WLNA

WLNA
Simulcast of WGHQ Kingston
Peekskill, New York;
Broadcast area	Hudson Valley
Frequency	1420 kHz
Branding	The Beacon
Programming
Format	Conservative Talk
Network	ABC News Radio
Affiliations	Westwood One; Fox News Radio; Army Black Knights football; NY Rangers Radio Network; New York Knicks Radio Network
Ownership
Owner	Pamal Broadcasting; (6 Johnson Road Licenses, Inc.);
Sister stations	WBNR, WBPM, WGHQ, WHUD, WSPK, WXPK
History
First air date	December 22, 1948; 75 years ago
Call sign meaning	"Local News Authority"
Technical information
Licensing authority	FCC
Facility ID	54852
Class	B
Power	5,000 watts (day); 1,000 watts (night);
Transmitter coordinates	41°18′31.34″N 73°54′58.5″W / 41.3087056°N 73.916250°W
Translator(s)	94.3 W232DQ (Peekskill)
Links
Public license information	Public file; LMS;

WLNA (1420 AM) is a commercial radio station licensed to Peekskill, New York, and serving the Hudson Valley. The station is owned by Pamal Broadcasting and calls itself "The Beacon." It simulcasts a conservative talk radio format with sister stations WBNR 1260 AM in Beacon and WGHQ 920 AM in Kingston. The studios are on New York State Route 52 in Beacon.

WLNA is powered at 5,000 watts by day and 1,000 watts at night. To protect other stations on 1420 AM from interference, it uses a directional antenna with a five-tower array. The transmitter is just north of Peekskill in the Town of Cortlandt, New York. (The day and night patterns use two different arrays of three towers, with only one tower shared by both arrays.)^[2] Programming is also heard on one-watt FM translator W232DQ at 94.3 MHz.^[3]

Programming

"The Beacon" (WLNA, WBNR and WGHQ) mostly carries nationally syndicated programs. Weekdays begin with the Westwood One news magazine America in the Morning. That's followed by Brian Kilmeade, Dan Bongino, Ben Shapiro, Matt Walsh, Michael Knowles, Joe Pags, Bill O'Reilly, America at Night with Rick Valdés and Red Eye Radio.

The Beacon carries live sports including New York Rangers hockey, New York Knicks basketball and Army Black Knights football from nearby West Point.

History

Early years

WLNA signed on the air on December 22, 1948; 75 years ago (December 22, 1948). It was originally a daytimer, with 500 watts of power by day and required to go off the air at night. It used a single tower, located on Radio Terrace in the Town of Cortlandt.^[4]

From the 1950s till the 1980s, it was a full service middle of the road AM station with heavy emphasis on local news and community events. A typical broadcast day had local news at the top and bottom of the hour, farm reports, local weather, and recorded or live music in between.

During the Peekskill riots on September 4, 1949, WLNA was requested by State Police and City of Peekskill officials to stay on the air past its 6 p.m. sign off time. It was used to broadcast emergency information to local residents and persons traveling into the area who may have not been aware of the situation. The Riots took place near Van Cortlandtville, about 2 miles west of the station.^[5]

In 1951, the station increased power to 1,000 watts. In 1958 WLNA-FM 100.7 MHz signed on as a simulcast of the AM station.^[6] After sign-off time, WLNA-FM continued on-the-air until about midnight, allowing its programming to be heard in the evening when the AM station was silent. On October 24, 1971, WLNA-FM changed its call letters to WHUD. In 1972 the simulcast ended as FM signal split off and launched a beautiful music format, syndicated from Bonneville International.

Throughout the 1970s, WLNA continued its full service format. It switched from its Middle of the Road music to easy listening.

Signal upgrade and sale

In 1980, WLNA applied to the Federal Communications Commission for a signal upgrade to 5,000 watts daytime and 1,000 watts night time power. This would entail moving the transmitter site about 1/2-mile south and putting up a five tower directional antenna array. The station owners, Highland Broadcasting, battled the Town of Cortlandt zoning board all the way to the New York State Supreme Court over a zoning variance for use of the new transmitter site.^[7] The Supreme Court sided with the radio station, and construction was finished in late 1981.

Despite the power upgrade, the station's signal never was still difficult to hear in parts of its service area. With the decline of AM radio, more resources were put into its sister FM station WHUD.

Highland Broadcasting sold both WLNA and WHUD to Radio Terrace, Inc., in 1982. Radio Terrace also owned WROW and WROW-FM in Albany, New York. Radio Terrace sold WROW-AM-FM to Albany Broadcasting, predecessor of Pamal Broadcasting in December 1993. Pamal acquired WLNA and WHUD in 1997.

Real Country, Classic Hits and Conservative Talk

On March 24, 2014, WLNA and WBNR introduced the "Real Country" national music format. The stations played classic country hits from the 1960s through the 90s. On March 15, 2021, WLNA and WBNR changed their format from classic country to a simulcast of co-owned classic hits station WBPM 92.9 FM in Saugerties.^[8]

On October 14, 2024, WLNA changed its format again, ending the classic hits simulcast of WBPM. WLNA, WBNR and WGHQ began airing a conservative talk format, branded as "The Beacon".^[9] It began airing syndicated talk shows from Westwood One and carrying ABC News Radio for national news updates.

Translator

Broadcast translator for WLNA
Call sign	Frequency	City of license	FID	ERP (W)	Class	Transmitter coordinates	FCC info
W232DQ	94.3 FM	Peekskill, New York	202878	1	D	41°20′18″N 73°53′39″W / 41.33833°N 73.89417°W / 41.33833; -73.89417 (W232DQ)	LMS

References

^ "Facility Technical Data for WLNA". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
^ "WLNA Facility Record". United States Federal Communications Commission, audio division.
^ FCC.gov/W232DQ
^ Construction permit, FCC file number BP-6229, WLNA 1420 kc Peekskill, NY dated July 1948
^ FCC violation notice and reply letter from Irving Cottrell, October 18, 1949
^ "1959 Broadcasting Yearbook page 299". Broadcasting Publications, Inc. Archived from the original on November 27, 2009. Retrieved August 30, 2010.
^ Supreme Court of the State of New York index #15043/80 Date September 5, 1980
^ Magic Comes To The Hudson Valley Radioinsight - March 14, 2021
^ A New Beacon is Lit in the Hudson Valley Radioinsight - October 15, 2024