WWYY
Encyclopedia
WWYY is a United States
class A radio station
broadcasting on 107.1 FM. The station is located in Stroudsburg
, Pennsylvania
, but is licensed to Belvidere
, New Jersey
and serves the Poconos and the Lehigh Valley
. The station is currently owned by Nassau Broadcasting Partners
. The station now airs an active rock
format and is known as "The Bone" Its tagline is: "The Valley's
Real Rock Station."
format to the northwestern New Jersey
area, Lehigh Valley
, and the Poconos. Except for the Lehigh Valley, most of this region was without its own country music station after WIXL (now WNNJ
) dropped country music in May 1988. For a few months northwestern New Jersey could get Country music on New York City
based WYNY (then on 97.1). But in October 1988 WYNY's unit moved to 103.5 FM and as a result could not reach northwestern New Jersey because WNNJ-FM was and still is located on 103.7 FM, blocking 103.5 FM out of the area. For four years this area could not receive country music on the radio. WRNJ-FM finally filled that hole. But several days later financially troubled WFMV out of Blairstown abruptly became "Hot Country 106.3 WHCY
". So the area went from receiving no country stations to receiving two.
Both WRNJ-FM and WHCY used large amounts of satellite programming. By the beginning of 1994, WHCY would be local and live full-time. WRNJ-FM continued being mostly satellite programming. As a result, WHCY clearly became the stronger Country music station. Both stations still held their own. WRNJ-FM tended to pull decent ratings in the Lehigh Valley while WHCY pulled good ratings in Sussex County
. In the Summer of 1997, Easton
based 96.1 WLEV
would adopt a Country music format and become "WCTO
Cat Country 96.1". The intellectual WLEV Adult Contemporary unit would move to 100.7 FM.
WCTO had a good signal not only in the Lehigh Valley, but in much of the Poconos, and in Sussex and Warren County
. As a result ratings would go down for WHCY in Sussex and for WRNJ-FM in the Lehigh Valley. WRNJ though was hurt more by Cat Country because of its proximity with the Lehigh Valley. WRNJ-FM was pulling very low ratings by the Spring of 1998. WRNJ-FM was shut down at the end of April and began to simulcast the WYNY Y 107 Triplecast and a sale to Big City radio was immediately announced. That summer, Big City Radio
acquired 107.1 WRNJ-FM outright. WRNJ-FM was renamed WWYY, so its addition formed a quadrocast.
This actual Y 107 unit was born in December 1996. A broadcast group called Big City Radio bought three class A FM stations, each located about 45 miles from New York City. Big City Radio shut down local operations for two of the stations and began programming country music out of their Westchester County station, licensed to Briarcliff Manor
, New York
and located north of New York City, first under the call letters WWXY and soon after as WYNY. As WYNY barely reached New York City and had no signal to the south or east, Big City simulcast
the programming on a station on the New Jersey Shore
, licensed to Long Branch
which was named WWZY
and was also on the 107.1 frequency. The same scenario occurred at their Hampton Bays
, New York
-licensed 107.1, located on Long Island
, which was named WWVY but became WWXY when the Briarcliff Manor signal became WYNY. The entire trimulcast was labeled and branded as "New Country Y-107".
The intent of this scheme was to reach the New York City market with a grade B signal and bring country music to a city without such a station. In addition, the communities surrounding New York City received a good signal, given three stations were located in suburban areas and one station was rural. This was not unique to New York; Big City Radio had a trimulcast in Los Angeles
and multiple simulcasts in Chicago
, and Phoenix
. Luckily for Big City, the suburban coverage worked fairly well in New York City as country listeners were more apt to live in the suburbs, the area covered better by Y-107, than in New York City itself.
The country music format usually pulled low ratings in the actual New York City market, but in imbedded markets like Long Island, the ratings were fair. On the Jersey Shore, as well as in north-central Jersey, Westchester County, and the Lehigh Valley, Y-107 pulled fair to very good ratings. The station was profitable.
In 1998, WRNJ-FM would become WWYY and be added to the triplecast, making it a quadcast. WWYY though was 70 miles away from New York City. Later that year, Hispanic investors bought into Big City Radio. They flipped the company's low-rated trimulcast in Los Angeles, also called Y107 (but airing a rock format), to a tropical Spanish-language format. This move sparked rumors that the Y-107 quadrocast in New York could change format. Denials were made in 2000 while simulcast networks in other markets went to Spanish-language formats; Phoenix, on KMYL in 2000, and Chicago, on WXXY-FM
in 2001.
