News

Peconic Bay Broadcasting completes deal for WLIU

The Southampton-based National Public Radio affiliate 88.3 FM is officially in the hands of the nonprofit Peconic Public Broadcasting group after the $2.4 million purchase was finalized last Wednesday, according to a joint statement from PPB and Long Island University, which owned the station for more than 20 years.

“We wish Peconic Broadcasting the very best of luck in continuing the mission that Long Island University instituted in bringing quality, community-based public radio to Long Island’s East End, southern Connecticut and Westchester,” said LIU’s president, David Steinberg.

The new call letters for the station, which operated as WLIU for many years, is WPPB.

“PPB will maintain the same high level of quality production and programming the community has come to expect, all with added local emphasis,” said station manager Wally Smith. “Our existence is the result of the collective effort of volunteers, listeners, donors, and a dedicated professional staff, each of whom worked tirelessly to secure this valuable resource.”

The Federal Communications Commission approved the station’s license transfer in October, a month after PPB announced it had raised the final $637,000 cash payment needed to buy the station’s license and equipment from LIU. The group had originally been given until June to come up with the money but that deadline was extended four times.

LIU operated the radio station from its Southampton campus, which it sold to SUNY/Stony Brook in 2006, for more than two decades. LIU announced its intention to sell the station last year, citing $1 million in annual losses that included rent the school had been paying to Stony Brook.

[email protected]

Looking to comment on this article? Send us a letter to the editor instead.

Tags