WPNA

WPNA
City Oak Park, Illinois
Broadcast area Chicago metropolitan area
Slogan "Stacja Chicago"
Frequency 1490 kHz
First air date October 7, 1950[1]
Format Polish Language Talk and other ethnic programming
Power 1,000 watts unlimited
Class C
Facility ID 1093
Transmitter coordinates 41°52′52″N 87°47′38″W / 41.88111°N 87.79389°W / 41.88111; -87.79389Coordinates: 41°52′52″N 87°47′38″W / 41.88111°N 87.79389°W / 41.88111; -87.79389
Callsign meaning Polish National Alliance
Former callsigns WEBS (cp)[2]
WOPA (1950[2]-1984)[3]
WBMX (1984-1987)[3]
Owner Polish National Alliance
(Alliance Communications, Inc.)
Sister stations WPNA-FM
Webcast Listen Live
Website WPNA Website

WPNA (1490 AM) is a time-brokered radio station licensed to Oak Park, Illinois, United States, the station serves the Chicago area. The station is currently owned by Alliance Communications.[4]

Programming

The majority of the station's programming is Polish language news, talk, and sports.[5] They also feature polka music on the weekends, such as the long running Eddie Blazonczyk Polka Show hosted by Tish Blazonczyk,[6] and the IPA Polka Show sponsored by the International Polka Association.[7]

WPNA is the home of the Hagerty Family Irish Program, the longest running Irish program in the United States.[5] This program has been on the station every Saturday morning since 1951.[8]

History

WPNA's transmitter site atop the Oak Park Arms

The station began broadcasting October 7, 1950.[1] The station's call sign was originally WEBS, but before going on the air the call sign was changed to WOPA to reflect the location of its studios.[2] The studios and antenna were in the former Oak Park Arms Hotel, now a retirement community.[2] The call sign once again changed in 1984 to WBMX for 3 years until 1490 AM was purchased by the Polish National Alliance which changed the station's call letters to WPNA on May 1, 1987.[3] In September 2001, the station launched its first website at www.wpna1490am.com. A major change in station management occurred in late February 2015, and its website was converted to an all-Polish language site in June 2015 under a new URL: www.radiowpna.com.

WPNA was the home of the long-running Chet Gulinski Show, which featured polka music and was quite popular in Chicago's Eastern European communities.

References

  1. 1 2 1971 Broadcasting Yearbook, Broadcasting, 1971. p. B-66. Retrieved October 9, 2018.
  2. 1 2 3 4 History Cards for WPNA, fcc.gov. Retrieved October 9, 2018.
  3. 1 2 3 Call Sign History, fcc.gov. Retrieved October 9, 2018.
  4. ↑ "WPNA Facility Record". United States Federal Communications Commission, audio division. Retrieved 2009-11-09.
  5. 1 2 "About Us", WPNA. Retrieved October 11, 2018.
  6. ↑ "Eddie Blazonczyk Polka Show", WPNA. Retrieved October 11, 2018.
  7. ↑ "International Polka Association", WPNA. Retrieved October 11, 2018.
  8. ↑ Curry, Cathy. "Chicago's First Family of Irish Radio", Irish American News, Chicago, May 2011. Retrieved on 23 October 2014.


This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.