WROV-FM

WROV-FM
Broadcast areaRoanoke-Lynchburg, Virginia
New River Valley
Southside Virginia
Frequency96.3 MHz
(HD Radio)
Branding96.3 ROV Rocks
Programming
FormatClassic rock[1]
SubchannelsHD2: Black Information Network
AffiliationsJohn Boy and Billy
Performance Racing Network (PRN Radio)
Sixx Sense
Ownership
Owner
WJJS, WROV-HD2, WJJX, WSTV, WYYD
History
First air date
January 1950[2]
Former call signs
WMVA-FM (1950–1989)
Call sign meaning
W Rock Of Virginia
Technical information[3]
Licensing authority
FCC
Facility ID37747
ClassC1
ERP14,000 watts
HAAT633 meters (2,077 ft)
Transmitter coordinates
37°7′0.0″N 80°0′58.0″W / 37.116667°N 80.016111°W / 37.116667; -80.016111
Translator(s)HD2: 96.7 W244AV (Blacksburg, etc.)
Links
Public license information
WebcastWROV-FM Webstream
WebsiteWROV-FM Online

WROV-FM (96.3 MHz) is a commercial FM radio station licensed to Martinsville, Virginia. WROV-FM is owned and operated by iHeartMedia[4] and airs a classic rock radio format. WROV-FM's signal covers the Roanoke-Lynchburg media market, including the New River Valley and the Southside of Virginia.

WROV-FM has studios and offices on Brandon Avenue in Roanoke and its transmitter is in Boones Mill, Virginia.

WROV-FMHD2

WROV-FMHD2 carries an African-American-oriented news/talk format under the branding "Roanoke's BIN 96.7".[5]

Main article: WROV-HD2

On November 18, 2020, WROV-FMHD2 and W244AV changed their format from alternative rock to programming from the Black Information Network, branded as "Roanoke's BIN 96.7". The alternative rock format continues on WSTV-HD2 and W245BG.[6]

History of call letters

WROV-FM first signed on the air in January 1950 as WMVA-FM.[7] It was a sister station to WMVA and served Martinsville. In 1989, new ownership purchased WMVA-FM and WROV (now WGMN), and undertook a move of WMVA-FM to Roanoke.

The call letters WROV-FM were previously assigned to a station in Roanoke, Virginia. It began broadcasting on 103.7 MHz in 1948. It was a sister station of WROV and duplicated that station's programming.[8] In 1955, WROV radio's ownership had decided to leave broadcasting altogether after the disastrous effort to start WROV-TV; new management saw the FM station as a money pit and turned in the license in June 1957.[9][10]

References

  1. ^ "Nielsen Station Information Profiles".
  2. ^ American Radio History [dead link]
  3. ^ "Facility Technical Data for WROV-FM". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
  4. ^ "WROV Facility Record". Federal Communications Commission, audio division.
  5. ^ https://hdradio.com/station_guides/widget.php?realid=447 HD Radio Guide for Roanoke-Lynchburg, Virginia
  6. ^ Black Information Network Expands To Blacksburg Radioinsight - November 18, 2020
  7. ^ Broadcasting Yearbook 1977
  8. ^ "WROV-FM Roanoke Va., Starts Program Service" (PDF). Broadcasting. June 14, 1948. Retrieved 19 December 2014.
  9. ^ "For the record" (PDF). Broadcasting. July 15, 1957. p. 108.
  10. ^ "The Levines Buy WROV". The 1240 WROV History Site.