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WBNS (AM)

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WBNS
1460ESPN-2011.png
Broadcast areaColumbus, Ohio
Frequency1460 kHz
Branding1460 ESPN Columbus
Programming
FormatSports radio
AffiliationsESPN Radio
Ohio State Sports Network
Ownership
Owner
WBNS-FM, WBNS-TV
History
First air date
1922 (1922)
Former call signs
WCAH (1922–1934)
Call sign meaning
"Wolfe Bank Newspaper and Shoes"
Technical information
Facility ID54901
ClassB
Power5,000 watts day
1,000 watts night
Transmitter coordinates
39°57′06″N 82°54′23″W / 39.95167°N 82.90639°W / 39.95167; -82.90639
Repeater(s)97.1 WBNS-HD2 (Columbus)
Links
Websitewww.971thefan.com

WBNS (1460 kHz) — branded 1460 ESPN Columbus — is a commercial AM radio station in Columbus, Ohio. The station currently broadcasts a sports talk format and carries ESPN Radio programming. It is owned by Tegna Inc., along with WBNS-FM (97.1 MHz.) and WBNS-TV (channel 10). The three stations' studios and offices are located on Twin Rivers Drive, near Downtown Columbus; WBNS (AM)'s transmitter tower is located in East Columbus.

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Hertz

Hertz

The hertz is the unit of frequency in the International System of Units (SI), equivalent to one event per second. The hertz is an SI derived unit whose expression in terms of SI base units is s−1, meaning that one hertz is the reciprocal of one second. It is named after Heinrich Rudolf Hertz (1857–1894), the first person to provide conclusive proof of the existence of electromagnetic waves. Hertz are commonly expressed in multiples: kilohertz (kHz), megahertz (MHz), gigahertz (GHz), terahertz (THz).

Columbus, Ohio

Columbus, Ohio

Columbus is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the 14th-most populous city in the U.S., the second-most populous city in the Midwest after Chicago, and the third-most populous U.S. state capital. Columbus is the county seat of Franklin County; it also extends into Delaware and Fairfield counties. It is the core city of the Columbus metropolitan area, which encompasses 10 counties in central Ohio. It had a population of 2,138,926 in 2020, making it the largest metropolitan entirely in Ohio and 32nd-largest city in the U.S.

ESPN Radio

ESPN Radio

ESPN Radio, which is alternatively branded platform-agnostically as ESPN Audio, is an American sports radio network and extension of the ESPN television network. It was launched on January 1, 1992, under the banner "SportsRadio ESPN". The network is based at the ESPN campus in Bristol, Connecticut, with multiple studio facilities nationwide, along with home studios. The network airs a regular schedule of daily and weekly programming as well as live radio play-by-play of sporting events.

Tegna Inc.

Tegna Inc.

Tegna Inc. is an American publicly traded broadcast, digital media and marketing services company headquartered in Tysons Corner, Virginia. It was created on June 29, 2015, when the Gannett Company split into two publicly traded companies. Tegna comprised the more profitable broadcast television and digital media divisions of the old Gannett, while Gannett's publishing interests were spun off as a "new" company that retained the Gannett name. Tegna owns or operates 66 television stations in 54 markets, and holds properties in digital media.

WBNS-FM

WBNS-FM

WBNS-FM – branded 97.1 The Fan – is a commercial sports radio station licensed to serve Columbus, Ohio, and services the Columbus metropolitan area. Owned by Tegna Inc., it and WBNS are the only two radio stations currently owned by Tegna; the studios for both stations are co-located with WBNS-TV on Twin Rivers Drive west of Downtown Columbus, adjacent to WBNS-FM's transmitter tower.

WBNS-TV

WBNS-TV

WBNS-TV is a television station in Columbus, Ohio, United States, affiliated with CBS. It is owned by Tegna Inc. alongside the company's sole radio properties, WBNS and WBNS-FM (97.1). The stations share studios on Twin Rivers Drive west of Downtown Columbus, where WBNS-TV's transmitter is also located.

Overview

Blaw-Knox diamond tower used by the station
Blaw-Knox diamond tower used by the station

The station was first authorized, as WCAH, on May 13, 1922, and was originally owned by the Entrekin Electric Company of Columbus.[1] The Wolfe family, owners of The Columbus Dispatch, bought the station in 1929 and in January 1934 changed the calls to the present WBNS–[2] the call letters stand for "Wolfe Bank, Newspaper and Shoes"—the businesses controlled by the Wolfe family. (The WBNS stations maintained common ownership with the Dispatch until 2015, when the Wolfes sold the newspaper and related assets to New Media Investment Group.) WBNS was the longtime Columbus affiliate of the CBS Radio Network, and in the present-day serves as the AM flagship of the Ohio State Sports Network.[3]

After various formats over the decades, including full service, Top 40, and MOR, in 2009 WBNS began simulcasting with WBNS-FM, which had previously aired an adult contemporary format. This was intended to improve the nighttime coverage for the station's longtime sports talk format, as well as Buckeyes football and basketball. The AM station must reduce its power to 1,000 watts at night, resulting in reduced coverage outside of Columbus itself. However, the FM station was branded as the main station, under the moniker "97.1 The Fan."