Still Y-107 held on to the country format. In 2001, rumors began to heat up again that a change was in the air. At the start of 2002, Big City Radio announced that indeed the rumors would now be true, but not until May. As with 103.5 WYNY, the air personalities all were given the opportunity to say goodbye, but they did this less melodramaticly than in 1996. In its last week as a country format, Y-107 was automated except for mornings; finally, on May 7, Garth Brooks
' "The Dance" closed out the country format on Y-107.
Big City Radio flipped the quadrocast to Spanish contemporary hits under the branding "Rumba 107.1". The format did horribly. A major reason for this, and many of Big City Radio's other Spanish conversions, was that the signal combinations worked together to serve metropolitan areas, but failed to hit the urban areas which typically have Hispanic populations. Regardless of programming, while suburban residents (and rural farmers in the case of one 107.1) were able to pick up the 107.1 signals, urban-dwelling Hispanics were unable to pick up the signals. In not only New York but also Chicago, former-Big City Radio stations adopted English-language formats once they were resold.
At about the same time, Big City Radio was in debt and filed for bankruptcy
. They sold their stations as units in many cases to Hispanic-based companies including Spanish Broadcast System, Hispanic Broadcasting Company, and Entravision. The New York area quadrocast, however, was sold to Nassau Broadcasting. Nassau initially considered returning the country format to the quadrocast, but instead opted to break up the quadrocast, selling three of the four stations.
In April 2003, Nassau broke up the quadrocast, selling three of the four stations. WWZY was sold to Press Broadcasting, which retained the call letters and began broadcasting a soft AC leaning 60's to 80's oldies format under the moniker "The Breeze"; later, two equally-small New Jersey stations began simulcasting WWZY to form a new trimulcast. WWXY on Long Island was sold to The Morey Organization/Jarad Broadcasting, which initially simulcasted WLIR
; by early 2004 it was superseded by a relocated WLIR-FM, and then adopted a "NeoBreeze" format in late 2005. In Westchester County, WYNY was sold to Pamal Broadcasting
and initially simulcast WSPK
"K104", a CHR station in Poughkeepsie, New York
, as WXPK
, but adopted an AAA format as "The Peak", retaining the same call letters.
Nassau retained the WWYY, which kept those call letters and launched an adult contemporary format as "Lite 107". The station was moved to Nassau's Stroudsburg facilities that also house WVPO
and WSBG
.
Norman Worth and Larry Tighe though continue to own WWYY's current transmitter site.
The new Lite 107 format was developed by Steve Gallagher(WOBM) as Program Director/PM Drive and the new imaging was a collaborative effort created by Paul Fuhr(Four)(WOBM) as Mornings/Imaging Director.
Following Gallagher's departure in late 2003 Rod Bauman, also WVPO's Program director, would take over the helm and move to PM Drive instituting an automated 'Lite Love Songs' 7:00pm -Midnight (Imaging Paul Fuhr using Jim Merkel)
In 2006, Nassau arranged the sale of its Stroudsburg/Poconos/Lehigh Valley cluster to an African American
owned company called Access.1 Communications, including WWYY, but the deal fell through.
On May 3, 2007, the light-adult-contemporary format moved to WSBG
93.5 FM shutting down the pop/rock format that occupied that station. WWYY then switched to a hard rock format and is branded as "107.1 The Bone." The current line up is:
5:30-9am: The Free Beer and Hot Wings Morning Show
9am-3pm: Gina Crash
3pm-9:30: Scotty Brilliant
In 2009, the station took over as the Lehigh Valley affiliate for the New York Yankees Radio Network, replacing sister stations WEEX and WTKZ
after they became the flagship stations for the minor-league Lehigh Valley IronPigs
.
. The Bone has some taglines that promote their rivalry with WZZO. Taglines include: "We have always said kick ass and take names. Right now, we're kicking ZZO's ass and taking your name." Another commonly heard promotion is, "ZZO thinks this rocks: (a clip from a slower song is played). Well, we think ZZO blows." Also, "If you like cold beer, hot chicks, and think 'ZZO blows, this is your radio station."
