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WHLL (1450 AM) – branded as ' – is a commercial radio station broadcasting a Spanish-language
Latin pop Latin pop () is a pop music subgenre that is a fusion of US–style music production with Latin music genres from anywhere in Latin America and Spain. It originates with List of countries where Spanish is an official language, Spanish-speaking ...
format licensed to
Springfield, Massachusetts Springfield is the most populous city in Hampden County, Massachusetts, United States, and its county seat. Springfield sits on the eastern bank of the Connecticut River near its confluence with three rivers: the western Westfield River, the ea ...
. Owned by
Audacy, Inc. Audacy, Inc. is an American broadcasting company based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1968 as Entercom Communications Corp., it is the second largest radio company in the United States, owning over 220 radio stations across 47 media ...
, the station serves the Springfield metropolitan area; and the
Pioneer Valley The Pioneer Valley is the colloquial and promotional name for the portion of the Connecticut River Valley that is in Massachusetts in the United States. It is generally taken to comprise the three counties of Hampden County, Massachusetts, Ha ...
of
Western Massachusetts Western Massachusetts, known colloquially as "western Mass," is a region in Massachusetts, one of the six U.S. states that make up the New England region of the United States. Western Massachusetts has diverse topography; 22 colleges and univ ...
. The WHLL studios are located at the
Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame is an American history museum and hall of fame, located at 1000 Hall of Fame Avenue in Springfield, Massachusetts. It serves as basketball's most complete library, in addition to promoting and pre ...
in Springfield, alongside sister stations
WMAS-FM WMAS-FM (94.7 Hertz, MHz), branded 94.7 WMAS, is a commercial radio station city of license, licensed to Enfield, Connecticut, and serving the Springfield metropolitan area, Massachusetts, Springfield metropolitan area and Pioneer Valley of West ...
and
WWEI WWEI (105.5 FM; "105.5 WEEI") is a radio station in Easthampton, Massachusetts, serving Springfield with a sports radio format. The station is owned by Audacy, Inc. Most programming is provided by Boston sister station WEEI-FM. History T ...
, while the station transmitter, shared with WMAS-FM, resides in Springfield's Brightwood neighborhood. In addition to a standard
analog transmission Analog transmission is a transmission method of conveying information using a continuous signal which varies in amplitude, phase, or some other property in proportion to that information. It could be the transfer of an analog signal, using an an ...
, WHLL simulcasts over low-power analog Springfield
translator Translation is the communication of the meaning of a source-language text by means of an equivalent target-language text. The English language draws a terminological distinction (which does not exist in every language) between ''trans ...
W251CT (98.1  FM) and on the second
HD Radio HD Radio (HDR) is a trademark for in-band on-channel (IBOC) digital radio broadcast technology. HD radio generally simulcast, simulcasts an existing analog radio station in digital format with less noise and with additional text information. HD R ...
channel of WMAS-FM, and streams online via
Audacy Audacy, previously known as Radio.com, is a free broadcast and Internet radio Computing platform, platform developed by the namesake company Audacy, Inc. (formerly known as Entercom). The Audacy platform functions as a Recommender system, mus ...
.


