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| Broadcast area | Portland, Maine, metropolitan area |
| Frequency | 1490kHz |
| Branding | The Bay 107.1/93.5 |
| Programming | |
| Format | Soft adult contemporary |
| Ownership | |
| Owner |
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| WCLZ,WGAN,WMGX,WPOR,WYNZ,WZAN | |
| History | |
First air date | March 1946 (1946-03) (as WMTW) |
Former call signs |
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Call sign meaning | Sounds like "bay" (station branding) |
| Technical information[1] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 49983 |
| Class | C |
| Power | 1,000watts |
Transmitter coordinates | 43°39′48.29″N70°16′15.18″W / 43.6634139°N 70.2708833°W /43.6634139; -70.2708833 |
| Translator | 107.1 W296CZ (Portland) |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
| Webcast | Listen live |
| Website | bayfavorites |
| Simulcast | |
| WVAE | |
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| Broadcast area | York County, Maine |
| Frequency | 1400kHz |
| Ownership | |
| Owner |
|
| History | |
Former call signs |
|
Call sign meaning | Disambiguation of WBAE |
| Technical information[2] | |
| Facility ID | 73088 |
| Class | C |
| Power | 1,000watts |
Transmitter coordinates | 43°28′54.3″N70°29′9.19″W / 43.481750°N 70.4858861°W /43.481750; -70.4858861 (WVAE) |
| Translator | 93.5 W228EE (Biddeford) |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
WBAE (1490kHz, "The Bay 107.1/93.5") is a commercialAMradio stationlicensed toPortland, Maine. Owned by Saga Communications, it broadcasts asoft adult contemporary format. Its studios and offices are located on Western Avenue inSouth Portland, and itstransmitter is off Forest Avenue in Portland. The Bay primarily features music from soft rock artists and music of the 1970s and 80s, with a few newer titles mixed in.
WBAE can also be heard in the Portland area on itsFMtranslator,W296CZ 107.1MHz.[3] The station is simulcast inYork County, Maine on 1400WVAE inBiddeford, Maine, which has its own FM translator,W228EE 93.5; the station's current branding is derived from these FM feeds.
WBAE was first licensed in 1946 as WMTW, broadcasting on 1490 kHz and licensed to TheYankee Network, Inc. The WMTW call sign was transferred from the originalWMTW, an FM station which changed its call letters to WMNE at this time.
On August 1, 1951, WMTW changed call letters to WPOR. For much of its history, it was associated withcountry music, and whensister stationWPOR-FM debuted in October 1967, the two stations were the primary source of country music in the Portland radio market. The AM and FM stations were mostlysimulcast, although for a time, WPOR aired a satellite-delivered syndicated country music format while WPOR-FM featured local announcers and locally programmed country music.
In 1999, WPOR switched its call letters to WBAE. Its original format wasadult standards, initially provided by theMusic of Your Life network, and laterDial Global's Adult Standards (America's Best Music) service. WBAE was later simulcast with WVAE inBiddeford to give listeners inYork County, Maine a better signal. WBAE and WVAE had an affiliation withABC News Radio, and were the local outlets forPaul Harvey,Portland Pirates and thePortland Sea Dogs. (The Sea Dogs have moved to WPEI and WPPI; Paul Harvey died in 2009, and the Pirates have since moved toWLOB).
The stations adopted ahot talk format, dropping adult standards on March 4, 2009. Hot talk had been heard on co-ownedWZAN before that station shifted to a political talk format. Hot talk later was replaced with an advice-oriented talk format on January 18, 2010.[4]
The advice-talk programming included the syndicated morning showBob and Tom fromIndianapolis, syndicated family finance shows fromClark Howard andDave Ramsey, psychological advice fromThe Dr. Laura Program andDr. Joy Browne, as well asLoveline,NASCAR racing from theMotor Racing Network, andNFL football fromWestwood One.
On September 15, 2009, it was announced that WBAE and WVAE would begin to broadcast theBoston Bruins. On January 16, 2012, it was announced that WBAE and WVAE would begin to broadcast theNew York Yankees.[5]
In February 2013, WVAE split from its simulcast with WBAE, and began simulcasting the news-talk programming of co-ownedWGAN, to help WGAN better cover York County. WVAE took on the call letters WGIN to echo its originating station.[6]
After four years under the talk format, WBAE flipped back to an Adult Standards format under its original1490 The Bay branding on October 21, 2013, utilizing programming from Westwood One’s Adult Standards network, "America's Best Music." Dave Ramsey and Clark Howard moved to WZAN. Dr. Joy Browne was heard onWTSN in nearbyDover, New Hampshire (Browne died in 2016). Artists heard on WBAE includedThe Beatles,The Carpenters,Frank Sinatra andDionne Warwick.
On December 16, 2015, WBAE began simulcastingWZAN's talk format. WZAN's talk programming moved exclusively to WBAE on January 1, 2016, with WZAN becoming asports radio station carryingESPN Radio programming. In May 2016, WBAE began simulcasting on FM translator 107.1 W296CZ.
On May 7, 2018, WBAE and WVAE flipped tosoft adult contemporary, once again under the brandingThe Bay. WVAE is simulcast on a second FM translator in Biddeford, W228EE (93.5), which concurrently launched with the flip.[7]
| Call sign | Frequency | City of license | FID | ERP (W) | Class | Transmitter coordinates | FCC info | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W296CZ | 107.1FM | Portland, Maine | 145635 | 250 | D | 43°41′17.3″N70°15′25.2″W / 43.688139°N 70.257000°W /43.688139; -70.257000 (W296CZ) | LMS | Relays WBAE |
| W228EE | 93.5FM | Biddeford, Maine | 200011 | 250 | D | 43°32′38.3″N70°24′14.2″W / 43.543972°N 70.403944°W /43.543972; -70.403944 (W228EE) | LMS | Relays WVAE |