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
class A 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...
broadcasting on 107.1 FM. The station is located in Stroudsburg
Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania
Stroudsburg is a borough in Monroe County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is located in the Poconos region of the state, approximately five miles from the Delaware Water Gap, at the confluence of the Brodhead and Pocono Creeks. It is the county seat of Monroe County. Stroudsburg is part of the...
, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
, but is licensed to Belvidere
Belvidere, New Jersey
Belvidere is a Town in Warren County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the town population was 2,681. It is the county seat of Warren County....
, New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
and serves the Poconos and the Lehigh Valley
Lehigh Valley
The Lehigh Valley, known officially by the United States Census Bureau as the Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ metropolitan area and referred to locally as The Valley and A-B-E, is a metropolitan region consisting of Lehigh, Northampton, Berks, and Carbon counties in eastern Pennsylvania and...
. The station is currently owned by Nassau Broadcasting Partners
Nassau Broadcasting Partners
Nassau Broadcasting Partners LP is a company based in Princeton, New Jersey that owns radio stations in New England and the Mid-Atlantic United States. Nassau's stations, which include both AM and FM frequencies, are located in Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey,...
. The station now airs an active rock
Active rock
Active rock is a radio format used by many commercial radio stations across the United States and Canada. Active rock plays contemporary rock artists with a mix of songs common in the classic rock radio format.-Format background:...
format and is known as "The Bone" Its tagline is: "The Valley's
Lehigh Valley
The Lehigh Valley, known officially by the United States Census Bureau as the Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ metropolitan area and referred to locally as The Valley and A-B-E, is a metropolitan region consisting of Lehigh, Northampton, Berks, and Carbon counties in eastern Pennsylvania and...
Real Rock Station."
History
WWYY began operation on October 15, 1992, as WRNJ-FM. The station was owned by Norman Worth and Larry Tighe, who also owned and still own WRNJ (then on AM 1000 now on AM 1510). WRNJ-FM offered a country musicCountry music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
format to the northwestern New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
area, Lehigh Valley
Lehigh Valley
The Lehigh Valley, known officially by the United States Census Bureau as the Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ metropolitan area and referred to locally as The Valley and A-B-E, is a metropolitan region consisting of Lehigh, Northampton, Berks, and Carbon counties in eastern Pennsylvania and...
, and the Poconos. Except for the Lehigh Valley, most of this region was without its own country music station after WIXL (now WNNJ
WNNJ
WNNJ is a Class B FM radio station licensed to Newton, New Jersey broadcasting on 103.7 FM. They serve the Sussex County, New Jersey radio market while also reaching northeastern Pennsylvania and Orange County, New York. The station is owned by Clear Channel Communications. WNNJ offers a Rock...
) dropped country music in May 1988. For a few months northwestern New Jersey could get Country music on New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
based WYNY (then on 97.1). But in October 1988 WYNY's unit moved to 103.5 FM and as a result could not reach northwestern New Jersey because WNNJ-FM was and still is located on 103.7 FM, blocking 103.5 FM out of the area. For four years this area could not receive country music on the radio. WRNJ-FM finally filled that hole. But several days later financially troubled WFMV out of Blairstown abruptly became "Hot Country 106.3 WHCY
WHCY
WHCY, known as Max 106.3, is a hot adult contemporary class A FM radio station broadcasting on 106.3 FM. The format is now satellite programming along with some syndicated shows. The station is licensed to Blairstown, New Jersey and serves Sussex County and Warren County in western New Jersey, and...
". So the area went from receiving no country stations to receiving two.
Both WRNJ-FM and WHCY used large amounts of satellite programming. By the beginning of 1994, WHCY would be local and live full-time. WRNJ-FM continued being mostly satellite programming. As a result, WHCY clearly became the stronger Country music station. Both stations still held their own. WRNJ-FM tended to pull decent ratings in the Lehigh Valley while WHCY pulled good ratings in Sussex County
Sussex County, New Jersey
The County of Sussex is the northernmost county in the State of New Jersey. It is part of the New York City Metropolitan Area. As of the 2010 Federal decennial census, 149,265 persons resided in Sussex County...
