WBUR-FM

WBUR-FM
Broadcast areaGreater Boston
Frequency90.9 MHz (HD Radio)
Branding90.9 WBUR
Programming
FormatNews/talk
Affiliations
Ownership
Owner
History
First air date
March 1, 1950; 74 years ago (1950-03-01)[1]
Former call signs
WBUR (1950–1997)
Call sign meaning
"Boston University Radio"
Technical information[2]
Licensing authority
FCC
Facility ID68241
ClassB
ERP8,600 watts
HAAT357.8 meters (1,174 feet)
Transmitter coordinates
42°18′37″N 71°14′12″W / 42.31028°N 71.23667°W / 42.31028; -71.23667 (WBUR-FM)
Repeater(s)(see table)
Links
Public license information
Webcast
  • Listen live
Websitewbur.org

WBUR-FM (90.9 FM) is a public radio station located in Boston, Massachusetts, owned by Boston University. Its programming is also known as WBUR News. The station is the largest[3] of three NPR member stations in Boston, along with WGBH and WUMB-FM and produces nationally distributed programs, including On Point and Here and Now. WBUR previously produced Car Talk, Only a Game, Open Source, and The Connection (which was cancelled on August 5, 2005). Radio Boston, launched in 2007, is its only purely local show. WBUR's positioning statement is "Boston's NPR News Station". The station's transmitter is located in Needham, while its studio is located on the Boston University campus.

WBUR also carries its programming on two other stations serving Cape Cod and the Islands: WBUH (89.1 FM) in Brewster,[4] and WBUA (92.7 FM) in Tisbury. The latter station, located on Martha's Vineyard, uses the frequency formerly occupied by WMVY.[5][6][7] In 1998, the station helped launch WRNI in Providence, Rhode Island—the first NPR station within that state's borders. It has since sold the station to a local group.

According to Ken Mills, a Minneapolis broadcast consultant and Nielsen data, the number of WBUR listeners has grown since 2012, increasing from 409,000 to 534,400. In 2017, WBUR was named the sixth-most popular NPR news station in the United States.[8]

  1. ^ "The Boston Radio Dial: WBUR-FM". The Archives @ BostonRadio.org. Retrieved January 15, 2012.
  2. ^ "Facility Technical Data for WBUR-FM". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
  3. ^ "Performance of Public Radio News Stations" (PDF). Retrieved December 30, 2015.
  4. ^ Lantz, Brian (May 23, 2014). "WBUR debuts on new Cape frequency". Cape Cod Times. Retrieved May 23, 2014.
  5. ^ "WBUR Buys Martha’s Vineyard Station 92.7-FM", WBUR website
  6. ^ Wells, Julia. "Radio Station WMVY Will be Sold to WBUR". Vineyard Gazette. Retrieved November 27, 2012.
  7. ^ "Call Sign Changes" (PDF). Federal Communications Commission. Retrieved December 15, 2012.[permanent dead link‍]
  8. ^ Arsenault, Mark (June 4, 2017). "In well-mannered public radio, an airwaves war". The Boston Globe. Retrieved June 4, 2017.