Family Stations’ “Family Radio” 1560 WFME New York ceased broadcasting this morning.
The station has been operating via STA since early 2021 from the West Orange NJ tower that previously housed 94.7 WFME-FM due to the Fall 2020 sale of its former 50kW site in Queens for $51 million. The STA operation has been marred with issues. After originally seeking to operate with 10kW, the station was creating electrical interference to a nearby Goddard School and has attempted operations with 1kW, 2.5kW day/10kW night, and most recently 500 watts.
A Family Radio spokesperson says that the station signed off this morning due to irrevocable technical difficulties.
Should this be the complete end of the station, it would mark the end of a 95 year run that began as experimental television license W2XR on 2200kHz in 1929. It would then move to 1550 and then 1560 becoming fully licensed as radio service WQXR in 1936 with a Classical format. The New York Times would acquire WQXR and its experimental FM license W2XQR (later 96.3 WQXR-FM) in 1944 for $1 million. The Classical format would remain until 1992 when it would absorb the Adult Standards format abandoned by 1130 WNEW’s sale to Bloomberg as WQEW. Disney would began leasing the station in December 1998 making it the flagship for its “Radio Disney” network and acquired it outright for $40 million in January 2007 upon the end of its original 8 year lease term.
Family Stations acquired 1560 from Disney in late 2014 for $12.95 million to return their network to the New York market following its 2013 sale of then 94.7 WFME Newark NJ to Cumulus Media for $40 million. Family Stations would then acquire 92.7 WQBU-FM Garden City NY from Univision for $9 million in December 2021 to return to FM in portions of the market.
Family Radio continues to be heard in portions of the New York market on 89.9 WFRS Smithtown, 92.7 WFME-FM Garden City, and 106.3 WYMK Mount Kisco.