. In the Summer of 1997, Easton
Easton, Pennsylvania
Easton is a city in Northampton County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 26,800 as of the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Northampton County....
based 96.1 WLEV
WLEV
-External links:*...
would adopt a Country music format and become "WCTO
WCTO
WCTO is a radio station based in Easton. WCTO is owned by Cumulus Media and serves the Lehigh Valley region of Pennsylvania.The station offers a country music format, playing country music from the 1980s through to the present...
Cat Country 96.1". The intellectual WLEV Adult Contemporary unit would move to 100.7 FM.
WCTO had a good signal not only in the Lehigh Valley, but in much of the Poconos, and in Sussex and Warren County
Warren County, New Jersey
Warren County is a county located in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2010 Census, the population was 108,692. Its county seat is Belvidere...
. As a result ratings would go down for WHCY in Sussex and for WRNJ-FM in the Lehigh Valley. WRNJ though was hurt more by Cat Country because of its proximity with the Lehigh Valley. WRNJ-FM was pulling very low ratings by the Spring of 1998. WRNJ-FM was shut down at the end of April and began to simulcast the WYNY Y 107 Triplecast and a sale to Big City radio was immediately announced. That summer, Big City Radio
Big City Radio
Big City Radio is a British community radio station based at Star City in Nechells Birmingham. The station is run by Murfin Music International and broadcasts on 89.1FM to the Birmingham area and online....
acquired 107.1 WRNJ-FM outright. WRNJ-FM was renamed WWYY, so its addition formed a quadrocast.
This actual Y 107 unit was born in December 1996. A broadcast group called Big City Radio bought three class A FM stations, each located about 45 miles from New York City. Big City Radio shut down local operations for two of the stations and began programming country music out of their Westchester County station, licensed to Briarcliff Manor
Briarcliff Manor, New York
Briarcliff Manor is a village in Westchester County in the state of New York. It is shared between the towns of Mount Pleasant and Ossining, and lies entirely within the ZIP code of 10510...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
and located north of New York City, first under the call letters WWXY and soon after as WYNY. As WYNY barely reached New York City and had no signal to the south or east, Big City simulcast
Simulcast
Simulcast, shorthand for "simultaneous broadcast", refers to programs or events broadcast across more than one medium, or more than one service on the same medium, at the same time. For example, Absolute Radio is simulcast on both AM and on satellite radio, and the BBC's Prom concerts are often...
the programming on a station on the New Jersey Shore
Jersey Shore
The Jersey Shore is a term used to refer to both the Atlantic coast of the U.S. state of New Jersey and the adjacent resort and residential communities. . The New Jersey State Department of Tourism considers the Shore Region, Greater Atlantic City, and the Southern Shore to be distinct, each having...
, licensed to Long Branch
Long Branch, New Jersey
Long Branch is a city in Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city population was 30,719.Long Branch was formed on April 11, 1867, as the Long Branch Commission, from portions of Ocean Township...
which was named WWZY
WWZY
WWZY/WBHX is an adult contemporary music formatted radio station in Neptune, New Jersey, referred to as "107.1 The Breeze" and "99.7 The Breeze"....
and was also on the 107.1 frequency. The same scenario occurred at their Hampton Bays
Hampton Bays, New York
Hampton Bays is a hamlet in Suffolk County, New York, United States. The population was 12,236 at the 2000 census.Hampton Bays is in the Town of Southampton.-Geography:...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
-licensed 107.1, located on Long Island
Long Island
Long Island is an island located in the southeast part of the U.S. state of New York, just east of Manhattan. Stretching northeast into the Atlantic Ocean, Long Island contains four counties, two of which are boroughs of New York City , and two of which are mainly suburban...
, which was named WWVY but became WWXY when the Briarcliff Manor signal became WYNY. The entire trimulcast was labeled and branded as "New Country Y-107".
The intent of this scheme was to reach the New York City market with a grade B signal and bring country music to a city without such a station. In addition, the communities surrounding New York City received a good signal, given three stations were located in suburban areas and one station was rural. This was not unique to New York; Big City Radio had a trimulcast in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
and multiple simulcasts in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, and Phoenix
Phoenix, Arizona
Phoenix is the capital, and largest city, of the U.S. state of Arizona, as well as the sixth most populated city in the United States. Phoenix is home to 1,445,632 people according to the official 2010 U.S. Census Bureau data...
. Luckily for Big City, the suburban coverage worked fairly well in New York City as country listeners were more apt to live in the suburbs, the area covered better by Y-107, than in New York City itself.