In 2011, the simulcast ended. The AM station began offering additional ESPN network programming and announced plans to create original local content such as an MMA show called "Ground & Pound", as well as a coach's show for the local MLS team, the Columbus Crew. On January 5, 2012 it was announced that the station would carry Cleveland Indians broadcasts in Columbus for the 2012 season, marking the return of the Indians after their absence from the Columbus market for the 2011 season.[4]

WBNS is one of five stations remaining in the U.S. to broadcast using a Blaw-Knox tower that employed a distinctive diamond-shaped cantilever design.

On June 11, 2019, Dispatch announced it was selling its broadcasting assets, including the WBNS stations, to Tegna Inc. for $535 million in cash. The sale was completed on August 8.[5]

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The Columbus Dispatch

The Columbus Dispatch

The Columbus Dispatch is a daily newspaper based in Columbus, Ohio. Its first issue was published on July 1, 1871, and it has been the only mainstream daily newspaper in the city since The Columbus Citizen-Journal ceased publication in 1985.

Ohio State Sports Network

Ohio State Sports Network

The Ohio State Sports Network from Learfield is an American radio network consisting of 62 radio stations which carry coverage of Ohio State Buckeyes football and men's basketball. Co-owned WBNS and WBNS-FM, both licensed to Columbus, Ohio, serve as the network's 2 flagship stations. The network also includes 60 affiliates in the U.S. states of Ohio and West Virginia: 33 AM stations, 22 of which extend their signals with low-power FM translators; 26 full-power FM stations; and one HD Radio digital subchannel which supplements its signal with a low-power FM translator. Paul Keels has served as play-by-play announcer for both football and men's basketball since 1998; former Ohio State offensive guard Jim Lachey currently serves as color analyst for football; and former Ohio State point guard Ron Stokes currently serves as color analyst for men's basketball.

Full-service radio

Full-service radio

Full service is a type of radio format; the format is characterized by a mix of music programming and a large amount of locally-produced and hyperlocal programming, such as news and discussion focusing on local issues, sports coverage, and other forms of paid religious and brokered content.

Top 40

Top 40

In the music industry, the Top 40 is the current, 40 most-popular songs in a particular genre. It is the best-selling or most frequently broadcast popular music. Record charts have traditionally consisted of a total of 40 songs. "Top 40" or "contemporary hit radio" is also a radio format. Frequent variants of the Top 40 are the Top 10, Top 20, Top 30, Top 50, Top 75, Top 100 and Top 200.

Middle of the road (music)

Middle of the road (music)

Middle of the road is a commercial radio format and popular music genre. Music associated with this term is strongly melodic and uses techniques of vocal harmony and light orchestral arrangements. The format was eventually rebranded as soft adult contemporary.

Columbus Crew

Columbus Crew

The Columbus Crew is an American professional soccer club based in Columbus, Ohio. The Crew competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference and began play in 1996 as one of the 10 charter clubs of the league. The team is currently operated by an ownership group led by the Haslam family and former team physician Pete Edwards. The Haslam/Edwards group is the third ownership group in club history.

Blaw-Knox tower

Blaw-Knox tower

The Blaw-Knox company was an American manufacturer of steel structures and construction equipment based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The company is today best known for its radio towers, most of which were constructed during the 1930s in the United States. Although Blaw-Knox built many kinds of towers, the term Blaw-Knox tower usually refers to the company's unusual "diamond cantilever" design, which is stabilized by guy wires attached only at the vertical center of the mast, where its cross-section is widest. During the 1930s AM radio broadcasting stations adopted single mast radiator antennas, and the Blaw-Knox design was the first type used. A 1942 advertisement claims that 70% of all radio towers in the United States at the time were built by Blaw-Knox.

Tegna Inc.

Tegna Inc.

Tegna Inc. is an American publicly traded broadcast, digital media and marketing services company headquartered in Tysons Corner, Virginia. It was created on June 29, 2015, when the Gannett Company split into two publicly traded companies. Tegna comprised the more profitable broadcast television and digital media divisions of the old Gannett, while Gannett's publishing interests were spun off as a "new" company that retained the Gannett name. Tegna owns or operates 66 television stations in 54 markets, and holds properties in digital media.

Source: "WBNS (AM)", Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, (2023, January 1st), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WBNS_(AM).

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