WVMT

WVMT is an English-language American radio station located in Burlington, Vermont.

Owned and operated by local businessman Paul S. Goldman, it broadcasts on 620 kHz with a power of 5,000 watts as a class B station, using a directional antenna with slightly different daytime and nighttime directional patterns in order to protect various other stations on that frequency.

The station has a news/talk format. Most of its programming consists of carrying syndicated politically conservative talk shows, like those of Howie Carr and Laura Ingraham, and sports broadcasts, including New York Yankees baseball, University of Vermont hockey and women's basketball, and Syracuse University basketball and football. The morning show, hosted by Charlie Papillo, Ernie Farrar and Lisa Nagle, is produced locally.

WVMT's easily identifiable triple towers are shown on Lake Champlain navigation charts.

History

WVMT is the oldest radio station in Vermont, going on the air May 20, 1922 as WCAX under the ownership of the University of Vermont (UVM). In its early years, WCAX largely operated on an experimental basis, and it was not until October 10, 1924 that the station formally opened. WCAX was run by UVM students, with most of its programming consisting of farming information from the University's Extension Service; although the call letters have been claimed to stand for College of Agriculture Extension in recognition of this service, the station's license was granted, and the call letters assigned, on May 13, 1922, in close proximity to stations such as WCAU (now WPHT) in Philadelphia and WCAY (now WTMJ) in Milwaukee. Initially operating at 833 kHz (as most stations did at that time), it had moved to 1200 kHz by 1925, to 1190 kHz in 1926, to 1180 kHz in 1927, and then back to 1200 in November 1928.