The country music format usually pulled low ratings in the actual New York City market, but in imbedded markets like Long Island, the ratings were fair. On the Jersey Shore, as well as in north-central Jersey, Westchester County, and the Lehigh Valley, Y-107 pulled fair to very good ratings. The station was profitable.
In 1998, WRNJ-FM would become WWYY and be added to the triplecast, making it a quadcast. WWYY though was 70 miles away from New York City. Later that year, Hispanic investors bought into Big City Radio. They flipped the company's low-rated trimulcast in Los Angeles, also called Y107 (but airing a rock format), to a tropical Spanish-language format. This move sparked rumors that the Y-107 quadrocast in New York could change format. Denials were made in 2000 while simulcast networks in other markets went to Spanish-language formats; Phoenix, on KMYL in 2000, and Chicago, on WXXY-FM
WVIV-FM
WVIV-FM and WVIX are a Spanish radio simulcast in Chicago, Illinois. They are part of the family of Univisión Radio, a division of Univisión Communications. Studios are located at 625 North Michigan, right in the heart of downtown Chicago.-103.1 and 93.5 FM History:The 103.1 FM frequency was...
in 2001.
Still Y-107 held on to the country format. In 2001, rumors began to heat up again that a change was in the air. At the start of 2002, Big City Radio announced that indeed the rumors would now be true, but not until May. As with 103.5 WYNY, the air personalities all were given the opportunity to say goodbye, but they did this less melodramaticly than in 1996. In its last week as a country format, Y-107 was automated except for mornings; finally, on May 7, Garth Brooks
Garth Brooks
Troyal Garth Brooks , best known as Garth Brooks, is an American country music artist who helped make country music a worldwide phenomenon. His eponymous first album was released in 1989 and peaked at number 2 in the US country album chart while climbing to number 13 on the Billboard 200 album chart...
' "The Dance" closed out the country format on Y-107.
Big City Radio flipped the quadrocast to Spanish contemporary hits under the branding "Rumba 107.1". The format did horribly. A major reason for this, and many of Big City Radio's other Spanish conversions, was that the signal combinations worked together to serve metropolitan areas, but failed to hit the urban areas which typically have Hispanic populations. Regardless of programming, while suburban residents (and rural farmers in the case of one 107.1) were able to pick up the 107.1 signals, urban-dwelling Hispanics were unable to pick up the signals. In not only New York but also Chicago, former-Big City Radio stations adopted English-language formats once they were resold.
At about the same time, Big City Radio was in debt and filed for bankruptcy
Bankruptcy
Bankruptcy is a legal status of an insolvent person or an organisation, that is, one that cannot repay the debts owed to creditors. In most jurisdictions bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor....
. They sold their stations as units in many cases to Hispanic-based companies including Spanish Broadcast System, Hispanic Broadcasting Company, and Entravision. The New York area quadrocast, however, was sold to Nassau Broadcasting. Nassau initially considered returning the country format to the quadrocast, but instead opted to break up the quadrocast, selling three of the four stations.
In April 2003, Nassau broke up the quadrocast, selling three of the four stations. WWZY was sold to Press Broadcasting, which retained the call letters and began broadcasting a soft AC leaning 60's to 80's oldies format under the moniker "The Breeze"; later, two equally-small New Jersey stations began simulcasting WWZY to form a new trimulcast. WWXY on Long Island was sold to The Morey Organization/Jarad Broadcasting, which initially simulcasted WLIR
WLIR
WLIR-FM is a Christian radio station as part of the WLIX Voice of Hope Radio Network. WLIR-FM broadcasts in the Hamptons-Riverhead area. Its transmitter is currently located near East Quogue, New York....
; by early 2004 it was superseded by a relocated WLIR-FM, and then adopted a "NeoBreeze" format in late 2005. In Westchester County, WYNY was sold to Pamal Broadcasting
Pamal Broadcasting
Pamal Broadcasting, Ltd. is a family-owned radio ownership with stations in medium-to-small markets in the Northeast and Florida. Based in the Albany suburb of Latham, New York, Pamal Broadcasting was founded in 1986 as Albany Broadcasting when business man James J. Morrell entered broadcast...
and initially simulcast WSPK
WSPK
WSPK is a CHR radio station licensed to Poughkeepsie, New York and broadcasting from studios in Fishkill. It is owned by Pamal Broadcasting and broadcasts on 104.7 MHz at an ERP of 7.4 kilowatts from a tower at the top of Mount Beacon in Fishkill.WSPK's main coverage area is centered on the...
