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| Broadcast area | Greater Boston |
| Frequency | 950kHz |
| Branding | AM 950 WROL |
| Programming | |
| Language | English |
| Format | Christian radio |
| Affiliations | Salem Radio Network |
| Ownership | |
| Owner |
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| WEZE | |
| History | |
| Founded | January 29, 1927 (1927-01-29)[1] |
First air date | October 8, 1950 (1950-10-08)[2] |
Former call signs |
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Former frequencies |
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Call sign meaning | Similar to formerWORL calls currently being used at its sister station in Orlando |
| Technical information[3] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 9139 |
| Class | D |
| Power |
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Transmitter coordinates | 42°26′9.35″N70°59′33.16″W / 42.4359306°N 70.9925444°W /42.4359306; -70.9925444 (WROL) |
| Translator | 100.3 W262CV (Boston) |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
| Webcast |
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| Website | wrolradio |
WROL (950AM) is a radio station inBoston, Massachusetts. The station is owned bySalem Media Group. Most of WROL's programming isreligious including local ministers as well as national radio hosts such as Dr.Charles Stanley,Jay Sekulow andEric Metaxas. FormerWBZ-TV news anchor-turned-ministerLiz Walker also has a program on the station. WROL also airs severalIrish music blocks on weekends, including theIrish Hit Parade on Saturdays andA Feast of Irish Music on Sundays.
WROL operates with 5,000 watts by day but must reduce power to 90 watts at night to protect other stations on 950 kHz. WROL uses a non-directionaltransmitter located off Route 107 in theRumney Marsh Reservation inSaugus, Massachusetts. WROL is one of two religiousformatted radio stations in the Bostonmedia market owned by Salem Communications;WEZE is the other.
WROL's history dates back to 1927[1] and WBSO, owned byBabson College. The station moved to Boston in 1935 after a sale and became WORL.[4] During the late 1930s, WORL was the first station in Boston to adopt a popular-music format ("The 920 Club", named after the station's former frequency; the title remained even after the move to 950 on March 29, 1941) with disc jockeys spinning the tunes. Although only a daytimer then, WORL built up a following as an entertaining alternative to the daytime programming elsewhere on the Boston radio dial.
The owners,Harold A. Lafount and two others (operating for the interests of Arde Bulova) became embroiled in a long-running dispute with theFCC for having filed false reports regarding ownership and financial structure, and in 1947 their license renewal was rejected.[5][6][7] After an appeals process that went to theU.S. Supreme Court, the rejection was upheld.[6] The station, which had stayed on the air via temporary licenses,[7] went off the air on May 30, 1949.[8]
Pilgrim Broadcasting purchased the license and returned the station to the air in October 1950.[9][4] Later sales led to the station becoming WRYT, withWORL being taken by a station nearOrlando, Florida.Carter Broadcasting took over in 1977, and after failing to be able to return the WORL call letters to Boston, settled on WROL. Carter immediately established areligious network with WROL as its flagship, with relays throughoutNew England. While mostly religious, WROL featured two popular programs during the 1970s and 1980s, a weekday cooking show with longtime Boston radio/TV personality Gus Saunders, and a Saturday block of Irish music featuring John Latchford, and later Paul Sullivan, which remains extremely popular among the region's large Irish-American population. In April 2025, Paul Sullivan celebrated his 43rd year as host of theIrish Hit Parade, one of the longest continuous tenures in Boston radio history. In recent years, WROL has expanded Irish music to Sunday afternoons as well.
In 2001, as part of Carter Broadcasting dismantling its network and focusing its attention toWCRN inWorcester, the station was sold toSalem Communications.
The call letters WROL were previously assigned to an AM station in Knoxville, Tennessee.[10]
WROL-AM 620 in Knoxville, Tennessee in the early '40s employed a then-little-known news announcer who went on to country stardom:Tennessee Ernie Ford. WROL's complete 1,000 watt radio transmitter and wire-array antenna was hand built by the station Engineer Joseph Wofford. The original transmitter was later encased in a glass cabinet and placed in the lobby of the studio.
| Call sign | Frequency | City of license | FID | ERP (W) | Class | Transmitter coordinates | FCC info |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W262CV | 100.3 FM | Boston, Massachusetts | 145583 | 45 | D | 42°14′49.1″N71°2′53.5″W / 42.246972°N 71.048194°W /42.246972; -71.048194 (W262CV) | LMS |