzzi, WNTN experienced a ratings rise and attention from the areas newspapers and television stations. The formats success, however, was short lived. By the spring of 1978 crosstown FM station WBOS
WBOS
WBOS is a commercial radio station located in Brookline, Massachusetts, broadcasting to the Greater Boston area on 92.9 FM. The station airs a mainstream rock format branded as "Radio 92.9"...
began playing disco music in the evenings and adopted the format fulltime that autumn as "Disco 93". In addition, Wendy Hunt left WNTN to work at WBOS in 1978, followed by Vinnie Peruzzi who vacated in early 1979 to join another new FM disco station WXKS-FM
WXKS-FM
WXKS-FM, better known as Kiss 108, is a radio station in Boston, Massachusetts, licensed to nearby Medford broadcasting a Top 40 format...
"Kiss 108".
Unable to compete with the two FM disco music stations, WNTN switched its format to adult contemporary music
Adult contemporary music
Adult contemporary music is a broad style of popular music that ranges from lush 1950s and 1960s vocal music to predominantly ballad-heavy music with varying degrees of rock influence, as well as a radio format that plays such music....
mixed with local news and information in 1979.
In 1987, the station dropped music and changed to a talk radio
Talk radio
Talk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues. Most shows are regularly hosted by a single individual, and often feature interviews with a number of different guests. Talk radio typically includes an element of listener participation, usually by broadcasting live...
format consisting of syndicated national talk shows with local and national news updates.
By the 1990s many local AM stations, including WNTN, experienced a downturn in advertising revenue. WNTN responded by adding leased-time programming, allowing groups and individuals to pay for an allotted amont of time on the station and program it to their taste. The station now airs a variety of talk and music shows aimed at numerous ethnicities and age groups.
Current Programs
- 1550 Today
- Grecian EchoesGrecian EchoesGrecian Echoes is a variety show geared to the Greek American community of the Greater Boston area. The show includes both new and old music, community and social event announcements, and news from Greece...
- Vwa Lakay
- Roger Sturgis
- Sports Thursday
- Radio Compas
- Jhankar
- Sound of Erin
- The Benchwarmers
- Frugal Yankee
- Arabic Baptist Church
- Gallerie Haitienne
- Brase Lide
- Saturday Afternoon Live
Howard Stern
From August to December 1975, while studying at Boston UniversityBoston University
Boston University is a private research university located in Boston, Massachusetts. With more than 4,000 faculty members and more than 31,000 students, Boston University is one of the largest private universities in the United States and one of Boston's largest employers...
, future famous "shock jock" Howard Stern
Howard Stern
Howard Allan Stern is an American radio personality, television host, author, and actor best known for his radio show, which was nationally syndicated from 1986 to 2005. He gained wide recognition in the 1990s where he was labeled a "shock jock" for his outspoken and sometimes controversial style...
was an on air personality at WNTN, his first professional job in the radio industry. Stern claimed that the manager of WNTN at the time never paid him for his first week of work.