"K104", a CHR station in Poughkeepsie, New York
Poughkeepsie (city), New York
Poughkeepsie is a city in the state of New York, United States, which serves as the county seat of Dutchess County. Poughkeepsie is located in the Hudson River Valley midway between New York City and Albany...
, as WXPK
WXPK
WXPK, , is an adult album alternative rock radio station in White Plains, New York. The station is owned by Pamal Broadcasting and transmits from a tower in the Westchester County Correctional Facility with an ERP of 1.9 KW.-History:...
, but adopted an AAA format as "The Peak", retaining the same call letters.
Nassau retained the WWYY, which kept those call letters and launched an adult contemporary format as "Lite 107". The station was moved to Nassau's Stroudsburg facilities that also house WVPO
WVPO
WVPO is a radio station simulcasting a Talk/Personality format originating from WPLY. Licensed to Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania, USA, the station serves the Stroudsburg area. The station is currently owned by Nassau Broadcasting Ii, LLC and features programing from CNN Radio, Premiere Radio Networks...
and WSBG
WSBG
WSBG is a radio station broadcasting a hot adult contemporary format. For the last couple of years, the station offered a mainstream adult contemporary format moved from 107.1 FM. Licensed to Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania, USA, the station serves the Stroudsburg area. The station is currently owned...
.
Norman Worth and Larry Tighe though continue to own WWYY's current transmitter site.
The new Lite 107 format was developed by Steve Gallagher(WOBM) as Program Director/PM Drive and the new imaging was a collaborative effort created by Paul Fuhr(Four)(WOBM) as Mornings/Imaging Director.
Following Gallagher's departure in late 2003 Rod Bauman, also WVPO's Program director, would take over the helm and move to PM Drive instituting an automated 'Lite Love Songs' 7:00pm -Midnight (Imaging Paul Fuhr using Jim Merkel)
In 2006, Nassau arranged the sale of its Stroudsburg/Poconos/Lehigh Valley cluster to an African American
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
owned company called Access.1 Communications, including WWYY, but the deal fell through.
On May 3, 2007, the light-adult-contemporary format moved to WSBG
WSBG
WSBG is a radio station broadcasting a hot adult contemporary format. For the last couple of years, the station offered a mainstream adult contemporary format moved from 107.1 FM. Licensed to Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania, USA, the station serves the Stroudsburg area. The station is currently owned...
93.5 FM shutting down the pop/rock format that occupied that station. WWYY then switched to a hard rock format and is branded as "107.1 The Bone." The current line up is:
5:30-9am: The Free Beer and Hot Wings Morning Show
9am-3pm: Gina Crash
3pm-9:30: Scotty Brilliant
In 2009, the station took over as the Lehigh Valley affiliate for the New York Yankees Radio Network, replacing sister stations WEEX and WTKZ
WEEX
WEEX is a sports radio station in Easton, Pennsylvania branded as "ESPN Radio 1230 and 1320" and is owned by Nassau Broadcasting. Their programming is simulcast on co-owned WTKZ , licensed to nearby Allentown, Pennsylvania....
after they became the flagship stations for the minor-league Lehigh Valley IronPigs
Lehigh Valley IronPigs
The Lehigh Valley IronPigs are a minor league baseball team that plays in the International League. The IronPigs are the Triple-A affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies. The team plays their home games at Coca-Cola Park, which is located in Allentown, Pennsylvania...
.
Competition
The Bone's main competitor is WZZOWZZO
WZZO, popularly known as "95.1 WZZO", is a popular rock radio station located in Whitehall Township, outside of Allentown, in the Lehigh Valley region of Pennsylvania, in the United States.WZZO broadcasts locally at 95.1 MHz FM...
. The Bone has some taglines that promote their rivalry with WZZO. Taglines include: "We have always said kick ass and take names. Right now, we're kicking ZZO's ass and taking your name." Another commonly heard promotion is, "ZZO thinks this rocks: (a clip from a slower song is played). Well, we think ZZO blows." Also, "If you like cold beer, hot chicks, and think 'ZZO blows, this is your radio station."