WFEA (1370 AM) is a

talk Talk may refer to: Communication * Communication, the encoding and decoding of exchanged messages between people * Conversation, interactive communication between two or more people * Lecture, an oral presentation intended to inform or instruct ...

radio station Radio broadcasting is transmission of audio (sound), sometimes with related metadata, by radio waves to radio receivers belonging to a public audience. In terrestrial radio broadcasting the radio waves are broadcast by a land-based radio ...

in Manchester, New Hampshire. WFEA's studios and offices are on N. Commercial St. in Manchester. Its AM

transmitter In electronics and telecommunications, a radio transmitter or just transmitter is an electronic device which produces radio waves with an antenna (radio), antenna. The transmitter itself generates a radio frequency alternating current, which i ...

is located in Merrimack at the location of its original studio building. Its signal is

simulcast Simulcast (a portmanteau of simultaneous broadcast) is the broadcasting of programmes/programs or events across more than one resolution, bitrate or medium, or more than one service on the same medium, at exactly the same time (that is, simultane ...

on translator station W260CF at 99.9

MHz The hertz (symbol: Hz) is the unit of frequency in the International System of Units (SI), equivalent to one event (or cycle) per second. The hertz is an SI derived unit whose expression in terms of SI base units is s−1, meaning that one he ...

. The FM transmitter is located on

Mount Uncanoonuc The Uncanoonuc Mountains are two small mountain peaks in Goffstown, New Hampshire, United States. The north peak, the highest point in Goffstown, has an elevation of above sea level, and the south peak rises to . The name may be derived from the ...

in Goffstown. WFEA operates with a

directional antenna A directional antenna or beam antenna is an antenna which radiates or receives greater power in specific directions allowing increased performance and reduced interference from unwanted sources. Directional antennas provide increased performance ...

both day and night. One of the towers in the Merrimack array is a diamond-shaped "

Blaw-Knox Blaw-Knox is a manufacturer of road paving equipment. The company was created in 1917 from the merger of Blaw Collapsible Steel Centering Company and the Knox Pressed and Welded Steel Company. Blaw-Knox was sold to new owners in 1968, changed owne ...

", a smaller version of the famous Blaw Knox tower of

WLW WLW (700 AM) is a commercial news/talk radio station licensed to Cincinnati, Ohio. Owned by iHeartMedia, WLW is a clear-channel station, often identifying itself as The Big One. WLW operates with around the clock. Its daytime signal provides ...

Cincinnati, Ohio Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...

. WFEA is owned and operated by Saga Communications of New England LLC, which also owns 95.7

WZID WZID (95.7 FM) is an American radio station with an adult contemporary format. WZID is located on Commercial Street in Manchester, New Hampshire. Its signal can be heard as far south as the Massachusetts Turnpike, as far east as southern Maine a ...

and 96.5

WMLL WMLL (96.5 FM; "96.5 The Mill") is an American radio station licensed to Bedford, New Hampshire, with studios located on Commercial Street in Manchester, New Hampshire. WMLL is owned by Saga Communications, via subsidiary Saga Communications of ...

. WFEA is simulcast on the HD2 channel of WMLL. Until February 1, 2017, it was on the HD3 channel of WZID.

Programming

On weekdays, WFEA carries syndicated shows hosted by Doug Stephan, Hugh Hewitt, Clark Howard,

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

-based

Howie Carr Howard Louis Carr Jr. (born January 17, 1952) is an American conservative radio talk-show host, political author, news reporter and award-winning writer. He hosts ''The Howie Carr Show'' originating from his studios in Wellesley, MA and broadca ...

, Mark Levin,

John Batchelor John Calvin Batchelor (born April 29, 1948) is an American author and host of ''Eye on the World'' on the CBS Audio Network. His flagship station is New York's 710 WOR. The show is a hard-news-analysis radio program on current events, world his ...

and Red Eye Radio. On weekends, shows on money, health, home repair, travel, cars and technology are heard, some of which are paid brokered programming. Weekend syndicated hosts include Kim Komando, Lars Larson and Bill Handel. Most hours begin with CBS Radio News.

History

Early years

WFEA has been broadcasting continuously since 9:00 a.m. on March 1, 1932, making it

New Hampshire New Hampshire is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...

's oldest

. It has always had the same

call sign In broadcasting and radio communications, a call sign (also known as a call name or call letters—and historically as a call signal—or abbreviated as a call) is a unique identifier for a transmitter station. A call sign can be formally assigne ...

. Over the years, WFEA has had 10 owners. On March 1, 1932, WFEA became an affiliate of the Yankee Network and CBS. Before the enactment of the

North American Regional Broadcasting Agreement The North American Regional Broadcasting Agreement (NARBA, es, Convenio Regional Norteamericano de Radiodifusión) refers to a series of international treaties that defined technical standards for AM band (mediumwave) radio stations. These agreem ...

(NARBA) in 1941, WFEA broadcast on 1340

kilocycle The cycle per second is a once-common English name for the unit of frequency now known as the hertz (Hz). The plural form was typically used, often written cycles per second, cycles/second, c.p.s., c/s, or, ambiguously, just cycles (Cy./Cyc.). The ...

s. It transmitted with 1,000

watt The watt (symbol: W) is the unit of power or radiant flux in the International System of Units (SI), equal to 1 joule per second or 1 kg⋅m2⋅s−3. It is used to quantify the rate of energy transfer. The watt is named after James Wa ...

s by day and 500 watts at night. It was owned by the New Hampshire Broadcasting Company.

