WETA (FM)

WETA (90.9 FM) is a non-commercial, public FM radio station licensed to serve Washington, D.C., broadcasting a classical music format. Its studios are located in Arlington, Virginia and its broadcast tower is located near Arlington at (38°53′30.0″N 77°7′54.0″W).[3]

WETA
Broadcast areaWashington metropolitan area
Frequency90.9 MHz (HD Radio)
RDSWETA
BrandingWETA Classical 90.9 FM
Programming
FormatClassical
SubchannelsHD2: Viva La Voce (Classical Vocal Music)
Ownership
OwnerGreater Washington Educational Telecommunications Association
WETA-TV
History
First air date
1970
Call sign meaning
Greater Washington Educational Telecommunications Association
Technical information[1]
Licensing authority
FCC
Facility ID65669
ClassB
ERP75,000 watts (analog)
3,200 watts (digital)[2]
HAAT186 meters (610 ft)
Transmitter coordinates
38°53′30.4″N 77°7′53.9″W
Translator(s)W205BL 88.9 MHz, Frederick, Maryland
Repeater(s)WGMS 89.1 MHz (HD Radio) , Hagerstown, Maryland
Links
Public license information
WebcastListen Live
Websitewww.weta.org/fm/

WETA is a grandfathered “superpower” station. The station covers the Washington metropolitan area with the highest analog effective radiated power (ERP) of any FM station in the market with 75,000 watts. This exceeds the maximum analog ERP limit allowed for a Class B FM station, and is also above the maximum allowable analog ERP for the station's antenna height above average terrain (HAAT) according to current FCC rules, which is 32,000 watts at 186 meters.[4][5]

WETA programming is simulcast on WGMS 89.1 in Hagerstown, Maryland and on translator W205BL 88.9 in Frederick, Maryland. WETA and WGMS broadcast using HD Radio.

Past formats and format changes

From 1970 through early 2005, WETA featured a mixed radio format of classical music, folk music, jazz, and news. It switched to a predominantly news and talk radio format from February 28, 2005 until January 22, 2007, when it switched to its current all-classical radio format. The switch was part of an unusual deal between the public radio station and commercial station WGMS (FM), which abandoned the classical music format it had aired for decades after an attempt to sell WGMS to Washington Commanders owner Dan Snyder failed. The FCC subsequently granted WETA permission to use the WGMS call letters for its Hagerstown, Maryland repeater station, formerly known as WETH.

Current format

WETA changed to a classical music format on January 22, 2007, at 8 p.m. EST, with classical music now offered for more of the broadcast day than ever before in the station's history. Its current classical format is primarily mainstream orchestral, with a smattering of early and baroque music and chamber music. Aside from Saturday afternoon opera, very few vocal performances are aired on WETA.

As of April 2007 WETA reduced the number of hourly NPR newscasts, which had continued to be heard every hour since the change to the classical music format. Newscasts are now heard on the hour during drive time and at selected hours at other times. WETA also airs audio from the PBS NewsHour Monday through Friday evenings, for the benefit of area commuters unable to arrive home in time to view the program on television.

WETA airs opera programming on Saturday afternoons, including the Metropolitan Opera radio broadcasts during the Met's regular December–April broadcast season. They inherited from WGMS an all-vocal classical music format branded, "VivaLaVoce, the station that sings", on HD2.

WETA's only competition in the market area is WBJC (91.5 FM), also a non-commercial station, which broadcasts a classical music format and is licensed to serve Baltimore, Maryland.

Other services

Since 1974, WETA has provided a subcarrier channel for the Metropolitan Washington Ear, a radio reading service for blind and visually impaired people. Listeners tune in to the service using special receivers provided free to qualifying individuals and can receive audio from more than 200 current publications, including newspapers, magazines, and books.[6][7]

Stations

One full-power station is licensed to simulcast the programming of WETA:

Call sign Frequency City of license Facility ID ERP
W		 Height
m (ft)		 Class Transmitter coordinates Call sign meaning Former call signs
WGMS89.1 FM (HD)Hagerstown, Maryland25103900 (analog)
36 (digital)[8]		408 m (1,339 ft)B139°41′47.3″N 77°30′49.0″WWashington's Good Music StationWETH (1993–2007)

Translators

WETA programming is broadcast on the following translator:

Call signFrequencyCity of licenseFIDERP (W)HAATClassTransmitter coordinatesFCC info
W205BL 88.9 FMFrederick, Maryland90076200−16.2 m (−53 ft)D39°25′5.4″N 77°24′9.9″WLMS

References
  1. "Facility Technical Data for WETA". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
  2. "ENGINEERING EXHIBIT: Request for Operation of Superpower Station with Increased Digital Power". fcc.gov. Federal Communications Commission. October 18, 2016. Retrieved 2018-06-18.
  3. "FM Query Results for WETA". fcc.gov. Federal Communications Commission. Retrieved 2014-08-12.
  4. "FM Broadcast Station Classes and Service Contours". fcc.gov. Federal Communications Commission. Retrieved 2018-11-30.
  5. Smith, D. (July 5, 2013). "Superpower FMs". w9wi.com. Retrieved 2018-11-30.
  6. "Watching Out For Washington's Ear". Arlington Connection. December 2, 2003. Retrieved January 30, 2022.
  7. Ruben, Barbara (November 9, 2016). "An ear that helps the blind read". The Beacon. Retrieved January 30, 2022.
  8. "FCC 335-FM Digital Notification [WMGS]". fcc.gov. Federal Communications Commission. November 3, 2016. Retrieved 2018-06-18.
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