| |
|---|---|
| Broadcast area | Portland, Maine |
| Frequency | 106.7MHz |
| Branding | Relevant Radio |
| Programming | |
| Format | Catholictalk |
| Network | Relevant Radio |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | Relevant Radio, Inc. |
| History | |
First air date | 1996 (1996) |
Former call signs |
|
Call sign meaning | "The Presence" (former branding) |
| Technical information[1] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 59534 |
| Class | A |
| ERP | 810watts |
| HAAT | 190 meters (620 ft) |
Transmitter coordinates | 43°51′6.3″N70°19′38.2″W / 43.851750°N 70.327278°W /43.851750; -70.327278 |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
| Webcast | Listen live |
| Website | relevantradio |
WXTP (106.7FM) is aCatholictalk radio station licensed toNorth Windham, Maine, serving thePortland area from studios inFreeport. The station is an affiliate ofRelevant Radio and is owned by Relevant Radio, Inc.
The station signed on in 1996 as WVYH,[2] and featured anadult standards format known as "The Jewel". The station was simulcast on sister stations WLAM (870 AM; nowWLVP) inGorham and WZOU (1470 AM) inLewiston. A few months after signing on, the station became WLAM-FM to match the Gorham station.[3] Portland radio legend Bud Sawyer was one of WLAM's morning hosts.
Original owner Wireless Talking Machine Company sold its stations to Harron Communications in late 1999.[4] Harron also ownedWMTW-TV, and in May 2001, the station's format changed tonews/talk. The call letters of WLAM-FM became WMTW-FM, with WLAM becoming WMTW, and WZOU picking up theWLAM call letters and format for several months before reverting to a simulcast of WMTW-FM. The new station was initially known as "News/Talk WMTW"; however, soon after 1470 rejoined the simulcast,talk programming was removed from the stations in favor of anall-news format, mainly from theAssociated Press's All-News Radio service.[5] At that point, the station was rebranded to "Newsradio WMTW".
Despite advertising campaigns on WMTW-TV, the all-news format on WMTW-FM suffered low ratings. In late 2003, Harron sold its radio stations toNassau Broadcasting. Shortly afterward, Nassau acquired Mariner Broadcasting. It became evident that changes were in the works for the Portland market.
In April 2004, "Newsradio WMTW" was discontinued. Nassau also introduced three separate formats to the stations,[6] with WMTW-FM gaining a new simulcast partner inYork County's WQEZ (104.7 FM), and both stations relaunched asclassic rock-formatted "104.7/106.7 The Bone". WMTW-FM became WHXR, with WQEZ becoming WHXQ. The station attempted to go head-to-head with existing classic rock stationWBLM, and addedThe Howard Stern Show during the mornings.
However, with Stern's decision to leaveterrestrial radio, WHXR/WHXQ's mornings were put in disarray. Finally, in March 2006, WHXR/WHXQ added the Michigan-basedThe Free Beer and Hot Wings Show.Free Beer and Hot Wings would become one of the highest rated morning shows in the market in their target male demos, far exceeding Stern's ratings. During summer 2006, WHXR/WHXQ expanded their playlist to become anactive rock station.
WHXR and WHXQ had planned to switch tosports talk provided byBoston'sWEEI in January 2008,[7] but the deal between Nassau and WEEI ownerEntercom ended up collapsing.[8]
On April 27, 2009, Nassau Broadcasting revealed to employees that WHXR would be placed in trust and divested due to a change in the corporate structure of the company. The change ended Nassau's grandfathered status regarding how many stations in the Portland market it could own. WHXQ, by then relocated to 106.3 in a frequency swap withWBQW, remained owned by the company and continued with the 'Bone' format. The simulcast continued until April 9, 2010, when WHXR began airing a loop redirecting listeners to WHXQ. The call letters were changed to WXTP on June 11, 2010,[9][10] in advance of the a sale to The Presence Radio Network; on July 7, the station relaunched as "The Presence", aCatholic talk station airing largelyEWTN programming.[11] The sale was completed on August 16, 2012.[12]
In 2018, The Presence Radio Network's stations were sold to Immaculate Heart Radio for $750,000, and on May 21, the stations became affiliates of Relevant Radio.[13][14]