WDND (1490 AM) was a

radio station Radio broadcasting is the broadcasting 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 rad ...

licensed to serve the

South Bend, Indiana South Bend is a city in St. Joseph County, Indiana, United States, and its county seat. It lies along the St. Joseph River (Lake Michigan), St. Joseph River near its southernmost bend, from which it derives its name. It is the List of cities in ...

, United States, area. The WDND call letters were the last ones used before the station went silent. While silent, the station call sign was changed to WPNT, although these call letters were never used on-the-air before the station was deleted.

History

WHOT

The station began broadcasting in 1944 and held the call sign WHOT. WHOT aired a

full service Full service or Full Service may refer to: Entertainment Books * ''Full Service'' (book), a 2012 memoir by Scotty Bowers * '' Full Service No Waiting'', a 1998 album by Peter Case Music * "Full Service", a song by the New Kids on the Block fr ...

format, with music, news, talk, comedy,

drama Drama is the specific Mode (literature), mode of fiction Mimesis, represented in performance: a Play (theatre), play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on Radio drama, radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a g ...

, and variety programs, along with a

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Polish people, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken * Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin ...

program mornings and

religious Religion is a range of social- cultural systems, including designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or organizations, that generally relate humanity to supernatural ...

programs on Sundays. Bob Bell worked at WHOT in the late 1940s. In 1954, WHOT was sold to the

University of Notre Dame The University of Notre Dame du Lac (known simply as Notre Dame; ; ND) is a Private university, private Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, United States. Founded in 1842 by members of the Congregation of Holy Cross, a Cathol ...

for $140,000.

WNDU

In 1955, the station's call sign was changed to WNDU. The station aired an

oldies Oldies is a term for musical genres such as pop music, rock and roll, doo-wop, surf music from the second half of the 20th century, specifically from around the mid-1950s to the 1980s, as well as for a radio format playing this music. Since 2 ...

format from the mid to late 1970s.
Broadcasting Yearbook 1975
',

Broadcasting Broadcasting is the data distribution, distribution of sound, audio audiovisual content to dispersed audiences via a electronic medium (communication), mass communications medium, typically one using the electromagnetic spectrum (radio waves), ...

, 1975. p. C-66. Retrieved April 10, 2019.
Broadcasting Yearbook 1979
',

, 1979. p. C-77. Retrieved April 10, 2019. In 1979, the station adopted a

contemporary hits Contemporary hit radio (CHR, also known as contemporary hits, hit list, current hits, hit music, top 40, or pop radio) is a radio format common in many countries that focuses on playing current and recurrent popular music as determined by the Top ...

format, with extra

disco Disco is a music genre, genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the late 1960s from the United States' urban nightclub, nightlife, particularly in African Americans, African-American, Italian-Americans, Italian-American, LGBTQ ...

at night. WNDU aired a

country music Country (also called country and western) is a popular music, music genre originating in the southern regions of the United States, both the American South and American southwest, the Southwest. First produced in the 1920s, country music is p ...

format in the 1980s.
Broadcasting/Cablecasting Yearbook 1982
', Broadcasting/Cablecasting, 1982. p. C-83. Retrieved April 12, 2019.
Broadcasting/Cablecasting Yearbook 1987
', Broadcasting/Cablecasting, 1987. p. B-102. Retrieved April 12, 2019. In 1990, the station adopted an oldies format. In 1995, the station switched to an all 1970s music format, with programming from

Westwood One Westwood One, Inc. is an American radio network owned by Cumulus Media. The company syndicates talk, music, and sports programming. The company takes its name from an earlier network also named Westwood One, a company founded in 1976. The co ...

. In 1998, the University of Notre Dame sold WNDU and sister station 92.9 WNDU-FM to

Artistic Media Partners Artistic" target="_blank" class="mw-redirect" title="Media Partners (formerly University Broadcasting Company) owns three Media Partners (formerly University Broadcasting Company) owns three radio stations in three markets in Indiana">radio stati ...

WNDV

On November 23, 1998, the station's call sign was changed to WNDV, while its sister station's call sign was changed to WNDV-FM. In 1999, the station began simulcasting the contemporary hits format of its FM sister station, 92.9 WNDV-FM.

WDND

In 2006, the station adopted the

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

format which had been airing on AM 1580 WDND, and 1490's call sign was changed to WDND on May 5, 2006.Devine, Cathy (2006).
The Radio Book 2006-2007
'. p. 225. Retrieved April 13, 2019. WDND was an affiliate of

ESPN Radio ESPN Radio, which is alternatively branded platform-agnostically 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 banner "SportsRadio ESPN". The netw ...

.Radio Tower Falls
,

WNDU-TV WNDU-TV (channel 16) is a television station in South Bend, Indiana, United States, affiliated with NBC. Owned by Gray Media, it maintains studios on the campus of the University of Notre Dame, the station's founding owner, along State Road 933 ...

. January 1, 2007. Retrieved April 13, 2019. The station was off the air for a period in January 2007, after its tower fell during a storm.

End of operations

On April 29, 2009, the station was taken off the air, in preparation for its transmitting tower site on the Notre Dame campus to be dismantled to make way for the Compton Family Ice Arena.Hockey arena construction forces 1490 AM switch
, ''

South Bend Tribune The ''South Bend Tribune'' is a daily newspaper and news website which is based in South Bend, Indiana. It is distributed in South Bend, Mishawaka, north central Indiana, and southwestern Michigan. It has been named as a "Blue Ribbon Newspaper ...

''. April 29, 2009. Retrieved April 13, 2019. Artistic moved the WDND call sign and its sports format to 1620 AM. The former call letters of the 1620 station, WPNT, were assigned to the silent 1490 operation on May 13, 2009. On May 11, 2011, the license for 1490 AM was canceled by the FCC.

References

External links

Facility details for Facility ID 41673 (WPNT)
in the FCC Licensing and Management System
FCC History Cards for WPNT/WDND
(covering 1944- 1979 as WHOT / WNDU) {{South Bend Radio DND (AM) Radio stations established in 1944 1944 establishments in Indiana Radio stations disestablished in 2011 2011 disestablishments in Indiana Defunct radio stations in the United States DND