| WHAN | |
| City: | Ashland, Virginia |
| Area: | Ashland, Virginia Hanover County, Virginia |
| Branding: | "WNRN" |
| Airdate: | May 1, 1962 |
| Format: | Adult album alternative |
| Power: | 1,000 Watts daytime 31 Watts nighttime |
| Class: | D |
| Facility Id: | 8438 |
| Coordinates: | 37.7461°N -77.4956°W |
| Callsign Meaning: | HANover |
| Former Callsigns: | WDYL (1960 1962, CP) WIVE (1962 1977) WKDH (1977 1980) WIVE (1980 1987) WMMM (1987 1989) WPES (1989 1998) |
| Owner: | Stu-Comm, Inc. |
| Licensing Authority: | FCC |
| Sister Stations: | WNRN, WNRN-FM, WNRS-FM |
| Website: | WHAN Online |
WHAN is an adult album alternative formatted broadcast radio station licensed to Ashland, Virginia, serving Ashland and Hanover County, Virginia as well as the northern half of the Metro Richmond, Virginia region. WHAN is owned by Stu-Comm, Inc. WHAN currently simulcasts WNRN-FM.
See main article: WNRN-FM.
On February 1, 2015, Charlottesville-based public broadcaster WTJU began simulcasting its programming on WHAN in an attempt to use its FM translator to reach the Richmond market.[1] WTJU operated the station daily from to as part of a three-year local marketing agreement.[2] Through a separate agreement with WTJU, Virginia Commonwealth University webcaster WVCW broadcast on WHAN Monday through Thursday from to and Friday from to, with additional broadcasting time allowed for special events. Local programming filled the remaining timeslots on Friday evenings and on weekends.[3]
WTJU terminated the local marketing agreement effective August 16, 2017, citing financial reasons. WHAN returned to a locally programmed music format, branded "102.9 The Mater", which it described as a mix of classic Southern rock and 1990s alternative rock but has transitioned since 2018 to "The RVA's Best Music Variety" featuring artists and genres from the past 65 years.[4] [5]
On August 10, 2020, Fifth Estate Broadcasting filed an agreement to donate WHAN and W275BQ to Stu-Comm, Inc., operator of Charlottesville-based adult album alternative station WNRN-FM, which complements its existing Richmond pair of WFTH (1590 AM) and W203CB (88.5 FM). This action came less than a week after the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) repealed a longstanding rule that prevented co-owned AM stations with overlapping signals from broadcasting the same programming. The sale was completed on October 9, 2020.[6] [7] WHAN and W275BQ now simulcast WNRN-FM.
In addition to the main station, WHAN is relayed by an FM translator to replicate the daytime signal of 1430 AM on the FM dial 24 hours a day.[8]