WTLA (1200 AM; "ESPN Radio 97.7") is a

commercial Commercial may refer to: * a dose of advertising conveyed through media (such as - for example - radio or television) ** Radio advertisement ** Television advertisement * (adjective for:) commerce, a system of voluntary exchange of products and s ...

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 ...

licensed A license (or licence) is an official permission or permit to do, use, or own something (as well as the document of that permission or permit). A license is granted by a party (licensor) to another party (licensee) as an element of an agreeme ...

North Syracuse, New York North Syracuse is a village in Onondaga County, New York, United States. The population was 6,800 at the 2010 census. North Syracuse is located in the towns of Cicero and Clay, north of the city of Syracuse. History The village was original ...

, and serving the

Syracuse metropolitan area The Syracuse Metropolitan Statistical Area, as defined by the United States Census Bureau, is an area consisting of three counties in central New York, anchored by the city of Syracuse. As of the 2010 census, the MSA had a population of 662,5 ...

. The station is owned by

Galaxy Communications Galaxy Media (formerly Galaxy Communications) is a radio broadcasting company with radio stations entirely in the Central New York area. History Ed Levine, current president, attended the Newhouse School at Syracuse University where his love fo ...

and airs a

sports radio Sports radio (or sports talk radio) is a radio format devoted entirely to discussion and broadcasting of sporting events. A widespread programming genre that has a narrow audience appeal, sports radio is characterized by an often- boisterous on-ai ...

format Format may refer to: Printing and visual media * Text formatting, the typesetting of text elements * Paper formats, or paper size standards * Newspaper format, the size of the paper page Computing * File format, particular way that informatio ...

. Programming is also

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 co-owned

AM 1440 AM or Am may refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * A minor, a minor scale in music * ''A.M.'' (Chris Young album) * ''A.M.'' (Wilco album) * ''AM'' (Abraham Mateo album) * ''AM'' (Arctic Monkeys album) * AM (musician), American musician ...

WSGO WSGO (1440 AM) is a commercial radio station, licensed to Oswego, New York, and serving the northern suburbs of the Syracuse metropolitan area. The station is owned by Galaxy Communications and airs a sports radio format. The station, like most ...

Oswego, New York Oswego () is a city in Oswego County, New York, United States. The population was 16,921 at the 2020 census. Oswego is located on Lake Ontario in Upstate New York, about 35 miles (55km) northwest of Syracuse. It promotes itself as "The Port C ...

. WTLA operates 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. Because 1200 AM is a clear channel frequency reserved for Class A WOAI

San Antonio ("Cradle of Freedom") , image_map = , mapsize = 220px , map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1= U.S. state, State , subdivision_name1 = Texas , s ...

, WTLA uses 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 ...

at night to avoid interference when radio waves travel farther. WTLA's

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 off Davis Road North in

Cicero, New York Cicero is a Administrative divisions of New York#Town, town in northern Onondaga County, New York, Onondaga County, New York (state), New York, United States. The population was 31,632 at the 2010 census. The name of the town was assigned by a cl ...

, near

Interstate 481 Interstate 481 (I-481) is an auxiliary Interstate Highway that serves as an eastern bypass of Syracuse, New York, in the US. It begins at its parent, I-81, in the city's southern end and travels through the eastern Syracuse suburbs of Jame ...

. WTLA also is heard on 120-watt

FM translator A broadcast relay station, also known as a satellite station, relay transmitter, broadcast translator (U.S.), re-broadcaster (Canada), repeater (two-way radio) or complementary station (Mexico), is a broadcast transmitter which repeats (or tran ...

W249BC at 97.7

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 ...

in nearby

Mattydale, New York Mattydale is a hamlet (and census-designated place) in Onondaga County, New York, United States. The population was 6,446 at the 2010 census. Mattydale is a community in the northeast part of the town of Salina and is a northern suburb of Syracus ...

Programming

WTLA and WSGO have several local weekday sports shows, in middays and afternoon

drive time Drive time is the daypart in which radio broadcasters can reach the most people who listen to car radios while driving, usually to and from work, or on public transportation. Drive-time periods are when the number of radio listeners in this c ...

