WPST

WPST (94.5 FM, "94-5 PST") is a commercial FM radio station licensed to serve Trenton, New Jersey. The station airs a Top 40/CHR radio format and is owned by Townsquare Media.[2][3]

WPST
CityTrenton, New Jersey
Broadcast areaCentral New Jersey, Delaware Valley
Frequency94.5 MHz
Branding94-5 PST
Slogan"Your #1 Hit Music Station"
Programming
FormatTop 40 (CHR)
Ownership
OwnerTownsquare Media
(Townsquare Media Trenton License, LLC)
WCHR, WKXW, WNJE
History
First air date
August 7, 1965 (as WTTM-FM)
Former call signs
WTTM-FM (1965–1969)
WCHR (1969–1998)
WNJO (1998–2002)
WTHK (2002–2005)
Call sign meaning
Passport or Passport Stereo Trenton[1]
Technical information
Facility ID25013
ClassB
ERP50,000 watts (horizontal)
48,000 watts (vertical)
HAAT150 meters (490 ft)
Transmitter coordinates
40°11′21.8″N 74°50′47.6″W
Links
WebcastListen live
Websitewpst.com

Studios and offices are on Alexander Road in Princeton, New Jersey. Its broadcast tower is located west of Morrisville, Pennsylvania at (40°11′21.8″N 74°50′47.6″W).[4] The station's service contour covers Central Jersey, as well as an adjacent portion of the Philadelphia/Delaware Valley media market.[5]

History

On August 7, 1965, 94.5 signed on as WTTM-FM. It was owned by the Scott Broadcasting Company, Inc. of New Jersey and was the adjunct to WTTM (920 AM).[6] On February 1, 1969, WTTM-FM became WCHR, a religious station; in 1974, it was approved to increase its effective radiated power to 50,000 watts.[7]

The Scott family sold WTTM and WCHR in 1996 for $20 million to Nassau Broadcasting Partners.[8] The sale prompted immediate speculation that a format change was in the offing for WCHR.[9] That November, WCHR's religious programming began being simulcast on 920 AM. On February 27, 1998, the 94.5 frequency began stunting with construction sound effects.

On March 2, 1998, at 5:00 p.m., 94.5 relaunched as "New Jersey's Oldies Station", with new WNJO call letters.[10] The station's format of primary 1960s oldies was selected so as to avoid cannibalizing Nassau's other Trenton station, WPST (97.5 FM). The first request on the new WNJO was made by Governor Christine Whitman, who attended the launch.[11]

WNJO brought in morning personality Don Kellogg Who was a ratings winner, but facing competition from WKXW which was moving in a 1970s direction, and inspired by the revenue success of a similar flip at Nassau's station in Allentown, Pennsylvania, WNJO became classic hits "The Hawk" on December 1, 2001[12] and adopted WTHK call letters on August 1, 2002.

WPST's contemporary hit radio format moved from 97.5 to 94.5 on February 14, 2005 at 5pm. at the same time, WTHK's programming moved to 97.5, which had been approved to move its community of license to Burlington, New Jersey, closer to Philadelphia.[13] The new WPST at 94.5 cut into the audience for Philadelphia's hot adult contemporary 95.7 WMWX, which became adult hits two months later and the following year switched its call letters to WBEN-FM.

The station, along with nine other Nassau stations in New Jersey and Pennsylvania, was purchased at bankruptcy auction by NB Broadcasting in May 2012. NB Broadcasting is controlled by Nassau's creditors — Goldman Sachs, Pluss Enterprises, and P.E. Capital.[14][15] In November, NB Broadcasting filed a motion to assign its rights to the stations to Connoisseur Media.[16] The sale to Connoisseur Media, at a price of $38.7 million, was consummated on May 29, 2013.

On March 22, 2018, it was announced that the station had been sold by Connoisseur Media to Townsquare Media (along with WNJE and WCHR) for a deal totaling $17.3 million.[17] The acquisition was finalized on July 2, 2018.

Signal note

WPST is short-spaced to two other Class B stations: WNSH New York's Country 94.7 (licensed to serve Newark, New Jersey) and WDAC (licensed to serve Lancaster, Pennsylvania).

WPST and WNSH operate on first adjacent channels (94.5 and 94.7) and the cities they are licensed to serve are only about 47 miles apart.[18] The minimum distance between two Class B stations operating on first adjacent channels according to current FCC rules is 105 miles.[19]

WPST and WDAC operate on the same channel and the cities they are licensed to serve are only about 83 miles apart.[20] The minimum distance between two Class B stations operating on the same channel according to current FCC rules is 150 miles.[19]

See also

References
  1. "Call Letter Origins". Radio History on the Web.
  2. "WPST Facility Record". United States Federal Communications Commission, audio division.
  3. "WPST Station Information Profile". Arbitron.
  4. "FM Query Results for WPST". fcc.gov. Federal Communications Commission. Retrieved 2020-01-26.
  5. "60 dBu Service Contour for WPST, Trenton, NJ, 94.5 MHz BMLH-20190128ABN". fcc.gov. Federal Communications Commission. Retrieved 2020-01-26.
  6. "FCC Approves Sale Of Trenton Station". Courier-Post. Associated Press. October 11, 1963. p. 8. Retrieved January 18, 2020.
  7. FCC History Cards for WPST
  8. "Transactions" (PDF). Radio & Records. October 4, 1996. p. 10. Retrieved January 18, 2020.
  9. Darrow, Chuck (January 8, 1997). "Change is in the air for local radio scene". Courier-Post. p. 12E. Retrieved January 18, 2020.
  10. Darrow, Chuck (March 6, 1998). "Not-so-oldies find home on 'new' station". Courier-Post. p. 9TGIF. Retrieved January 18, 2020.
  11. "WBLS puts its money on veteran Doug Banks". Courier-News. March 5, 1998. p. D-5. Retrieved January 18, 2020.
  12. "'Hawks' Soar to Ratings Heights" (PDF). Radio & Records. October 11, 2002. pp. 22, 29. Retrieved January 18, 2020.
  13. "Street Talk" (PDF). Radio & Records. January 14, 2005. p. 18. Retrieved January 18, 2020.
  14. "10 Nassau Stations Go To NB Broadcasting LLC". All Access. May 30, 2012. Retrieved November 10, 2012.
  15. Pierce, David (June 12, 2012). "Pocono radio stations now in the hands of creditors". Pocono Record. Retrieved November 10, 2012.
  16. "Connoisseur Moves To Assume Debtor's Bid To Buy 10 Nassau Stations, Including WPST". All Access. November 21, 2012. Retrieved November 21, 2012.
  17. "Townsquare Adds CHR Powerhouse WPST To Its Trenton Talker WKXW". Insideradio.com.
  18. "How Far is it Between Trenton, New Jersey and Newark Nj, Usa". Free Map Tools. Retrieved 2020-01-26.
  19. "Minimum distance separation between stations. 47 CFR § 73.207(b)(1)" (PDF). Retrieved 2020-01-26.
  20. "How Far is it Between Lancaster, Pa Usa and Trenton Nj, Usa". Free Map Tools. Retrieved 2020-01-26.
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