WBAA

WBAA and WBAA-FM
Broadcast areaLafayette metro area
Frequencies
BrandingWBAA News
Programming
Language(s)English
FormatPublic radio
SubchannelsWBAA-FM:
AffiliationsNPR, Classical Music Indy
Ownership
OwnerMetropolitan Indianapolis Public Media, Inc.
History
Founded
  • WBAA: 1919 as experimental station 9YB
First air date
  • WBAA: April 4, 1922 (1922-04-04)
  • WBAA-FM: February 1, 1993 (1993-02-01)
Former call signs
  • WBAA-FM: WFUC (1991, CP)
Call sign meaning
none, sequentially assigned
Technical information
Licensing authority
FCC
Facility ID
  • WBAA: 53946
  • WBAA-FM: 53947
Class
  • WBAA: B
  • WBAA-FM: B1
Power
  • WBAA:
    • 5,000 watts (day)
    • 1,000 watts (night)
ERP
  • WBAA-FM: 14,000 watts
HAAT
  • WBAA-FM: 120 meters (390 ft)
Transmitter coordinates
Translator(s)WBAA-HD2: 105.9 W290CM (Lafayette)
Links
Public license information
WebcastListen live
Websitewww.wbaa.org

WBAA (920 AM) and WBAA-FM (101.3 FM) are public radio stations licensed to West Lafayette, Indiana, United States, both serving the Lafayette metro area and the Indianapolis area with a news/talk format. The stations were founded by Purdue University, but in 2022, 100 years after WBAA's start, ownership was transferred to Metropolitan Indianapolis Public Media, Inc. (MIPM), which also owns WFYI radio and television in Indianapolis. Both stations originate from studios in the Edward C. Elliott Hall of Music on the Purdue campus and transmitter sites south of Lafayette, with the WBAA-FM transmitter site at the Throckmorton Purdue Agricultural Center.

WBAA, branded as "WBAA News", broadcasts a news-oriented format, with programming from National Public Radio (NPR). WBAA is the oldest operating radio station in Indiana, beginning in 1922 and with several antecedents on the Purdue campus. Originally a service noted for its limited agricultural extension and educational programming as well as Purdue sports broadcasts, it gradually improved its facilities and expanded its output over its first 20 years on air. The station was one of NPR's charter members in 1971. An FM adjunct, WBAA-FM, began broadcasting in 1993 and originally featured a mixture of NPR news and classical music; both stations will combine formats in early November 2025. WBAA-FM also transmits two HD Radio digital subchannels featuring classical and jazz, respectively; the classical subchannel is additionally relayed over low-power translator W290CM (105.9 FM).