WTRY-FM
Encyclopedia
WTRY-FM, or 98.3 WTRY, is an oldies
station licensed to Rotterdam, New York and serving New York's Capital District
and Mohawk Valley
. The station is owned by Clear Channel Communications
, and broadcasts at 6 kilowatts ERP
from a tower in between Altamont
and Duanesburg, New York
off U.S. Route 20.
Though the 98.3 frequency has only been on the air since 1987 and had an oldies
format since 1996, the format was a direct continuation of the oldies format (and the top 40 format from which it evolved) which was previously on 980 kHz, a streak that went back over 40 years. During November and December, the station switches to Christmas music
, with the normal oldies format remaining on its HD2 channel.
/rhythmic contemporary
format, however permit owner Dennis Jackson (now a noted community broadcaster in smaller communities throughout the Northeast) was forced to sell the station before it hit the air. Under new owners, another set of call letters (WERV) came and went before the frequency signed on as adult contemporary WNYJ in November 1987. Being a new frequency, completely satellite-fed, and going up against a surging WKLI-FM, the format was changed in late 1988 to oldies
as Cruisin' 98.3, still WNYJ.
in Cobleskill (which became WSHQ). WSHZ/WSHQ's adult contemporary format failed miserably, and in late September, 1990, the format was flipped back to oldies
, still as SHO-FM. A few days later, WGY-FM
flipped to oldies
as well, causing major problems for both WSHZ/WSHQ and WTRY-AM
.
with WSHZ in late 1991 and flipped 98.3 to a simulcast of 980. This arrangement proved successful, outlasting WGY-FM
which had flipped to a hot adult contemporary format in 1994, though by the end of that year the simulcast ended with 98.3 flipping to a 1970s music format, as WYSR Star 98.3.
on 980. After Clear Channel
purchased AMFM in 2000, the simulcast ended in September of that year, when 980 flipped to sports radio
as WOFX
.
On December 26, 2007, after its annual temporary Christmas format ended, WTRY surprised its listeners with a switch officially to Classic Hits, mainly playing songs from the '70s, and '80s with some '60's songs mixed in, under the My Music slogan. After playing Christmas music from November 1, 2010, the station reverted to oldies of the 60s and 70s as of December 27, 2010, in a similar style to sister stations KJR-FM
(Seattle
) and KLTH
(Portland, Oregon
). In early February 2011, WTRY continued to evolve towards a more traditional type of Oldies format, due to the format flip of nearby 96.7 WPTR, which changed formats from Contemporary Christian to Oldies, broadcasting with a superior signal to WTRY as well.
By November 2011, WPTR has switched formats to Christian talk as WDCD-FM, leaving WTRY and rimshot WVKZ
as the only oldies radio stations in the Capital Region.
digital radio
alongside the rest of Clear Channel's Albany stations. On August 17, 2006, WTRY-FM began airing an HD2 channel with a smooth jazz
format, which flipped to Cool Oldies with 50s and 60s hits in 2007 with the jazz format moving to WRVE
-HD2. As of 2011, with the main format reverting from classic hits to oldies, WTRY-FM's HD2 signal now airs an all-80s format.
Oldies
Oldies is a term commonly used to describe a radio format that concentrates on music from a period of about 15 to 55 years before the present day....
station licensed to Rotterdam, New York and serving New York's Capital District
Capital District
New York's Capital District, also known as the Capital Region, is a region in upstate New York that generally refers to the four counties surrounding Albany, the capital of the state: Albany County, Schenectady County, Rensselaer County, and Saratoga County...
and Mohawk Valley
Mohawk Valley
The Mohawk Valley region of the U.S. state of New York is the area surrounding the Mohawk River, sandwiched between the Adirondack Mountains and Catskill Mountains....
. The station is owned by Clear Channel Communications
Clear Channel Communications
Clear Channel Communications, Inc. is an American media conglomerate company headquartered in San Antonio, Texas. It was founded in 1972 by Lowry Mays and Red McCombs, and was taken private by Bain Capital LLC and Thomas H. Lee Partners LP in a leveraged buyout in 2008...
, and broadcasts at 6 kilowatts ERP
Effective radiated power
In radio telecommunications, effective radiated power or equivalent radiated power is a standardized theoretical measurement of radio frequency energy using the SI unit watts, and is determined by subtracting system losses and adding system gains...
from a tower in between Altamont
Altamont, Albany County, New York
Altamont is a village located in the town of Guilderland in Albany County, New York. The village is in the western part of the town. The population was 1,720 at the 2010 census. The name means "high mountain."- History :...
and Duanesburg, New York
Duanesburg, New York
Duanesburg is a town in Schenectady County, New York, USA. The population was 5,808 at the 2000 census. Duanesburg is named for James Duane, who held most of it as an original land grant. The town is in the western part of the county.-History:...
off U.S. Route 20.
