WHTB
 | |
| |
|---|---|
| Broadcast area | New Bedford, Massachusetts |
| Frequency | 1400 kHz |
| Branding | Rádio Voz Do Emigrante |
| Programming | |
| Format | Brokered Portuguese |
| Affiliations | Spill-over affiliate of the Red Sox Radio Network, Boston Celtics Radio Network |
| Ownership | |
| Owner |
|
| History | |
First air date | May 6, 1948[1] |
Former call signs | WALE (1948–1989) |
Call sign meaning | "Home Town Broadcasting"[2] |
| Technical information[3] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 60701 |
| Class | C |
| Power | 1,000 watts unlimited |
Transmitter coordinates | 41°41′23.37″N 71°8′41.16″W / 41.6898250°N 71.1447667°W |
| Translator(s) | 93.7 W229DC (Fall River) |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
| Webcast | Listen live |
| Website | www |
WHTB (1400 AM) is a Portuguese language radio station in Fall River, Massachusetts, operating with 1 kW unlimited hours.
History
[edit]WALE began broadcasting May 6, 1948, on 1400 kHz with 250 watts of power (full-time). It was owned by Narragansett Broadcasting Company.[4] The station's first location was at the corner of North Main Street and Central Street in Fall River, Massachusetts, known as the Durfee Theatre Building. The station's "Whale" was a plaster and chicken wire figure atop the building with the words "WALE 1400" on the sides in white paint. The transmitting antenna was on the roof and had a copper screen ground system. There was no real ground connection to the antenna, and the screen created an artificial grounding system, limiting the coverage area.[citation needed] The North Main Street/Central Street site was also the location of WCFR-FM and WCFR-TV, although it is not known if WCFR-TV ever produced a signal as after World War II the Channel 1 assignment (44-50Mc.) was dropped from television and given to the Business Radio Service. WALE moved to Rock Street in the early 1970s and the transmitter was relocated to the area along Interstate 195 West and Route 24 South at the end of Augustus St. and remains there today.
The WALE call sign moved to 990 AM in Providence, Rhode Island, on July 20, 1989. On that date, SNE Broadcasting Ltd. (owned by local businessmen Robert and James Karam) took ownership of 1400 AM and introduced the WHTB call sign.[2] The studios moved to Home Street in Somerset, Massachusetts, when WHTB and WSAR became sister stations.
In 2018, WHTB signed on FM translator W229DC on 93.7 from the AM tower.[5]
Effective December 30, 2022, SNE Broadcasting sold WHTB and translator W229DC to Frank Baptista's RVDE, LLC for $200,000.
Personalities
[edit]Personalities included Mike "Surfer" Sands (Arthur Lang) and long-time engineer Stephen J. Sorel, who was also an Amateur Radio operator with the call sign K1RFH. Sorel and Lang made the move to WICE in Providence, Rhode Island in the early 1970s. Steve Sorel ended his career as the Chief Engineer of WHTB and sister station WSAR.
FM translator
[edit]| Call sign | Frequency | City of license | FID | ERP (W) | HAAT | Class | Transmitter coordinates | FCC info | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W229DC | 93.7 FM | Fall River, Massachusetts | 200240 | 250 | 0 m (0 ft) | D | 41°42′43.4″N 71°7′37.2″W / 41.712056°N 71.127000°W | LMS | First licensed October 5, 2018. |
References
[edit]- ^ "WALE reception verification" (PDF). June 19, 1948. Retrieved May 17, 2014.
- ^ a b "WHTB reception verification" (PDF). February 8, 1990. Retrieved May 17, 2014.
- ^ "Facility Technical Data for WHTB". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
- ^ "WALE Dedicated" (PDF). Broadcasting. May 31, 1948. Retrieved December 16, 2014.
- ^ "FCCInfo Facility Search Results".
- 1992 Broadcasting Yearbook, page A-164
External links
[edit]- Facility details for Facility ID 60701 (WHTB) in the FCC Licensing and Management System
- WHTB in Nielsen Audio's AM station database
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