WPOM
Broadcast areaWest Palm Beach, Florida
Frequency1600 kHz
Programming
FormatEthnic
Ownership
Owner
  • Carline Clerge
  • (Caribbean Media Group, Inc.)
History
First air date
August 17, 1959
Former call signs
WHEW (1959–1969)
WXVI (1969–1971)
WPOM (1971–1999)
WMNE (1999–2010)
WHTY (2010–2015)
Call sign meaning
West
POM sounds equivalent to "Palm"
Technical information
Facility ID73892
ClassB
Power5,000 watts day
4,700 watts night
Transmitter coordinates
26°44′55″N 80°07′58″W / 26.74861°N 80.13278°W / 26.74861; -80.13278
Translator(s)W266DP (101.1 MHz, Delray Beach)

WPOM (1600 AM) is a radio station broadcasting ethnic programming. Licensed to Riviera Beach, Florida, United States, the station serves the West Palm Beach area. The station is currently owned by Carline Clerge, through licensee Caribbean Media Group, Inc.[1]

History

The station went on the air as WHEW on August 17, 1959.[2] In 1969, the station changed its call letters to WXVI;[3] by 1970, the station had a middle-of-the-road format.[4] In 1971, the station became WPOM, with a contemporary format.[5] In the intervening years, WPOM would adopt several other formats, including all-news in the late 1970s,[6] disco in the early 1980s,[7] and a split format of gospel and blues by 1999.[8]

Hibernia Broadcasting, whose stations were all affiliated with Radio Disney, acquired WPOM in 1999,[8] and switched the station to Radio Disney on June 16, 1999; to better reflect the format, the station adopted the WMNE callsign, referring to Minnie Mouse, on July 9.[9] Hibernia was acquired by Disney, through ABC, in 2000.[10]

Disney sold WMNE to Travis Media, LLC in January 2010.[11] In the interim, Disney took the station, and five other stations slated to be sold, off the air on January 22.[12][13] The station resumed broadcasting on May 6;[14] on June 2, the call letters were changed to WHTY.

In March 2015, Carline Clerge, who already owned 42% of the station, agreed to acquire the remaining 58% from Robert Travis and David Urbach;[15] upon taking control on August 24, 2015, Clerge transferred WHTY from Travis Media to Caribbean Media Group, another company she controls.[16] The call sign was changed back to WPOM on August 24, 2015.[17]

References

  1. ^ "WPOM Facility Record". United States Federal Communications Commission, audio division.
  2. ^ Broadcasting Yearbook 1960 (PDF). 1960. p. A-133. Retrieved January 25, 2010.
  3. ^ "For the Record" (PDF). Broadcasting. January 13, 1969. p. 72. Retrieved April 7, 2015.
  4. ^ Broadcasting Yearbook 1971 (PDF). 1971. p. B-46. Retrieved January 26, 2010.
  5. ^ Broadcasting Yearbook 1972 (PDF). 1972. p. B-46. Retrieved January 26, 2010.
  6. ^ Broadcasting Yearbook 1976 (PDF). 1976. p. C-43. Retrieved January 26, 2010.
  7. ^ Broadcasting Yearbook 1980 (PDF). 1980. p. C-49. Retrieved January 26, 2010.
  8. ^ a b Lundy, Sarah (June 18, 1999). "Mickey Mouse Takes Over WPOM". South Florida Sun-Sentinel. Retrieved January 26, 2010.
  9. ^ "WMNE Call Sign History". United States Federal Communications Commission, audio division.
  10. ^ "Palladium Equity Partners to Sell Hibernia Communications' Radio Stations To ABC, Inc" (Press release). Palladium Equity Partners. June 29, 2000. Retrieved January 26, 2010.
  11. ^ "Disney sells West Palm Beach radio station". Radio Business Report. January 25, 2010. Retrieved January 26, 2010.
  12. ^ "Radio Disney Takes Six Stations Silent". All Access. January 28, 2010. Retrieved January 29, 2010.
  13. ^ Zucker, John W (January 26, 2010). "Notification of Suspension of Operations / Request for Silent STA". CDBS Public Access. Federal Communications Commission. Retrieved January 29, 2010.
  14. ^ Tillotson, David (June 21, 2010). "Resumption of Operations". CDBS Public Access. Federal Communications Commission. Retrieved September 25, 2010.
  15. ^ "APPLICATION FOR CONSENT TO TRANSFER CONTROL OF ENTITY HOLDING BROADCAST STATION CONSTRUCTION PERMIT OR LICENSE". CDBS Public Access. Federal Communications Commission. March 20, 2015. Retrieved April 7, 2015.
  16. ^ "APPLICATION FOR CONSENT TO TRANSFER CONTROL OF ENTITY HOLDING BROADCAST STATION CONSTRUCTION PERMIT OR LICENSE". CDBS Public Access. Federal Communications Commission. March 21, 2015. Retrieved April 7, 2015.
  17. ^ "Media Bureau Call Sign Actions" (PDF). Federal Communications Commission. April 7, 2015. Retrieved April 7, 2015.

External links


Radio stations in West Palm Beach, Florida (Palm Beach County)
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