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| Broadcast area | |
| Frequency | 99.3MHz |
| Branding | 99 Rock WFRD |
| Programming | |
| Format | Mainstream rock |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | Sugar River Media, LLC |
| History | |
First air date | February 19, 1976; 49 years ago (1976-02-19) |
Call sign meaning | "FM RadioDartmouth" |
| Technical information[1] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 68281 |
| Class | A |
| ERP | 6,000watts |
| HAAT | 100 meters (330 ft) |
Transmitter coordinates | 43°39′14.3″N72°17′42.5″W / 43.653972°N 72.295139°W /43.653972; -72.295139 |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
| Webcast |
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| Website | wfrd |
WFRD (99.3MHz "99 Rock") is acommercialFMradio station licensed toHanover, New Hampshire, and owned and operated by Sugar River Media. The station's studios are located inRandolph, Vermont.[2] WFRD airs amainstream rockradio format with somealternative rock andclassic rock tracks. Previously, it was owned and operated byDartmouth Broadcasting from a studio on theDartmouth College campus.
In addition to a standardanalog transmission, WFRD is available online.
The station'splaylist on weekdays is mostlymainstream rock, plusalternative rock andclassic rock titles. Weekday mornings feature Chris Garrett and the "Rock N Go Morning Show".
WFRD's history goes back more than four decades. On February 19, 1976, WFRD firstsigned on the air.[3] It originally broadcast a wide variety of music, fromclassical,jazz,folk music toprogressive rock,punk rock andnew wave music.[4] Thecall letters stand for "FM Radio Dartmouth", referring to Dartmouth College. There was a lengthy debate over whether to choose WDCR-FM to link the FM station with its former AM companion, 1340WDCR (now defunct), or to give the new FM station an independent identity. Among the arguments for an independent identity was the possibility of selling the AM station once FM became the more popular broadcast band.
Around 2001, WFRD began playing amodern rock format, although by the 2010s, WFRD began including other genres of current rock.
As of2014, the station left theNielsen BDS Alternative Rock indicator panel and was added to the Nielsen BDS Mainstream Rock indicator panel.
In June 2021, Dartmouth Broadcasting announced plans to sell the station, citing ongoing unprofitability and low student involvement in its operations as deciding factors. The online station WDCR and Dartmouth Broadcasting itself were not part of the planned sale.[5] On October 13, 2021, Sugar River Media, owner of several other stations in the Lebanon-Hanover-White River Junction area (includingWNTK-FM andWUVR), announced its acquisition of WFRD.[6]
Brooks, Tim,College Radio Days: 70 Years of Student Broadcasting at Dartmouth College, Greenwich CT: Glenville Press, 2014.
