Class B City of license Indianapolis Owner iHeartMedia Inc Slogan Indy's Sports Station | Facility ID 59591 Format Sports radio Branding Sports Radio 1260 WNDE | |
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Broadcast area Indianapolis metropolitan area Translator(s) 97.5 W248AW (Indianapolis) First air date October 23, 1924 (as WFBM at 1130) Power 5,000 watts (daytime)
5,000 watts (nighttime) Frequency 1260 kHz (also on HD Radio) Area Indianapolis metropolitan area | ||
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WNDE (1260 AM) is a Sports formatted broadcast radio station licensed to Indianapolis, Indiana, serving the Indianapolis metropolitan area. The station, which began broadcasting in 1924, is owned and operated by iHeartMedia. The WNDE broadcast license is held by Capstar TX LLC.
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History
WNDE began operation as WFBM on October 23, 1924, as the fifth radio station licensed in Indianapolis. It was started by the Merchants Heating & Light Co., later Indianapolis Power & Light. When WFBM went on the air, it was assigned a frequency of 1130 kilohertz. In 1927, it moved to 1330 kHz, then to 1090 kHz in 1928, and to 1230 kHz in 1929. It arrived at its current frequency after the "great frequency shift of 1941," when all stations in the United States at 1230 kHz were moved to 1260 kHz.
In 1949, WFBM-TV (now WRTV) went on the air in time to broadcast the 1949 Indianapolis 500 (May 30, 1949). The WFBM “family” grew on November 26, 1959, when WFBM-FM went on the air at 94.7 Mc. In 1957, the three WFBM stations were sold to Time-Life, Inc. McGraw-Hill bought the stations in 1972, and almost immediately put the radio stations on the market. The WFBM stations had been grandfathered when the FCC banned common ownership of television and radio stations, but lost that protection with the McGraw-Hill purchase. In 1973, WFBM became WNDE, followed by WFBM-FM becoming WFBQ in Spring 1974. The WNDE call letters were chosen as the letters "NDE" phonetically sound like "Indy".
WNDE is the oldest operating radio station in Indianapolis, and third oldest in the state of Indiana.
WNDE, which had at one time used a Top 40 format, competing with the original WIFE in the 1970s while using the identifier "Windy in Indy", has been a Fox Sports Radio affiliate since 2002. It had previously been an ESPN Radio affiliate on two occasions. In September 2012, the network switched from Fox Sports Radio to NBC Sports Radio in the 10 pm-5 am weekday hours, remaining with FSR in other dayparts. Former hosts of the afternoon drive local show include Mark Patrick, the team of Tim Bragg & Bill Benner, Indiana Pacers announcer Mark Boyle, and JMV (John Michael Vincent, currently with WFNI).
On July 7, 2015, WNDE rebranded as "Fox Sports 97.5", utilizing the addition of W248AW, an F.M. translator on 97.5 MHz.
Programming
WNDE carries programming from the Fox Sports Radio network, which broadcasts a Sports/Talk radio format. The station is also the local affiliate for Premiere Networks' The Dan Patrick Show and The Rush Limbaugh Show (who airs during Midday).The afternoon drive-time show is the locally-produced Query & Schultz, which has been on the air since 2011.
On July 6, 2015, WNDE became the Indianapolis outlet for The Rush Limbaugh Show, which had been on WIBC for over two decades. Coinciding with the Limbaugh reclamation, iHeartMedia acquired translator station W248AW 97.5 FM from the Educational Media Foundation to simulcast WNDE. The surrounding sports-centric format will not change; indeed, the change came the same day as the station rebranded as "Fox Sports 97.5".
WNDE is the Indianapolis outlet for Purdue University football and men's basketball, sharing flagship status with Lafayette's WAZY. It also airs Compass Media Networks' NFL and NCAA football coverage. After years of broadcasting Cincinnati Reds baseball, WNDE was a part of the Chicago Cubs network in 2009 and 2010. In 2011, WNDE dropped NASCAR programming after many years, and began broadcasting Indianapolis Indians baseball.