History

In May 1932, Albert S. Moffatt, a former
newsreel A newsreel is a form of short documentary film, containing news, news stories and items of topical interest, that was prevalent between the 1910s and the mid 1970s. Typically presented in a Movie theater, cinema, newsreels were a source of cu ...
photographer, was granted a
construction permit Planning permission or building permit refers to the approval needed for construction or expansion (including significant renovation), and sometimes for demolition, in some jurisdictions. House building permits, for example, are subject to bu ...
by the
Federal Radio Commission The Federal Radio Commission (FRC) was a government agency that regulated United States radio communication from its creation in 1927 until 1934, when it was succeeded by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). The FRC was established by ...
to begin work on a new radio station, with the sequential
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 as ...
WHEU. When the station officially
signed on A sign-on (or start-up in Commonwealth countries except Canada) is the beginning of operations for a radio broadcasting, radio or television station, generally at the start of each day. It is the opposite of a sign-off (or closedown in Commonw ...
, its call letters were changed to WMAS. The letters stood for
Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...
, and they also include the owner's initials, although not in the correct order. The station's studios were in the Hotel Stonehaven, and when it signed on for the first time, on September 1, 1932, it broadcast on 1420 kHz with 100 watts. During the 1940s and 1950s, WMAS was a member of the
Yankee Network The Yankee Network was an American radio network, based in Boston, Boston, Massachusetts, with affiliate radio stations throughout New England. At the height of its influence, the Yankee Network had as many as twenty-four affiliated radio stati ...
, a programming service originating in
Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...
for
New England New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...
radio stations. WMAS was also a CBS Radio
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 ...
. It carried the CBS line-up of dramas, comedies, news, sports, soap operas, game shows, children's shows and
big band A big band or jazz orchestra is a type of musical ensemble of jazz music that usually consists of ten or more musicians with four sections: saxophones, trumpets, trombones, and a rhythm section. Big bands originated during the early 1910s and ...
broadcasts, during the "
Golden Age of Radio The Golden Age of Radio, also known as the old-time radio (OTR) era, was an era of radio in the United States where it was the dominant electronic home entertainment medium. It began with the birth of commercial radio broadcasting in the earl ...
". In 1947, WMAS-FM signed on. At first, both stations mostly simulcast their programming. When network programming shifted from radio to television, WMAS-AM-FM switched to 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 ...
, middle of the road music format. WMAS 1450 later had 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 as "The Country Leader". On-air personalities included Dave Thatcher (also the station's news director), Fred Stevens, and Mike Williamson. WMAS was one of the original "
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 Ca ...
"
adult standards Adult standards (also sometimes known as the nostalgia or Big Band format) is a North American radio format heard primarily on AM or class A FM stations. Adult standards started in the 1950s and is aimed at "mature" adults, meaning mainly tho ...
radio stations, as its previous owner for many years, Bob Lappin (Lappin Communications, Inc.) was friends with the format's originator and syndicator, Al Ham. In June 2004, WMAS-AM-FM were sold to
Citadel Broadcasting Citadel Broadcasting Corporation was a Las Vegas, Nevada-based broadcast holding company founded and developed by Larry Wilson. Citadel owned 243 radio stations across the United States and was the third-largest radio station owner in the count ...
for $22 million. Citadel switched AM 1450 to an unsuccessful
talk radio Talk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues and consisting entirely or almost entirely of original spoken word content rather than outside music. They may feature monologues, dialogues between the hosts, Interview (jo ...
format, then tried
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 ...
, playing
Scott Shannon Michael Scott Shannon (born July 25, 1947) is an American radio disc jockey best known as the announcer of '' The Sean Hannity Show''. He also hosted the morning show for WCBS-FM in New York City from 2014 to 2022 as well as ''Scott Shannon Pres ...
's
The True Oldies Channel Scott Shannon's True Oldies Channel (also known more recently as ''The True Oldies Channel: Greatest Hits'') is a radio network begun in the spring of 2004. Originally distributed by ABC Radio Networks via satellite, the service plays a hybrid ol ...
from ABC Radio. On April 7, 2009, the format was changed to
sports radio 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 ...
with programming from
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 ...
. The call sign was changed to WHLL to represent the word "Hall". The
Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame is an American history museum and hall of fame, located at 1000 Hall of Fame Avenue in Springfield, Massachusetts. It serves as basketball's most complete library, in addition to promoting and pre ...
is located in Springfield and the station's studios were moved to the facility. Citadel merged with
Cumulus Media Cumulus Media, Inc. is a broadcasting company of the United States and is the second largest owner and operator of AM and FM radio stations in the United States ahead of Audacy and behind iHeartMedia iHeartMedia, Inc., or CC Media Holdi ...
on September 16, 2011. After the merger, WHLL switched networks to
CBS Sports Radio Infinity Sports Network is an American sports radio network. It debuted as CBS Sports Radio with hourly sports news updates on September 4, 2012, and with 24/7 programming on January 2, 2013. Infinity Sports Network is programmed by Audacy, Inc ...
, a network that Cumulus Media had a financial interest in. On December 27, 2018, WHLL changed its format from sports to country, branded as "98.1
Nash Icon Nash is a media brand owned by Cumulus Media. It covers country music-related properties owned by Cumulus, including radio stations, digital properties and publications (''Nash Country Weekly, Nash Country Daily''), Nash TV (a video on-demand se ...
", in line with the launch of an FM simulcast of WHLL on translator W251CT, which is licensed to Springfield. On February 13, 2019, Cumulus and
Entercom Audacy, Inc. is an American broadcasting company based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1968 as Entercom Communications Corp., it is the second largest radio company in the United States, owning over 220 radio stations across 47 media ...
announced an agreement in which WHLL and WMAS-FM, as well as WNSH in New York City, would be swapped to Entercom in exchange for Entercom's Indianapolis stations. Under the terms of the deal, Entercom began operating WHLL under a
local marketing agreement In North American broadcasting, a local marketing agreement (LMA), or local management agreement, is a contract in which one corporation, company agrees to operate a radio station, radio or television station owned by another party. In essence, it ...
(LMA) on March 1, 2019. The swap was completed on May 9, 2019. On March 22, 2021, WHLL rebranded as "Hall of Fame Country 98.1". On September 1, 2023, WHLL flipped to Spanish CHR, branded as "".WHLL Drops Hall of Fame Country For Something Nueva
RadioInsight - September 6, 2023


FM translator


References


External links

* ;FM translator * * {{Audacy 1932 establishments in Massachusetts Audacy, Inc. radio stations Contemporary hit radio stations in the United States Mass media in Springfield, Massachusetts Radio stations established in 1932 HLL HLL