WSNE
Encyclopedia
WSNE-FM is a radio station
serving the Providence
, Rhode Island
market with a Hot Adult Contemporary music format. The station is licensed in Taunton
, Massachusetts
to Clear Channel Communications
. Its studio and offices are located at 75 Oxford Street, Providence, Rhode Island, and its transmitter is located at the WJAR
transmitter site in Rehoboth
, MA. The station was assigned its current WSNE-FM call sign by the Federal Communications Commission
on March 1, 2001. WSNE-FM transmits a directional signal to reduce interference to WHYN-FM in Springfield, MA.
In 1980, co-owners John McCarthy and Joseph Quill sold WRLM to the Outlet Company, the then owners of WJAR (now WHJJ
) and WJAR-TV in Providence. While the AC format was maintained on "FM 93," the call sign was changed to WSNE and several high-profile Providence personalities joined the station's staff including Mike Sands, Paul Perry, Bob Hollands and Patty Costa. Studios were moved to Providence and the transmitter was moved to Rehoboth, Massachusetts
, improving the station's signal in Rhode Island. By 1984, Ken Cole was added for evenings and the station was now known as "93.3 WSNE." By 1986, the last four hours of Ken Cole's show was called Pillow Talk, featuring love songs and dedications.
In 1986, former WEAN (now WPRV) personality Joannie Edwardsen was brought in as the morning news anchor. Shortly after, former WPRO
afternoon host David Jones was hired to take over mornings. With the addition of Chuck Hinman as news anchor by years end, Jones & Joan would become the new morning show. By 1989, Jones & Joan had gained a large following, finishing only second to WPRO's legendary Salty Brine.
on Saturday, June 5, 1993, tragedy struck WSNE as long-time midday host Mike Sands was killed in an automobile accident while on his way to a station remote in Swansea
, MA. The station paid tribute to Sands the following Monday with phone calls from listeners, former co-workers and personalities from other stations. Program Director Steve Peck and Jim Halfyard would split Sands shift after his death, with Ken Cole on evenings and Amy Hawkins (later known as Amy Navarro) joining the station for overnights.
Since 1993, the station had slowly been evolving from Adult Contemporary to Hot Adult Contemporary. When SFX Broadcasting acquired WSNE in 1995, the station re-imaged itself as "93-3 SNE," adding hotter jingles and the slogan "Southern New England's Variety Station." After several mergers placing the station with Capstar and AMFM, Inc., Clear Channel Communications
acquired WSNE in October 1999. Around this time, WSNE started leaning toward the AC format once again, with the syndicated Delilah show being added at night. This effectively gave WSNE an AC format during the hours her show aired, with a lighter flavor of Hot AC all other times.
In November 2002, a series of changes began at WSNE. The station played all Christmas music leading into Christmas Day. On December 26, 2002, the long running Jones & Joan morning show came to an end after nearly 17 years, as station management parted ways with David. The station re-imaged itself as the new "Star 93-3," leaning back toward Hot AC. Within a month, Entercom Communications issued a cease and desist order on using the Star branding, as Star 93.7 (now WEEI-FM
) existed in the overlapping Boston market. From mid-January until April 2003, the station was now known simply as "The New 93-3" before being renamed as "Coast 93-3." In August 2003, Brian Mulhern (aka "The Pharmacist") would join the morning show, however Joannie along with her husband Chuck Hinman left the station in 2006. On November 16, 2006, Tad Lemire moved down the hall from WCTK
to become new morning show host, with Brian as co-host.
In June 2008, the syndicated "On-Air with Ryan Seacrest" was added for afternoons and Delilah was replaced with the "John Tesh Radio Show" for evenings. With this change, Coast began to sound overall like a Hot AC station, since the AC music provided with Delilah was gone. On April 28, 2009, Clear Channel Communications eliminated 590 positions nationwide, which meant the dismissal of Coast Program Director Chris Duggan and morning man Tad Lemire. On May 18, 2009, the station began syndicating "Matty in the Morning" from sister station WXKS-FM
in Boston, MA.
In May 2009, Coast installed the Hot AC programming of a newly formed Clear Channel Communications service called Premium Choice. The service provides several music formats including the elements of scheduled music and the voicetracks
of on-air talent from various Clear Channel stations across the country. Local Clear Channel stations have total choice in choosing the programming elements they wish to use (if any). Coast elected to use its music playlist 24/7, while only using the voicetracked talent on weekends and Monday through Friday from 12am to 6am. The same music and some of the talent heard on Coast can also be heard on Iheartradio
's "Today's Mix," which also uses the Hot AC programming of Premium Choice.
After Premium Choice programming was implemented, Coast's weekday lineup included "Matty in the Morning" (6am to 10am), the only remaining local personality Kristin Lessard (10am to 3pm), "On-Air with Ryan Seacrest" (3pm to 7pm) and the "John Tesh Radio Show" (7pm to midnight). In August 2009, John Tesh was dropped and replaced with Cindy Spicer from Premium Choice.
