WDAE

WDAE (620 kHz) is a commercial AM radio station licensed to St. Petersburg, Florida and serving the Tampa Bay area. It is owned by iHeartMedia and airs a sports radio format. WDAE is one of the oldest radio stations in Florida still broadcasting today, going on the air in 1922. The studios and offices are on West Gandy Boulevard in South Tampa. The transmitter is located near the Gandy Bridge in St. Petersburg.
WDAE is licensed to broadcast with 5,600 watts by day and 5,500 watts at night. AM 620 is a regional broadcast frequency. But because AM 620 is subject to interference from high-powered Cuban stations, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has given WDAE special temporary authority (STA) for higher power: 11,280 watts daytime and 11,000 watts nighttime. It uses a directional antenna at night. WDAE broadcasts using the iBiquity HD radio system during daytime hours. Programming is also heard on FM translator W237CW at 95.3 MHz and on a digital subchannel of co-owned 95.7 WBTP-HD3.
Three local shows are heard on weekdays on WDAE: Ronnie Lane and Tom Krasniqi – "The Ronnie and Tkras Show" in late mornings, Pat Donovan and Aaron Jacobson with "The Pat and Aaron Show" in early afternoons, and Ron Diaz and Ian Beckles with "The Ron and Ian Show" during late afternoons. Mornings, nights and weekends, WDAE airs syndicated programming from ESPN Radio. Some programming from Fox Sports Radio is also heard on the station, although sister station WHNZ 1250 AM is the primary Fox Sports Network affiliate in Tampa Bay.
FM Translator.
Programming is simulcast on FM translator W237CW.
History.
WDAE AM 1250 history.
On May 15, 1922, WDAE first signed on at 833 kilocycles. It was the radio outlet of the "Tampa Times", an afternoon daily newspaper. WDAE was one of the earliest radio stations in Florida, according to FCC records. WQAM in Miami takes credit as being first, going on the air in May 1921. In Jacksonville there was also an early station with the call sign WCAN, although those call letters were deleted a short time later and it's not currently known if it ever got on the air.
WDAE, as most early radio stations, broadcast on several frequencies during its beginning years, settling on AM 1250 by 1941. In 1947, still owned by the newspaper, it added an FM station, 105.7 WDAE-FM (now [[WMTX]] [[100.7 FM]]).
Through the 1940s and 50s, WDAE-AM-FM were [[CBS Radio Network]] affiliates, carrying its dramas, comedies, news, sports, [[soap opera]]s, [[game show]]s and [[big band]] remotes during the [[Golden Age of Radio]]. In the late 1960s, WDAE-FM switched to [[beautiful music]], while the AM station was a popular [[contemporary hit radio|Top 40]] station.
WDAE aired the popular talk show "Desperate & Dateless" on Friday nights with host Rosemary Haddad and producer Sam Cardinale. But in the 1980s, as Top 40 listening switched to FM, WDAE changed to an [[oldies]] format. By the 1990s, it had moved to [[adult standards]] and later began simulcasting the [[adult contemporary music]] format of co-owned 100.7 FM WUSA (now [[WMTX]]) in November 1990.
In March 1994, WDAE switched to [[classic country]] as "Country Gold Froggy 1250" with former WUSA personalities whose on-air names became I.B. Green, Jimmy Hoppa and Davey Croakett.
In 1999, the station was acquired by Clear Channel Communications, the previous name of current owner [[iHeartMedia]]. Clear Channel switched WDAE to its current all-sports format as "The Sports Animal."
WSUN AM 620 history.
On November 1, [[1927 in radio|1927]] WSUN first signed on the air. For most of its early history, it was owned by the City of St. Petersburg. WSUN used the first directional AM antenna system in the U.S., implemented in order to protect [[WTMJ (AM)|WTMJ]] in [[Milwaukee, Wisconsin]], also on 620 kHz. In its early years, WSUN was an [[ABC News Radio|ABC Radio]] affiliate, carrying the network's schedule until the 1960s, when it moved to a [[Full service (radio format)|full service]] [[middle of the road (music)|middle of the road]] music format.
