Frank FM

Frank FM is the branding used by WBIN Media and Great Eastern Radio for their classic hits-formatted radio stations. The Frank format is similar to the Jack FM format in that these stations play over 1000 songs in regular rotation at any time as opposed to the average amount of 300 to 600 songs heard regularly on a radio station; however, the stations' playlists otherwise resemble other classic hits stations rather than that of variety hits stations.

The Frank FM stations are WFNK in Lewiston, Maine (serving Portland), WBQX in Thomaston, Maine, WFNQ in Nashua, New Hampshire, and WRFK in Barre, Vermont. The Frank FM logo and branding are also employed on a variety hits station on Cape Cod in Massachusetts (WFRQ in Harwichport); unlike the other stations with the branding, WFRQ's format is patterned after Jack FM, running semi-jockless and playing a wide selection of music from the 60s through current with an emphasis on R&B and pop hits from the 90s-2000s, and play a couple new songs per hour. All of these stations were owned by Nassau Broadcasting Partners until 2012; at that time, WBIN Media acquired the Frank FM stations in Maine and New Hampshire, WRFK was sold to Great Eastern Radio, and WFRQ was acquired by Codcomm, Inc.

Former stations

In March 2009, WFKB in Boyertown, Pennsylvania (serving Reading) went off the air after three years. That station is owned by a Christian broadcaster, WDAC, Inc., but was managed by Nassau fall of 2005 to the spring of 2009. Its owner took back the station and reverted to the WBYN-FM calls and Christian music, preaching, and teaching programming due to Nassau's unwillingness to finance the local marketing agreement or purchase the station outright for the amount of money that WDAC Inc. wanted.

On April 27, 2009 a corporate reorganization occurred that required Nassau to divest two stations in the Concord-Lakes Region market, WWHQ and WNNH. They had been transferred to a divestiture trust. This caused the Frank FM simulcast of WNNH from Henniker and WLKZ from Wolfeboro to end on November 4, 2009. WLKZ immediately picked up WWHQ's former classic rock format, while WNNH, after a period of time off-the-air and a subsequent simulcast of Maine-based classical music station WBACH, returned to the classic hits format and Frank FM branding in November 2012. On August 31, 2015, WNNH replaced Frank FM with a news/talk format.[1]

Until April 1, 2013, Cape Cod's Frank FM was simulcast on the station now known as WHYA (for most of this period, the WFRQ call sign was assigned to that station, and the current WFRQ broadcast as WFQR). WHYA now broadcasts a contemporary hit radio format.

Until February 18, 2017, the Frank FM branding was used in the Midcoast Maine area on WBYA in Islesboro; the format was then moved to WBQX, replacing the WBACH classical music format.[2]

References

  1. ↑ Venta, Lance (August 28, 2015). "WNNH To Become New Hampshire's NewsRadio". RadioInsight. Retrieved February 21, 2017.
  2. ↑ Venta, Lance (February 20, 2017). "W-Bach Signs Off In Maine". RadioInsight. Retrieved February 21, 2017.
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