WTAB

{{Infobox radio station

| name = WTAB

| logo =

| city = Tabor City, North Carolina

| country = US

| area = {{ubl|Wilmington, North Carolina|Myrtle Beach, South Carolina|Loris, South Carolina}}

| branding = 1370 WTAB

| airdate = {{start date|1954|7|1}}

| last_airdate = {{end date|2025|3|10}} ({{age in years and days|1954|7|1|2025|3|10}})

| frequency = 1370 kHz

| format = Defunct (was full service, country, southern gospel music)

| power = {{ubl|5,000 watts daytime|109 watts nighttime}}

| haat =

| class = B

| facility_id = 24937

| coordinates = {{coord|34|9|0.6|N|78|51|39.1|W|type:landmark_region:US-NC|display=inline,title}}

| callsign_meaning = Tabor City

| former_callsigns =

| owner = Marty Eric Sellers

| licensee = WTAB Media, Inc.

| sister_stations =

| webcast =

| website = {{URL|http://www.wtabradio.com/}}

| affiliations = North Carolina News Network

}}

WTAB (1370 AM) was a radio station that broadcast a full service format, comprising news, sports, local information and country music Monday through Saturday and gospel programming Sundays. Licensed to Tabor City, North Carolina, it served the area that included Tabor City's "twin city", Loris, South Carolina. The station was owned by Marty Eric Sellers' WTAB Media Inc., and was run by the father and son team of Jack "The Colonel" Miller and Richard "Fluff" Miller. WTAB operated from 1954 to 2025.

History

WTAB signed on on July 1, 1954.{{cite news |last1=Niven |first1=Deuce |title=After seven decades, WTAB goes silent |url=https://www.tabor-loris.com/2025/03/12/after-seven-decades-wtab-goes-silent/ |access-date=March 19, 2025 |work=Tabor-Loris Tribune |date=March 12, 2025}} On September 1, 1965, it gained a sister FM station with the addition of WTAB-FM 104.9 (later WKSM and now WYNA).

WTAB was an early affiliate of Casey Kasem's American Top 40 in the early 1970s.{{cite book|title=Billboard|date=2002-10-05|publisher=Nielsen Business Media, Inc.|issn=0006-2510|url=https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_Cw0EAAAAMBAJ|page=43|accessdate=2014-12-13}}

In 1995, Jack and Bonnie Miller bought the station from Don Curtis. Jack Miller had been with the station since 1975, initially as an announcer.

WTAB received notoriety in 2009 when Sal Governale and Richard Christy from The Howard Stern Show made prank calls to the station's "Swap Shop" program hosted by Jack Miller. According to Miller, the station's website ended up with over 10 million hits and even praised Stern for giving his station some word.{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uv8CoIkojiE|title=Howard Stern - 2009-09-24 - Howard Mentions on Swap Shop (Not played on show) - YouTube|via=YouTube.com|accessdate=2014-12-13}}

{{as of|2011|5|27|df=us}}, WTAB was on the air 24 hours per day, 7 days a week. Previously, WTAB signed off usually at 6 p.m. (unless there was a football game) and returned to the air at 6 a.m. despite being licensed for 24-hour broadcasts.

Jack Miller sold WTAB to stepson Eric Sellers and his wife Julie in late 2012.

In March 2025, owner M. Eric Sellers announced that WTAB would close on March 10.{{cite news |last1=Matthews |first1=Diana |title=WTAB to shut down after 71 years |url=https://www.nrcolumbus.com/news/business/wtab-to-shut-down-after-71-years/article_befd31d0-fb6d-11ef-ba79-4741e862b6d5.html |access-date=March 19, 2025 |work=The News Reporter |date=March 7, 2025 |language=en}} The station went off the air at 7 a.m., with "Buy Me a Rose" by Kenny Rogers as its last song.{{cite news |last1=Jones |first1=Jeff Allen |title=WTAB Radio Turns Off the Transmitter |url=https://columbuscountynews.com/2025/03/wtab-radio-turns-off-the-transmitter/ |access-date=March 19, 2025 |work=Columbus County News |date=March 10, 2025}} WTAB intended to dismantle its tower and surrender its license;{{cite news |last1=Venta |first1=Lance |title=FCC Report 3/9: AM Move-In Proposed For Worcester |url=https://radioinsight.com/headlines/296225/fcc-report-3-9-am-move-in-proposed-for-worcester/ |access-date=March 19, 2025 |work=RadioInsight |date=March 9, 2025}} the station's property was sold to neighbor Atlantic Packaging (owner of the Tabor-Loris Tribune newspaper) to serve as its information technology offices. The Federal Communications Commission cancelled the station's license on March 27, 2025.{{cite web|url= https://enterpriseefiling.fcc.gov/dataentry/public/tv/publicFacilityDetails.html?facilityId=24937|title=License Cancelled|work=Federal Communications Commission Licensing and Management System|date=March 27, 2025|access-date=March 27, 2025}}

Programming

Jack Miller hosted the popular "Swap Shop" show while Richard Miller hosted both mornings and afternoons. Other station employees included Bobby Pait, station engineer Lloyd Gore, who had been with WTAB since 1969 and doubled as a fill-in and weekend host and Rodney Inman, who hosted the Sunday morning Gospel show and owns a motorcycle shop in Tabor City.

References

External links

TAB

Category:Defunct radio stations in the United States

Category:Columbus County, North Carolina

Category:Radio stations established in 1954

Category:1954 establishments in North Carolina

Category:Radio stations disestablished in 2025

Category:2025 disestablishments in North Carolina

TAB