Though the 98.3 frequency has only been on the air since 1987 and had an oldies
Oldies
Oldies is a term commonly used to describe a radio format that concentrates on music from a period of about 15 to 55 years before the present day....
format since 1996, the format was a direct continuation of the oldies format (and the top 40 format from which it evolved) which was previously on 980 kHz, a streak that went back over 40 years. During November and December, the station switches to Christmas music
Christmas music
Christmas music comprises a variety of genres of music normally performed or heard around the Christmas season, which tends to begin in the months leading up the actual holiday and end in the weeks shortly thereafter.-Early:...
, with the normal oldies format remaining on its HD2 channel.
Pre-launch and early formats
The first decade of the frequency's life was quite unstable, a testament of this can be seen even before the air. In its construction permit stage, 98.3 was to become WDNZ with an early danceDance radio
Dance radio is a format that consists of current and recent dance/electronic music.While the format is popular in Europe and Asia, it has yet to make an impact in North America, although there are several Top 40 and Rhythmic radio stations which include current Dance product in their playlists...
/rhythmic contemporary
Rhythmic Contemporary
Rhythmic contemporary, also known as rhythmic top 40, rhythmic contemporary hit radio or rhythmic crossover, is a music radio format that includes a mix of EDM, upbeat rhythmic pop, hip-hop and R&B hits. Rhythmic contemporary rarely uses rock music or country music in its airplay, but it may...
format, however permit owner Dennis Jackson (now a noted community broadcaster in smaller communities throughout the Northeast) was forced to sell the station before it hit the air. Under new owners, another set of call letters (WERV) came and went before the frequency signed on as adult contemporary WNYJ in November 1987. Being a new frequency, completely satellite-fed, and going up against a surging WKLI-FM, the format was changed in late 1988 to oldies
Oldies
Oldies is a term commonly used to describe a radio format that concentrates on music from a period of about 15 to 55 years before the present day....
as Cruisin' 98.3, still WNYJ.
98.3/103.5 SHO-FM
In mid 1989, WNYJ was sold and became adult Contemporary WSHZ SHO-FM, adding a simulcast on WACS-FMWQBK-FM
WQBK-FM and WQBJ are Active Rock music formatted radio stations licensed to Rensselaer, New York and Cobleskill, New York respectively, and serving New York's Capital District and Mohawk Valley. The stations are owned by Townsquare Media...
in Cobleskill (which became WSHQ). WSHZ/WSHQ's adult contemporary format failed miserably, and in late September, 1990, the format was flipped back to oldies
Oldies
Oldies is a term commonly used to describe a radio format that concentrates on music from a period of about 15 to 55 years before the present day....
, still as SHO-FM. A few days later, WGY-FM
WRVE
WRVE is a Hot Adult Contemporary radio station licensed to Schenectady, New York and serving the Capital District and Upper Hudson Valley of New York. It broadcasts at 99.5 FM at 14.5 kilowatts ERP from a transmitter in Guilderland, New York...
flipped to oldies
Oldies
Oldies is a term commonly used to describe a radio format that concentrates on music from a period of about 15 to 55 years before the present day....
as well, causing major problems for both WSHZ/WSHQ and WTRY-AM
WOFX (AM)
WOFX, known as Fox Sports 980, is an AM radio station broadcasting on 980 kHz licensed to Troy, New York. The station is owned by Clear Channel Communications and runs a sports radio format and is the Fox Sports Radio affiliate for the Capital District, Adirondacks, and...
.
First WTRY simulcast/Star 98.3
Looking for a boost, then-WTRY owner Liberty Broadcasting entered into a local marketing agreementLocal marketing agreement
In U.S. and Canadian broadcasting, a local marketing agreement is an agreement in which one company agrees to operate a radio or television station owned by another licensee...
with WSHZ in late 1991 and flipped 98.3 to a simulcast of 980. This arrangement proved successful, outlasting WGY-FM
WRVE
WRVE is a Hot Adult Contemporary radio station licensed to Schenectady, New York and serving the Capital District and Upper Hudson Valley of New York. It broadcasts at 99.5 FM at 14.5 kilowatts ERP from a transmitter in Guilderland, New York...
which had flipped to a hot adult contemporary format in 1994, though by the end of that year the simulcast ended with 98.3 flipping to a 1970s music format, as WYSR Star 98.3.
