 | This article needs to beupdated. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information.(December 2014) |
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| Broadcast area | Central New York |
|---|---|
| Frequency | 1260kHz |
| Branding | The Score 1260 |
| Programming | |
| Format | Sports |
| Affiliations | Westwood One Sports BetMGM Network Syracuse Mets |
| Ownership | |
| Owner |
|
| WAQX-FM,WNTQ | |
| History | |
First air date | 1946; 80 years ago (1946) (as WNDR) |
Former call signs | WNDR (1946–1996) WNSS (1996–2010) |
Call sign meaning | WSKOre |
| Technical information[1] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 50515 |
| Class | B |
| Power | 5,000watts |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
| Webcast | Listen live |
| Website | thescore1260.com |
WSKO (1260kHz) is acommercialAMradio station inSyracuse, New York. It has asports radioformat and is owned byCumulus Media withstudios on James Street. "The Score" is theflagship station for allSyracuse Mets baseball games.[2] In addition to carryingWestwood One Sports, and selected shows fromBetMGM Network, a local program is heard on weekends,Outside The Box with Mark Rowlands.
By day, WSKO’s power is 5,000wattsnon-directional. At night, to protect other stations on1260 kHz from interference, it switches to adirectional antenna with a four-tower array. Thetransmitter is on Andrews Road inDeWitt, nearInterstate 481.[3]
The stationsigned on the air in 1946. The originalcall sign was WNDR. It was anetwork affiliate of theMutual Broadcasting System airing its dramas, comedies,variety shows, news and sports. In the 1950s, network programming began moving from radio to television. During that time, the station began its run as afull service,middle of the road popular music station. Among its 1950s-era staffers was character actor and Golden Globe nomineeAldo Ray, who worked there in 1956 during an extended break in his film career. A publicity photo of him taken at the station survives and is reproduced on a station tribute website.
In the 1960s, WNDR was the most popularTop 40 station in the Syracuse area. The studio and 5,000-watt transmitter were located on Andrews Road inDeWitt, a Syracuse suburb. During the station's heyday, personalities who would later achieve success in major markets includingBud Ballou,Peter Cavanaugh,Bob Shannon,Joey Reynolds, and—for a very brief time in a rare excursion outsideBuffalo—Danny Neaverth. In the 1980s, it switched tocountry music. But over time, FM radio became more popular for music listening and WNDR saw its ratings decline.
It adopted the call sign WNSS in 1996.[4] It tried airing anall-news format under the branding of "W-News".[5] It used reports fromCBS Radio News andAP Radio, along with a local reporting staff.
In 2000, it made an ill-fated change to an all-comedy radio, using a national comedy radio service. But that did not last long.
Later in 2000, it flipped toSports radio. At first, WNSS was mostly a satellite feed from theESPN Radio network, including ESPN'sMLB andNBA broadcasts. During most of this period, WNSS was the flagship station ofSyracuse UniversityOrange football along withsister stationWAQX, untilWTKW acquired the rights in 2007. The station was also the home of theSyracuse Chiefs from 2010 to 2012, theSyracuse Crunch from 2010 to 2013,[citation needed] and theBuffalo Bills Radio Network until its parent company dropped Bills broadcasts across all of its stations after the 2011 season.[6]
Effective March 2010, ESPN Radio was dropped from WNSS, replaced withCBS Sports Radio. ESPN Radio began airing onWTLA andWSGO.[7] Thenationally syndicatedImus in the Morning show became WNSS's new morning program, migrating from 620WHEN.[8][9] WNSS also rebranded as "The Score 1260", switched its network affiliation toSporting News Radio, and increased its emphasis on local sports.[9] The station also changed its callsign to WSKO to reflect this.
Former local programs include:On the Block with Brent Axe, 2-6pm. heard on WHEN until early 2009. Axe's program was unaffected by the station's March 2010 programming changes, with the exception of an expansion by one hour.The Danny Parkins Show, hosted byDanny Parkins was added for the 12noon-2pm weekday shift on June 1, 2010.[10]
In March 2011, Parkins left WSKO to take a job at KCSP 610 Sports Radio in Kansas City.Midday with Mike Lindsley took over the midday slot on WSKO noon-2pm until the end of 2012. At that point, the show becameThe Afternoon Drive after the departure of Brent Axe. In late March 2013, Lindsley left WSKO to take a job at WTMM 104.5 The Team in Albany, New York.
In June 2025, mid-morning hosts Jim Lerch and Paul Esden, Jr., known asThe Manchild Show with Boy Green, announced that their show was ending on WSKO and would resume online; they can be seen and heard on the "MCShowDigital" channel onYouTube.[11]
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43°01′32″N76°03′55″W / 43.02556°N 76.06528°W /43.02556; -76.06528
