WPTR (AM)

WPTR
City	Schenectady, New York
Broadcast area	Albany, New York
Branding	Empire News Network
Frequency	1240 kHz
First air date	1942 (as WSNY)
Format	Business news (WAIX simulcast)
Power	1,000 watts unlimited
Class	C
Facility ID	8726
Transmitter coordinates	42°48′37″N 73°59′04″W / 42.81028°N 73.98444°W / 42.81028; -73.98444
Former callsigns	WSNY (1942-1975) WWWD (1976-1988) WVKZ (1988-2012)
Affiliations	Bloomberg Radio
Owner	Empire Broadcasting Corporation
Sister stations	WJKE, WAIX, WABY

WPTR (1240 AM) is a radio station broadcasting a business news format known as "Empire News Network". Located west of Schenectady, New York, USA, the station serves the Albany area as well as Schenectady. The station is owned by Empire Broadcasting Corporation.

History

WPTR began as long running middle-of-the-road station WSNY in 1942. In 1968, WSNY flipped to Top 40, going into direct competition with more powerful and established stations WPTR (now WDCD) and WTRY (now WOFX). The format was initially a success. However, by the early 1970s, FM Top 40 began to take hold in the Albany market as well; by 1973, in addition to WPTR and WTRY, WSNY had to contend with WABY (now WAMC), WGFM (now WRVE), and WHSH (now WPYX). In 1974, WSNY left the air. In 1976, the station returned to the air as WWWD, with kind of a top 40/oldies hybrid format. WWWD began to add vast amounts of off-track betting racing to their schedule during the 1980s. In early 1988, the station became WVKZ and partially simulcasted WVKZ-FM (now WDCD-FM), with their rock based top 40 format. WVKZ drifted through various formats during the 1990s, including classic country and talk, before flipping to oldies in 2004. In February 2009, WVKZ started broadcasting Scott Shannon's True Oldies network after broadcasting as "Real Oldies" since 2004.

Ernie Anastos sold his Albany-area stations—WVKZ, WABY, WQAR, and WUAM and its translator W291BY—to Empire Broadcasting Corporation in June 2012 at a purchase price of $1.2 million.^[1] The transaction consummated on September 7, 2012. On September 8, 2012, the station adopted the historic WPTR call letters, formerly used on the stations now known as WDCD, WAJZ, and WDCD-FM.^[2]

On June 7, 2013 WPTR changed their format to sports.^[3]

On June 27, 2016 WPTR changed their format from sports to a simulcast of business news-formatted WAIX 1160 AM Mechanicville, branded as "Empire News Network".^[4]

History of call letters

The call letters WPTR were previously assigned to an AM station (later known as WDCD (AM)) in Albany, New York.^[5]

References

↑ Pickney, Barbara (June 14, 2012). "Joe Reilly purchases 4 Albany area radio stations". The Business Review. Retrieved August 17, 2012.
↑ "Media Bureau Call Sign Actions" (PDF). Federal Communications Commission. August 15, 2012. Retrieved August 17, 2012.
↑ CBS Sports Radio Comes To Albany NY Radioinsight - June 7, 2013
↑ Albany Trio Switches to Business Radioinsight - June 29, 2016
↑ "WPTR, Owned by Theatre Chain, Starts in Albany" (PDF). Broadcasting. August 9, 1948. Retrieved 29 December 2014.

External links

Query the FCC's AM station database for WPTR

Radio-Locator Information on WPTR

Query Nielsen Audio's AM station database for WPTR

Radio stations in the Albany / Schenectady / Troy market

by FM frequency	88.3 89.1 89.7 89.9 90.3 90.7 90.7 90.7 90.9 91.1 91.5 92.3 92.9 93.1 93.5 93.7 94.5 94.7 94.9 95.5 95.9 96.3 96.7 97.3 97.5 97.7 97.9 98.3 98.5 98.5 99.1 99.5 99.9 100.3 100.9 101.3 101.7 101.9 102.3 102.7 103.1 103.5 103.9 104.5 104.7 104.9 105.7 106.1 106.5 107.1 107.7

by AM frequency	590 810¹ 900 930 980 1160 1190 1230 1240 1300 1330 1340 1400 1440 1460 1490 1540 1570

NOAA Weather Radio frequency	162.550

Digital radio	810 980 89.1-1 89.1-2 90.3-1 90.3-2 98.3-1 98.3-2 99.5-1 99.5-2 102.3-1 102.3-2 103.1-1 103.1-2 105.7-1 105.7-2 106.5-1 106.5-2 107.7-1 107.7-2

by callsign	W226AC W235AY W256BU W260CH W284BZ W291BY WABY WAIX WAJZ WAMC WAMC-FM WBAR-FM WBPM WCDB WCKM-FM WCQL WCSS WCTW WDCD WDCD-FM WENT WEQX WEXT WFFG-FM WFLY WFNY WGDJ WGNA-FM WGXC WGY¹ WGY-FM WHAZ WHAZ-FM WHUC WHVP WINU WIZR WJIV WJKE WKBE WKKF WKLI-FM WLJH WMHT-FM WMYY WNYQ WOFX WOPG WOPG-FM WPGL WPTR WPYX WQBJ WQBK-FM WQSH WRIP WROW WRPI WRUC WRVE WSDE WTMM-FM WTRY-FM WVCR-FM WVTL WXL34 WYAI WYJB WYKV WZCR

Defunct stations	WCKL WGFM WHRL WRSA WROW-FM WTRI WXKW

New York radio markets Albany–Schenectady–Troy Binghamton Buffalo–Niagara Falls Elmira–Corning Hudson Valley Nassau–Suffolk (Long Island) New York City Olean Plattsburgh Poughkeepsie Rochester Syracuse Utica–Rome Watertown Other New York radio regions Ithaca Jamestown–Dunkirk North Country Saratoga See also List of radio stations in New York Albany television Saratoga radio ¹ = Clear-channel stations with extended nighttime coverage.

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