WTRY-FM

WTRY-FM (98.3 FM, "98.3 TRY"), is a classic hits station licensed to Rotterdam, New York and serving New York's Capital District and Mohawk Valley. The station is owned by iHeartMedia, Inc., and broadcasts at 6 kilowatts ERP from a tower in between Altamont and Duanesburg, New York off U.S. Route 20.

Though the 98.3 frequency has only been on the air since 1987 and has offered either an oldies or a classic hits format since 1996, the format was a direct continuation of the oldies format (and the top 40 format from which it evolved) which was previously on 980 kHz, a streak that went back over 40 years. During November and December, the station switches to Christmas music, with the normal oldies format remaining on its HD2 channel.

History

Pre-launch and early formats

The first decade of the frequency's life was quite unstable, a testament of this can be seen even before the air. In its construction permit stage, 98.3 was to become WDNZ with an early dance/rhythmic contemporary format, however permit owner Dennis Jackson (now a noted community broadcaster in smaller communities throughout the Northeast) was forced to sell the station before it hit the air. Under new owners, another set of call letters (WERV) came and went before the frequency signed on as adult contemporary WNYJ in November 1987. Being a new frequency, completely satellite-fed, and going up against a surging WKLI-FM, the format was changed in late 1988 to oldies as Cruisin' 98.3, still WNYJ.