In June 2011, Coast pulled the plug on its two-year carriage of "Matty in the Morning" in favor of voicetracking from Toby Knapp, afternoon jock at Clear Channel's WIHT
in Washington, DC. The slogan was changed to "The Best Variety of the 90's, 2K and Today." Although not mentioned in the new slogan, popular songs from the 1980s are still played on occasion, as Hot AC programming from Premium Choice still includes '80s music. Ryan Seacrest and Kristin Lessard also swapped shifts, with Ryan now on middays and Kristin now on afternoons.
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...
serving the Providence
Providence, Rhode Island
Providence is the capital and most populous city of Rhode Island and was one of the first cities established in the United States. Located in Providence County, it is the third largest city in the New England region...
, Rhode Island
Rhode Island
The state of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, more commonly referred to as Rhode Island , is a state in the New England region of the United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area...
market with a Hot Adult Contemporary music format. The station is licensed in Taunton
Taunton, Massachusetts
Taunton is a city in Bristol County, Massachusetts, United States. It is the seat of Bristol County and the hub of the Greater Taunton Area. The city is located south of Boston, east of Providence, north of Fall River and west of Plymouth. The City of Taunton is situated on the Taunton River...
, 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...
to 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...
. Its studio and offices are located at 75 Oxford Street, Providence, Rhode Island, and its transmitter is located at the WJAR
WJAR
WJAR is the NBC-affiliated television station for the state of Rhode Island and Bristol County, Massachusetts licensed to Providence. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 51 from a transmitter in Rehoboth, Massachusetts...
transmitter site in Rehoboth
Rehoboth, Massachusetts
Rehoboth is a town in Bristol County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 10,172 at the 2000 census.-History:It was incorporated in 1643 making it one of the earliest Massachusetts towns to be incorporated. The Rehoboth Carpenter Family is among the founding families...
, MA. The station was assigned its current WSNE-FM call sign by the Federal Communications Commission
Federal Communications Commission
The Federal Communications Commission is an independent agency of the United States government, created, Congressional statute , and with the majority of its commissioners appointed by the current President. The FCC works towards six goals in the areas of broadband, competition, the spectrum, the...
on March 1, 2001. WSNE-FM transmits a directional signal to reduce interference to WHYN-FM in Springfield, MA.
History
In 1966, WSNE signed on as WRLM, named for original owner Robert L. McCarthy. Its programming was a middle of the road format in monaural, as well as broadcasting local news and high-school sports for Taunton and the vicinity. During the 1970s, WRLM adopted an Adult Contemporary format and went stereo in 1976.In 1980, co-owners John McCarthy and Joseph Quill sold WRLM to the Outlet Company, the then owners of WJAR (now WHJJ
WHJJ
WHJJ is a radio station in Providence, Rhode Island. The station was previously assigned the call letters WJAR, adopting its current call letters in 1980 when previous owner Outlet Communications sold the station.-History:...
) and WJAR-TV in Providence. While the AC format was maintained on "FM 93," the call sign was changed to WSNE and several high-profile Providence personalities joined the station's staff including Mike Sands, Paul Perry, Bob Hollands and Patty Costa. Studios were moved to Providence and the transmitter was moved to Rehoboth, Massachusetts
Rehoboth, Massachusetts
Rehoboth is a town in Bristol County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 10,172 at the 2000 census.-History:It was incorporated in 1643 making it one of the earliest Massachusetts towns to be incorporated. The Rehoboth Carpenter Family is among the founding families...
, improving the station's signal in Rhode Island. By 1984, Ken Cole was added for evenings and the station was now known as "93.3 WSNE." By 1986, the last four hours of Ken Cole's show was called Pillow Talk, featuring love songs and dedications.
In 1986, former WEAN (now WPRV) personality Joannie Edwardsen was brought in as the morning news anchor. Shortly after, former WPRO
WPRO (AM)
WPRO is a radio station located in Providence, Rhode Island. The station is owned by Cumulus Media, and airs a talk format. WPRO's studio and transmitter are located in East Providence, at the Salty Brine Broadcast Center, named after WPRO's longtime morning host...
afternoon host David Jones was hired to take over mornings. With the addition of Chuck Hinman as news anchor by years end, Jones & Joan would become the new morning show. By 1989, Jones & Joan had gained a large following, finishing only second to WPRO's legendary Salty Brine.
on Saturday, June 5, 1993, tragedy struck WSNE as long-time midday host Mike Sands was killed in an automobile accident while on his way to a station remote in Swansea
Swansea, Massachusetts
Swansea is a town in Bristol County in southeastern Massachusetts.It is located at the mouth of the Taunton River, just west of Fall River, 47 miles south of Boston; and 12 miles southeast of Providence, Rhode Island....
