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| Frequency | 1370kHz |
| Branding | WXXI News |
| Programming | |
| Format | Public radio (news,talk, information) |
| Affiliations | |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | WXXI Public Broadcasting Council |
| History | |
First air date | October 27, 1936 (1936-10-27) |
Former call signs |
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Former frequencies |
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Call sign meaning | derived from WXXI-TV ("XXI" is theRoman numeral for 21, WXXI-TV's channel number) |
| Technical information[1] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 74220 |
| Class | B |
| Power | 5,000 watts |
Transmitter coordinates | 43°06′01″N77°34′23″W / 43.10028°N 77.57306°W /43.10028; -77.57306 |
| Repeaters | |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
| Website | WXXI.org |
WXXI (1370kHz) is anon-commercialAMradio station inRochester, New York. It broadcasts news, talk and informational programming as a member station ofNational Public Radio (NPR). WXXI, along withWXXI-FM (105.9),WXXO (91.5 FM), andWXXI-TV (channel 21), are owned by theWXXI Public Broadcasting Council. Thestudios and offices are on State Street in Rochester at the WXXI Public Broadcasting Center. WXXI holds periodic on-airfundraisers to support the station.
WXXI is powered at 5,000watts from a singlenon-directional antenna by day. At night, to protect other stations on1370 AM from interference, it uses adirectional antenna with a four-tower array that concentrates the signal in Rochester and its inner suburbs. Thetransmitter is on French Road inBrighton.[2] Programming is also heard on WXXI-FM and on anHD Radiodigital subchannel of WXXO.
Most of WXXI's weekday programming comes from NPR, along with local newscasts. NPR shows includeMorning Edition,All Things Considered,Fresh Air,1A,Marketplace andHere and Now. Weekdays at noon and repeated at 9 p.m., a local two-hour interview and call-in show is heard,Connections with Evan Dawson. TheBBC World Service airs overnight.
On weekends, shows from NPR are heard along with local newscasts. Programs includeWait, Wait, Don't Tell Me, It's Been A Minute,On The Media,Hidden Brain,TED Radio Hour,Radio Lab,Latino USA, Travel withRick Steves,The Splendid Table,Milk Street Radio andThe New Yorker Radio Hour. WXXI has won numerous local, state and national awards for its programs, newscasts and investigative reporting.
The stationsigned on the air on October 27, 1936, as WSAY. It was a facility founded and built by Gordon P. Brown as a small local area station with a 250 watt signal on 1210 kHz. As a result of theNorth American Regional Broadcasting Agreement (NARBA), it moved to 1240 kHz in 1941. In the pre-war era WSAY became best known as the home of local music programs at a time when its network-affiliated competitors were airing a mix of local news and sports with national drama, comedy and music/variety shows supplied by the NBC and CBS networks. WSAY also was the first station to hire an African-American announcer for a regular shift.
FollowingWorld War II, WSAY received FCC permission to improve its signal by moving to the regional 1370 kHz frequency. It relocated its transmitter from a downtown Rochester building with rooftop antenna to a modern four-tower plant in suburban Brighton. It increased power first to 1,000 watts and shortly afterward to 5,000 watts full-time. Over the next three decades, WSAY operated under a number of formats, fromadult standards toTop 40 toProgressive Rock toCountry music.
Gordon Brown owned WSAY until his death in 1979. His estate sold it to futureCumulus Media CEO Lew Dickey and his family.
The Dickey family operated 1370 AM from 1980 to 1984. It also tried a variety of formats from personalityadult contemporary to country totalk radio. In 1982, thecall sign was switched to WRTK.
The license and facility was sold to the WXXI Public Broadcasting Council in early 1984. It briefly was takendark as it prepared for a new format. In the summer 1984, it relaunched as WXXI (AM) with a round-the-clock noncommercial schedule of news, talk and public affairs. While the AM station focused on spoken-word programming, itssister station, WXXI-FM (91.5) was able to offer a full schedule ofclassical music.
On January 10, 2014, WXXI began simulcasting on FM translator W266CL. It originally was heard on 101.1 MHz. It moved to 107.5 FM on October 4, 2016, and the call sign was changed to W298CH.[3] In August 2023, WXXI entered into an agreement to sell W298CH to the Ibero-American Action League, owners ofWEPL-LP who used it to boost WEPL's reach in the market.[4]
On October 7, 2022, WXXI announced its purchase of the license of WJZR (105.9 FM).[5] WXXI announced its intention to relaunch 105.9 under a new call sign with a simulcast of WXXI (AM)'s public radio programming;[6] the newWXXI-FM went on the air May 24, 2023.[7]