Move to AM 1370

After NARBA, WFEA shifted to

AM 1370 The following radio stations broadcast on AM frequency 1370 kHz: 1370 AM is a regional broadcast frequency, on which Class B and D stations broadcast. Argentina * LRA 54 in Ingeniero Jacobacci, Rio Negro * Trece 70 in Isidro Casanova, Bueno ...

, with 5,000 watts around the clock. WFEA switched its affiliation to the

NBC Red Network The National Broadcasting Company's NBC Radio Network (known as the NBC Red Network prior to 1942) was an American commercial radio network which was in operation from 1926 through 2004. Along with the NBC Blue Network it was one of the first t ...

and the

Mutual Broadcasting System The Mutual Broadcasting System (commonly referred to simply as Mutual; sometimes referred to as MBS, Mutual Radio or the Mutual Radio Network) was an American commercial radio network in operation from 1934 to 1999. In the Old-time radio, golden ...

. During the "

Golden Age of Radio The Golden Age of Radio, also known as the old-time radio (OTR) era, was an era of radio in the United States where it was the dominant electronic home entertainment, entertainment medium. It began with the birth of commercial radio broadcastin ...

," WFEA carried NBC and Mutual's schedule of dramas, comedies, news, sports,

soap opera A soap opera, or ''soap'' for short, is a typically long-running radio or television serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term "soap opera" originated from radio dramas originally being sponsored ...

game show A game show is a genre of broadcast viewing entertainment (radio, television, internet, stage or other) where contestants compete for a reward. These programs can either be participatory or Let's Play, demonstrative and are typically directed b ...

s and

big band A big band or jazz orchestra is a type of musical ensemble of jazz music that usually consists of ten or more musicians with four sections: saxophones, trumpets, trombones, and a rhythm section. Big bands originated during the early 1910s an ...

broadcasts. As network programming shifted from radio to TV, in the 1950s and 1960s, WFEA evolved into a

Top 40 In the music industry, the Top 40 is the current, 40 most-popular songs in a particular genre. It is the best-selling or most frequently broadcast popular music. Record charts have traditionally consisted of a total of 40 songs. "Top 40" or " con ...

sound. As contemporary music listeners switched to FM, WFEA began airing a

full service Full service or Full Service may refer to: * Full-service radio, a wide range of programming * Full Service Network, a communications company Entertainment * "Full Service", a song by the New Kids on the Block from their album ''The Block'' * F ...

Hot AC format in the mid-1980s. By the late 1980s, it switched to mainstream

adult contemporary music Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul, R&B, quiet ...

Adult standards, talk, and sports

In 1990, WFEA switched to a satellite-delivered adult standards format, known as "

America's Best Music America's Best Music is the on-air branding of a soft oldies and adult standards 24-hour radio network, formerly known as AM Only. The service is syndicated by Westwood One, a subsidiary of Cumulus Media. It was one of the original Transtar Ra ...

", from Westwood One. It featured artists such as

Frank Sinatra Francis Albert Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor. Nicknamed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Chairman of the Board" and later called "Ol' Blue Eyes", Sinatra was one of the most popular ...

, Tony Bennett, The Carpenters,

Dionne Warwick Marie Dionne Warwick (; born December 12, 1940) is an American singer, actress, and television host. Warwick ranks among the 40 biggest U.S. hit makers between 1955 and 1999, based on her chart history on ''Billboards Hot 100 pop singles cha ...

Barry Manilow Barry Manilow (born Barry Alan Pincus; June 17, 1943) is an American singer and songwriter with a career that spans seven decades. His hit recordings include "Could It Be Magic", " Somewhere Down the Road", " Mandy", "I Write the Songs", " Can ...

Neil Diamond Neil Leslie Diamond (born January 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. He has sold more than 130 million records worldwide, making him one of the best-selling musicians of all time. He has had ten No. 1 singles on the Hot 100 and Adul ...

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one ...

Barbra Streisand Barbara Joan "Barbra" Streisand (; born April 24, 1942) is an American singer, actress and director. With a career spanning over six decades, she has achieved success in multiple fields of entertainment, and is among the few performers List ...

, and

Nat "King" Cole Nathaniel Adams Coles (March 17, 1919 – February 15, 1965), known professionally as Nat King Cole, was an American singer, jazz pianist, and actor. Cole's music career began after he dropped out of school at the age of 15, and continued f ...

. In November 1990, WFEA was acquired by Saga Communications.Broadcasting & Cable Yearbook 1992 page A-220
/ref> The music format was discontinued in February 2015 and WFEA switched to talk programming. WFEA had broadcast

Manchester Wolves The Manchester Wolves were a professional arena football team, based at the Verizon Wireless Arena in Manchester, New Hampshire, which folded at the end of the 2009 season along with the rest of the league. They played in the East Division of the ...

Arena Football League The Arena Football League (AFL) was a professional arena football league in the United States. It was founded in 1986, but played its first official games in the 1987 season, making it the third longest-running professional football league in ...

games before the team folded at the end of the 2009 season, and the

University of New Hampshire The University of New Hampshire (UNH) is a public land-grant research university with its main campus in Durham, New Hampshire. It was founded and incorporated in 1866 as a land grant college in Hanover in connection with Dartmouth College, mo ...

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

and

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

games.

Translator

References

External links

* * * {{Saga Communications FEA News and talk radio stations in the United States Manchester, New Hampshire Hillsborough County, New Hampshire Radio stations established in 1932 1932 establishments in New Hampshire