, MA. The station paid tribute to Sands the following Monday with phone calls from listeners, former co-workers and personalities from other stations. Program Director Steve Peck and Jim Halfyard would split Sands shift after his death, with Ken Cole on evenings and Amy Hawkins (later known as Amy Navarro) joining the station for overnights.
Since 1993, the station had slowly been evolving from Adult Contemporary to Hot Adult Contemporary. When SFX Broadcasting acquired WSNE in 1995, the station re-imaged itself as "93-3 SNE," adding hotter jingles and the slogan "Southern New England's Variety Station." After several mergers placing the station with Capstar and AMFM, Inc., 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...
acquired WSNE in October 1999. Around this time, WSNE started leaning toward the AC format once again, with the syndicated Delilah show being added at night. This effectively gave WSNE an AC format during the hours her show aired, with a lighter flavor of Hot AC all other times.
In November 2002, a series of changes began at WSNE. The station played all Christmas music leading into Christmas Day. On December 26, 2002, the long running Jones & Joan morning show came to an end after nearly 17 years, as station management parted ways with David. The station re-imaged itself as the new "Star 93-3," leaning back toward Hot AC. Within a month, Entercom Communications issued a cease and desist order on using the Star branding, as Star 93.7 (now WEEI-FM
WEEI-FM
WVEI-FM is a radio station broadcasting a sports radio format, largely simulcasting Boston-based WEEI. Licensed to Westerly, Rhode Island, USA. The station is currently owned by Entercom Communications...
) existed in the overlapping Boston market. From mid-January until April 2003, the station was now known simply as "The New 93-3" before being renamed as "Coast 93-3." In August 2003, Brian Mulhern (aka "The Pharmacist") would join the morning show, however Joannie along with her husband Chuck Hinman left the station in 2006. On November 16, 2006, Tad Lemire moved down the hall from WCTK
WCTK
WCTK is a country music formatted radio station serving Southern New England, with studios in Providence, Rhode Island, and transmitter in New Bedford, Massachusetts.History=...
to become new morning show host, with Brian as co-host.
In June 2008, the syndicated "On-Air with Ryan Seacrest" was added for afternoons and Delilah was replaced with the "John Tesh Radio Show" for evenings. With this change, Coast began to sound overall like a Hot AC station, since the AC music provided with Delilah was gone. On April 28, 2009, Clear Channel Communications eliminated 590 positions nationwide, which meant the dismissal of Coast Program Director Chris Duggan and morning man Tad Lemire. On May 18, 2009, the station began syndicating "Matty in the Morning" from sister 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...
in Boston, MA.
In May 2009, Coast installed the Hot AC programming of a newly formed Clear Channel Communications service called Premium Choice. The service provides several music formats including the elements of scheduled music and the voicetracks
Voice-tracking
Voice-tracking, also called cyber jocking and referred to sometimes colloquially as a robojock, is a technique employed by some radio stations in radio broadcasting to produce the illusion of a live disc jockey or announcer sitting in the radio studios of the station when one is not actually...
of on-air talent from various Clear Channel stations across the country. Local Clear Channel stations have total choice in choosing the programming elements they wish to use (if any). Coast elected to use its music playlist 24/7, while only using the voicetracked talent on weekends and Monday through Friday from 12am to 6am. The same music and some of the talent heard on Coast can also be heard on Iheartradio
Iheartradio
iHeartRadio is a Clear Channel Radio network to aggregate local radio brands, personalities and on-demand content. It is best known as a mobile application...
's "Today's Mix," which also uses the Hot AC programming of Premium Choice.
After Premium Choice programming was implemented, Coast's weekday lineup included "Matty in the Morning" (6am to 10am), the only remaining local personality Kristin Lessard (10am to 3pm), "On-Air with Ryan Seacrest" (3pm to 7pm) and the "John Tesh Radio Show" (7pm to midnight). In August 2009, John Tesh was dropped and replaced with Cindy Spicer from Premium Choice.
In June 2011, Coast pulled the plug on its two-year carriage of "Matty in the Morning" in favor of voicetracking from Toby Knapp, afternoon jock at Clear Channel's WIHT
WIHT
WIHT is a Top 40 formatted radio station that serves the greater Washington, DC metropolitan area. The station broadcasts 24 hours a day. WIHT is licensed to and owned by Clear Channel Communications...
in Washington, DC. The slogan was changed to "The Best Variety of the 90's, 2K and Today." Although not mentioned in the new slogan, popular songs from the 1980s are still played on occasion, as Hot AC programming from Premium Choice still includes '80s music. Ryan Seacrest and Kristin Lessard also swapped shifts, with Ryan now on middays and Kristin now on afternoons.