 | |
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|---|---|
| Broadcast area | Providence metropolitan area |
| Frequency | 790kHz |
| Branding | 790 The Score |
| Programming | |
| Format | Sportsbetting |
| Affiliations | |
| Ownership | |
| Owner |
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| History | |
First air date | June 2, 1922; 103 years ago (1922-06-02)[1] |
Former call signs |
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Call sign meaning | Providence |
| Technical information[2] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 64840 |
| Class | B |
| Power | 5,000 watts |
Transmitter coordinates | 41°50′3.36″N71°21′54.2″W / 41.8342667°N 71.365056°W /41.8342667; -71.365056 |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
| Webcast | Listen live |
| Website | www |
WPRV (790AM, "The Score") is acommercial radio station inProvidence, Rhode Island. The station is owned byCumulus Media, and airs asports radio format, largely focused onsports betting. Its studios are on Wampanoag Trail inEast Providence. Established in 1922 as WEAN, the station is the oldest surviving radio station inRhode Island.
WPRV's power is 5,000 watts. The station operatesnon-directional by day; at night, to protect other stations on790 AM from interference, it uses adirectional antenna with a two-tower array. WPRV'stransmitter is off King Phillip Road in East Providence, near theSeekonk River.
Most of WPRV's programming issyndicated from theInfinity Sports Network andBetMGM Network. It also features a local afternoon program hosted by Kevin McNamara.[3][4]
The station serves as the Providenceaffiliate for theNew York Yankees Radio Network and theBoston Celtics Radio Network. It also carriesBrown Universityfootball andmen's basketball.
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On December 1, 1921, the U.S. Department of Commerce, in charge of radio at the time, adopted a regulation formally establishing a broadcasting station category, which set aside the wavelength of 360 meters (833 kHz) for entertainment broadcasts, and 485 meters (619 kHz) for farm market and weather reports.[6] The Shepard Company Department Store in Providence was selling radio receivers and sought to have a station for its customers to listen to.
On June 2, 1922, the Shepard Company application was granted. The new station was issued thecall sign WEAN, and a telegram was sent authorizing immediate operation.[5] However, the station's license was not issued until June 5.[7][8] The call letters were randomly assigned from a sequential roster of available call signs, and the station initially transmitted on the shared 360-meter "entertainment" wavelength. On June 2 and 3, Providence held a "Block-Aid" fund-raising street festival, benefiting the Rhode Island Hospital.[9] The "radio editor" of theProvidence News arranged for the new station to broadcast musical selections in support of this event.[10]
WEAN was the second licensed Rhode Island broadcasting station, and is the oldest surviving one.[11] Throughout the 1920s, the U.S. government struggled to maintain an equitable assignment policy. During this period WEAN was reassigned to multiple transmitting frequencies, until on November 11, 1928, as a result of a major national reallocation implemented under theFederal Radio Commission'sGeneral Order 40, it moved to 550 kHz.[12] However, this was changed the next year to 780 kHz.[13]
A 1924 fire at the Shepard store destroyed the transmitter, and in 1928 the station moved to the Biltmore Hotel.[14] WEAN's studios were later in the Crown Hotel in Providence.[15]
Starting in 1927, WEAN received programming from Bostonsister station WNAC, the forerunner toWBIX (1260 AM) andWRKO (680 AM). This formed the cornerstone of theYankee Network, a regional radio service feeding newscasts and other programs throughout the region.[14] In the 1940s and 1950s, WEAN was a network affiliate of theMutual Broadcasting System, carrying its dramas, comedies, variety shows, news and sports.
On March 29, 1941, under the provisions of theNorth American Regional Broadcasting Agreement (NARBA), stations on 780 kHz, including WEAN, moved to 790 kHz, which has been the station's assignment ever since.[16] The Shepard family announced the sale of the Yankee Network, including WEAN, toGeneral Tire & Rubber in December 1942.[17] The transaction was approved the following month.[18] In August 1954,General Teleradio announced it would sell WEAN to theProvidence Journal-Bulletin newspaper, which already ownedWPJB (1420 AM) andWPJB-FM (105.1);[19] upon assuming control on October 9, theJournal-Bulletin shut down WPJB (AM), with WEAN inheriting itsABC affiliation (while retaining the Mutual and Yankee Network affiliations) and WPJB-FM continuing in operation as WEAN's "fine music" sister station.[20] By the 1960s, WEAN was afull service,middle-of-the-road outlet, with popular music, news and sports. It transitioned toadult contemporary music by the 1970s.
From 1975 to 1977, WEAN was an affiliate ofNBC's short-lived "News And Information Service", or "NIS", a 24-hourall-news radio network and branded "All News 79 WEAN". When NIS folded in 1977, WEAN continued as an all-news station with its own staff of anchors and reporters. Affiliation switched toCBS, and while the station carried a considerable amount of CBS news content, most news originated locally, with a local staff that numbered as high as 22 members (not all full-time, but all working for the news department.)
WEAN continued as an all-news station ("Newsradio 79 WEAN"), morphing in the early 1980s into all-news much of the day, but with local talk in certain dayparts and syndicated late-night talk. It continued as such, branded "Newstalk 79 WEAN" until shortly after theJournal-Bulletin sold it on April 1, 1985.
After ownership changes, WEAN changed call signs to WWAZ, with classical music, followed byoldies, thenadult standards under the call sign WLKW. (Beginning in 2008 the historic WEAN call letters were assigned to co-owned 99.7WEAN-FM). WLKW switched formats and call signs on November 17, 1997, tosports radio as WSKO ("The Score"), airing local and national sports shows (includingESPN Radio programs), with most programs simulcast with WSKO-FM (which was replaced by WEAN-FM, a simulcast ofWPRO). The sports format was discontinued on March 10, 2008. Hosts over the years included John "Coach" Colletto,Andy Gresh, Scott Cordischi, John Rooke, Steve Hyder, Jess Atkinson, Amy Lawrence,Scott Zolak, John Crowe, and Bryan Morry.
After dropping sports, the station took on the call sign WPRV, as well as an oldies format, largely provided byScott Shannon'sThe True Oldies Channel fromABC Radio.[21]
The oldies format was discontinued on April 13, 2009. WPRV moved to abusiness news and talk format, including shows fromBloomberg Radio; much of the business programming would eventually be scaled back and replaced with national talk shows.
Because sister stations WPRO and WEAN-FM mostly air local talk hosts, WPRV served as the Providence outlet for many of co-ownedWestwood One'ssyndicatedconservative talk shows. WPRV was the Providence affiliate forFirst Light,America in the Morning,The Chris Plante Show,The Dave Ramsey Show,The Mark Levin Show,The Dan Bongino Show,The Ben Shapiro Show,The Michael Knowles Show andRed Eye Radio. Weekends featured shows on money and health, includingRic Edelman, as well as repeats of weekday programs.
On June 15, 2022, Cumulus announced that WPRV would change its format back to sports, again using the "790 The Score" branding;[3][4] the relaunch occurred at midnight on August 8.[3][22] The revived "Score" primarily features programming from theCBS Sports Radio andBetQL networks, along with a local afternoon program hosted by Kevin McNamara (with its second hour serving as a simulcast with his existing program on WPRO and WEAN-FM) and WPRV's existing New York Yankees, Boston Celtics, and Brown University broadcasts.[3][4]