WBAB (102.3 FM) is a

classic rock Classic rock is a US radio format which developed from the album-oriented rock (AOR) format in the early 1980s. In the United States, the classic rock format comprises rock music ranging generally from the mid-1960s through the mid 1990s, prim ...

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 to Babylon, New York and owned by

Cox Radio CMG Media Corporation (doing business as Cox Media Group) is an American media conglomerate principally owned by Apollo Global Management in conjunction with Cox Enterprises, which maintains a 29% minority stake in the company. The company pr ...

. The station 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, simul ...

on WHFM (95.3 FM) licensed to

Southampton, New York Southampton, officially the Town of Southampton, is a town in southeastern Suffolk County, New York, partly on the South Fork of Long Island. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the town had a population of 69,036. Southampton is included in the stret ...

and serving eastern Long Island.

History

WBAB first went on the air August 27, 1958 as WBAB-FM. It simulcast WBAB (1440 AM), until September 1975 when 1440 AM adopted a

Gospel music Gospel music is a traditional genre of Christian music, and a cornerstone of Christian media. The creation, performance, significance, and even the definition of gospel music varies according to culture and social context. Gospel music is co ...

format.

2006 signal hijacking

On the morning of Wednesday, May 17, 2006, the station's signal was hijacked for about 90 seconds while the signal jammers broadcast the song "Nigger Hatin' Me" by the 1960s-era

white supremacist White supremacy or white supremacism is the belief that white people are superior to those of other races and thus should dominate them. The belief favors the maintenance and defense of any power and privilege held by white people. White s ...

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, whi ...

singer Johnny Rebel. Roger Luce, the station's morning host, said at the time, "I've never seen this in 22 years at this radio station... Whatever that was - it was very racist." The next morning, it made the front page of ''

Newsday ''Newsday'' is an American daily newspaper that primarily serves Nassau and Suffolk counties on Long Island, although it is also sold throughout the New York metropolitan area. The slogan of the newspaper is "Newsday, Your Eye on LI", and fo ...

'' with the headline "JACKED FM". The station's new general manager, John Shea, said, "I've only been here a week and we get hijacked." Former program director John Olsen said, "This was not some child's prank, this was a federal offense." The hijack was likely accomplished by overpowering the

studio transmitter link A studio transmitter link (or STL) sends a radio station's or television station's audio and video from the broadcast studio or origination facility to a radio transmitter, television transmitter or uplink facility in another location. This is ac ...

(STL) signal to the transmitter in Dix Hills, New York. A signal hijacking with the same song happened to WBAB's

sister station In broadcasting, sister stations or sister channels are radio or television stations operated by the same company, either by direct ownership or through a management agreement. Radio sister stations will often have different formats, and somet ...

WBLI about two weeks earlier.

Discography

* '' WBAB Homegrown Album'' (1981) * ''WBAB Son of Homegrown'' (1984)

References

External links

* * {{COXMG Classic rock radio stations in the United States Cox Media Group BAB Radio stations established in 1958 Mass media in Suffolk County, New York Babylon (town), New York 1958 establishments in New York (state)