. The rest of the schedule features programming from

ESPN Radio ESPN Radio, which is alternately platform-agnostically branded as ESPN Audio, is an American sports radio network and extension of the ESPN television network. It was launched on January 1, 1992, under the original banner of "SportsRadio ESPN". ...

, the Syracuse ISP Sports Network (carrying

Syracuse University Syracuse University (informally 'Cuse or SU) is a Private university, private research university in Syracuse, New York. Established in 1870 with roots in the Methodist Episcopal Church, the university has been nonsectarian since 1920. Locate ...

sports), the

New York Giants Radio Network The New York Giants Radio Network is a broadcast radio network based in New York City, the official radio broadcaster of the National Football League's New York Giants. The network's radio broadcasts are currently flagshipped at WFAN, a station own ...

and the

NFL on Westwood One ''The NFL on Westwood One Sports'' is the branding for Cumulus Broadcasting subsidiary Westwood One's radio coverage of the National Football League. These games are distributed throughout the United States and Canada (the latter through TSN Radio ...

. WTLA/WSGO had previously carried

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major league ...

baseball games until the

New York Mets Radio Network The New York Mets Radio Network, referred to on air as the ''WCBS Mets Radio Network'', was a radio network owned by Audacy, Inc. (previously CBS Radio) that broadcast New York Mets baseball games. It consisted of 14 stations (12 AM, 2 FM and 1 F ...

was discontinued in 2019 due to the high cost of satellite time.

History

The station

signed on Signing may refer to: * Using sign language * Signature A signature (; from la, signare, "to sign") is a handwritten (and often stylized) depiction of someone's name, nickname, or even a simple "X" or other mark that a person writes on do ...

the air August 1, 1959. Its

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 ...

was WSOQ and it broadcast on 1220 AM. On that frequency, WSOQ was a

daytimer A clear-channel station is an AM radio station in North America that has the highest protection from interference from other stations, particularly concerning night-time skywave propagation. The system exists to ensure the viability of cross-coun ...

. Due to longer established stations on 1220, WSOQ had to go off the air at sunset each day to avoid interference. The station was owned by Sol Panitz and Harry Winton, and was a

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 ...

network affiliate In the broadcasting industry (particularly in North America, and even more in the United States), a network affiliate or affiliated station is a local broadcaster, owned by a company other than the owner of the network, which carries some or a ...

. Over the years, the station used the call letters WEZG, WURS, and WXRA. In 1991, the station moved to its current frequency. It had attempted to move its spot on the dial since 1980, hoping to find a frequency where it could broadcast around the clock. A few months later, the station was renamed WNSS. It then became WKRL in 1993, and WTLA in 1995. Until March 5, 2010, WTLA offered an adult standards format from the "

Music of Your Life Music of Your Life is an American syndicated music radio format featuring adult standards music. First created by recording executive Al Ham in 1978, the format achieved popularity in the 1980s among AM radio stations in the United States and C ...

" network. On that date, it affiliated with

. A local afternoon show, "Disturbing The Peace" was added in May 2010, focusing on Syracuse and New York sports. In January 2011, programs hosted by Mike Bristol (who had previously been heard on AM 620 WHEN) were picked up by WTLA. Actor

Daniel Baldwin Daniel Leroy Baldwin (born October 5, 1960) is an American actor. He is the second oldest of the four Baldwin brothers, all of whom are actors. Baldwin played the role of Detective Beau Felton in the NBC TV series '' Homicide: Life on the Stree ...

began hosting a one-hour weekday sports program on WTLA/WSGO in 2017. The show ended in April 2019.InsideRadio.com "Daniel Baldwin Exits ESPN Syracuse" 9/12/19
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Translators

References

External links

* * * {{Sports in Syracuse

TLA TLA may refer to: Organisations * Tennessee Library Association, a professional organization for librarians in Tennessee * Texas Library Association, a professional organization for librarians in Texas * Tour de las Américas, a professional gol ...

Radio stations established in 1959 ESPN Radio stations Sports in Onondaga County, New York Sports in Syracuse, New York