WHBO(FM) Starview
Studio facilities
1996 Auction Road
Manheim, PA 17545
(717) 653-0800
Network affiliation
CNN Radio
Sports rights held
Hershey Bears
Ownership
Hall Broadcasting
About WHBO
So you're wondering where the heck Starview is, right? Don't worry you're not alone. Starview is a subdivision located off PA Route 24 south in Manchester Township, York County, on the outskirts of Mount Wolf borough. (Starview is about six miles northeast of York city.) It's pretty easy to miss; go by quickly, and you will likely miss it.
The station has a history as colorful as the name of its city of license. Past formats included CHR, album rock (with longer cuts), straight-forward rock among others. As 2000 rolled around, the station's calls were WEGK(FM) and 92.7 was identifying itself as "The Eagle", sporting a '70s rock format. It was the only station in the market that catered to '70s artists such as Elton John.
WHBO flipped to its current format (oldies) and call letters on July 1, 2001, countering the move by Clear Channel's 99.3 to CHR (from oldies) under the WHKF call letters. Around the same time, Cumulus ceased simulcasting Mechanicsburg's WTPA on the 92.1 frequency in Palmyra, Lebanon County, and flipped 92.1 to oldies, picking up 99.3's old call letters (WWKL). With WHBO, WWKL and somewhat established WSOX (96.1 Red Lion), it became a three-way race to see what station would outlast everyone else.
The first shoe in the oldies competition dropped in spring 2002, when Cumulus flipped WWKL to urban CHR in an effort to, ironically enough, challenge 99.3. At the same time, Cumulus' WNNK-FM (104.1) shied away from CHR and morphed into adult contemporary. In 2002, WHBO added the Hershey Bears, the area's American Hockey League team, to its lineup. The Bears were on WWKL in the years leading up to its switch to hip-hop.
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