Through the 1970s and 80s, WSUN aired [[country music]]. It was owned by Plough Broadcasting, a [[subsidiary]] of the pharmaceutical firm [[Schering-Plough]]. In 1988, [[Cox Broadcasting]] acquired WSUN and switched it to [[talk radio|talk]] and later to 1950s-based [[adult standards]]. In 1998, pending a sale, WSUN began simulcasting the audio from Time Warner (Brighthouse networks) local cable TV news station "[[Bay News 9]]," changing the call letters of AM 620 to WSAA. Cox Broadcasting moved the WSUN call letters and its standards format over to its co-owned station on [[AM 910]] in nearby [[Plant City, Florida]] (now [[WTWD]]).
WDAE moves to 620.
On January 1, 2000, three Tampa Bay radio stations, including WDAE, were involved in a frequency swap. WSUN had previously vacated AM 620, moving to AM 910. WDAE and its sports format moved from 1250 to 620. Business-formatted [[WHNZ]], which Clear Channel had bought from [[Bud Paxson|Paxson Communications]] in 1998, switched from [[AM 570]] to WDAE's previous home at 1250. And Clear Channel put a [[talk radio|news/talk]] format on AM 570, changing the call letters to WTBN, which stood for Tampa Bay News. [[Salem Communications]] bought WTBN the following year, installing a [[Christian radio]] format.
In late 2012, WDAE became the Tampa Bay home of [[ESPN Radio]], as rival sports station 1040 AM [[WHBO]] switched affiliation to the new [[NBC Sports Radio]] Network.
On November 28, 2018, WDAE branded as "95.3 WDAE", utilizing the FM translator in its branding.
Sports team associations.
WDAE is the [[flagship (broadcasting)|flagship]] station for the [[Tampa Bay Rays]] [[baseball]] team. It is also the Tampa Bay home of the [[University of Florida]] [[Florida Gators football|Gators college football]] and [[Florida Gators men's basketball|basketball]] games. Each year, WDAE carries the [[Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg]] auto race.
The station had been the flagship station for the [[Tampa Bay Buccaneers]] [[American football|football]]. Beginning with the 2017 season, the team's broadcasts move to co-owned [[active rock]] station 97.9 FM [[WXTB]]. WDAE continues to air interviews with players and coaches during game weeks.
WDAE had also been the flagship radio station for the [[Tampa Bay Lightning]] of the [[National Hockey League]] (which is now on sister station 970 AM [[WFLA (AM)|WFLA]]). WDAE had also broadcast the [[Tampa Bay Storm]] of the [[Arena Football League (1987–2008)|Arena Football League]] (now on sister station 1250 AM [[WHNZ]]).
Chris Thomas.
When WDAE became a sports talk station in 1997, one of the hosts to help build the station was [[WFLA-TV]] Channel 8 sports anchor Chris Thomas (real name Christian Thomas Olrick). He hosted the "Chris Thomas Show" on WDAE from 1997 until 2004, when he died from cancer. Thomas was a listener favorite, often getting in mock on-air feuds with WDAE's afternoon host, Steve Duemig. The two men were friends in real life.
As part of his tongue-in-cheek on-air persona, Thomas often gave himself nicknames, such as The Mediocore Sports Hunk. He also used many sound drops, such as the ferret from the [[Budweiser frogs]] commercials, or various other animals, giving them names, such as Clevis and Clovis. Despite his popularity, WFLA-TV declined to renew Thomas's contract in 2002, publicly expressing a desire to move to a younger sportscaster. However, some fans have speculated his openly hostile relationship with the Glazer family, owners of the [[Tampa Bay Buccaneers]] and a major sponsor of Channel 8, plus an off the air alcohol-related incident six months earlier led to the station's desire to part ways with Thomas. Thomas battled alcoholism most of his adult life. In January 2003, he was involved in a drunk driving accident with Buccaneers [[cheerleader]] Michelle Betancourt.
However, despite the controversy surrounding his personal life, he remained a beloved figure in the Tampa Bay sports community. After Thomas died in February 2004, the WDAE studio was renamed the Chris Thomas Studio.
Previous logo.
[[image:WDAE logo.png|200px]] (WDAE's logo using the primary 620 AM frequency branding)
External links.
[[Category:Radio stations in the Tampa Bay Area|DAE]]
[[Category:Sports radio stations in the United States]]
[[Category:Radio stations established in 1922]]
[[Category:1922 establishments in Florida]]
[[Category:IHeartMedia radio stations]]