Second WTRY simulcast and move to FM
In August 1996, WYSR became an outright sister to WTRY when SFX Broadcasting (which bought Liberty earlier that year) bought WYSR from Jarad Broadcasting. Three months later, the simulcast was restored but with a couple wrinkles: 980 would be simulcasting 98.3 rather than vice versa and 98.3 obtained its own morning show as opposed to Imus in the MorningImus in the Morning
Imus in the Morning is an American radio show hosted by Don Imus on Cumulus Media Networks , and simulcast for television on Fox Business Network....
on 980. After Clear Channel
Clear channel
A clear-channel station is an AM band Radio station in North America that has the highest protection from interference from other stations, particularly concerning night-time skywave propagation. Usually known as class A stations since 1982, they are occasionally still referred to by their former...
purchased AMFM in 2000, the simulcast ended in September of that year, when 980 flipped to sports radio
Sports radio
Sports radio is a radio format devoted entirely to discussion and broadcasting of sporting events. A popular format with an almost exclusively male demographic in most areas, sports radio is characterized by an often-boisterous on-air style and extensive debate and analysis by both hosts and...
as WOFX
WOFX (AM)
WOFX, known as Fox Sports 980, is an AM radio station broadcasting on 980 kHz licensed to Troy, New York. The station is owned by Clear Channel Communications and runs a sports radio format and is the Fox Sports Radio affiliate for the Capital District, Adirondacks, and...
.
Format evolution
Up to 1999, WTRY was basically playing Oldies music from 1964 to 1969 with several pre-1964 oldies an hour and about one early 70's hit an hour cutting off at about 1973 with a few exceptions. During the course of 1999, songs up to the late 1970's were mixed in and 70's music was being played several times an hour cutting a couple 1964 to 1969 songs per hour. In 2001, a few 1980's hits were being mixed into the format being played about once per hour. Later that year pre 64 oldies began to be cut back to 2 an hour and by 2002 one per hour. In 2003, the word oldies began to be used less and the station was now focusing on the 1964 to 1975 time period. In 2004, WTRY was now playing about half 1964-1969 songs and about half 1970's songs with an 80's song mixed in and pre 64 oldies almost completely gone. By 2005, the station had evolved into more of a Classic Hits format. Beginning in 2001, WTRY began playing Christmas music around Thanksgiving until some time on December 26 on a wall to wall basis. As time went on this annual tradition began earlier in November.On December 26, 2007, after its annual temporary Christmas format ended, WTRY surprised its listeners with a switch officially to Classic Hits, mainly playing songs from the '70s, and '80s with some '60's songs mixed in, under the My Music slogan. After playing Christmas music from November 1, 2010, the station reverted to oldies of the 60s and 70s as of December 27, 2010, in a similar style to sister stations KJR-FM
KJR-FM
KJR-FM is a Seattle, Washington,radio station that is broadcasting a classic hits format. It operates at 95.7 MHz at 98 kW, and also on the Internet via streaming audio. KJR-FM is owned by Clear Channel Communications, Inc.- KJR :...
(Seattle
Seattle, Washington
Seattle is the county seat of King County, Washington. With 608,660 residents as of the 2010 Census, Seattle is the largest city in the Northwestern United States. The Seattle metropolitan area of about 3.4 million inhabitants is the 15th largest metropolitan area in the country...
) and KLTH
KLTH
KLTH is an Oldies/Classic Hits formatted radio station located in the Portland, Oregon, area and broadcasts at 106.7 FM. KLTH's studios are located in downtown Portland and its transmitter is located in Portland's west hills...
(Portland, Oregon
Portland, Oregon
Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
). In early February 2011, WTRY continued to evolve towards a more traditional type of Oldies format, due to the format flip of nearby 96.7 WPTR, which changed formats from Contemporary Christian to Oldies, broadcasting with a superior signal to WTRY as well.
By November 2011, WPTR has switched formats to Christian talk as WDCD-FM, leaving WTRY and rimshot WVKZ
WVKZ
WVKZ is a radio station broadcasting an Oldies format known as "True Oldies" that focuses on rock 'n' roll music from the 1950s and early 1960s. Located west of Schenectady, New York, USA, the station serves the Albany area as well as Schenectady. The station is owned by Anastos Media Group, Inc...
as the only oldies radio stations in the Capital Region.
HD Radio operations
In 2005, WTRY-FM upgraded to IBOCIn-band on-channel
In-band on-channel is a hybrid method of transmitting digital radio and analog radio broadcast signals simultaneously on the same frequency....
digital radio
Digital radio
Digital radio has several meanings:1. Today the most common meaning is digital radio broadcasting technologies, such as the digital audio broadcasting system, also known as Eureka 147. In these systems, the analog audio signal is digitized into zeros and ones, compressed using formats such as...
alongside the rest of Clear Channel's Albany stations. On August 17, 2006, WTRY-FM began airing an HD2 channel with a smooth jazz
Smooth jazz
Smooth jazz is a genre of music that grew out of jazz fusion and is influenced by R&B, funk, rock, and pop music styles ....
format, which flipped to Cool Oldies with 50s and 60s hits in 2007 with the jazz format moving to WRVE
WRVE
WRVE is a Hot Adult Contemporary radio station licensed to Schenectady, New York and serving the Capital District and Upper Hudson Valley of New York. It broadcasts at 99.5 FM at 14.5 kilowatts ERP from a transmitter in Guilderland, New York...
-HD2. As of 2011, with the main format reverting from classic hits to oldies, WTRY-FM's HD2 signal now airs an all-80s format.