New Bedford’s News Talk WBSM Through the Years

Since 1949, WBSM has been covering all the happenings in New Bedford and beyond. Even before there was such a thing as the SouthCoast, WBSM has been covering the region while bringing absolute legends to the airwaves.

Of course, most people know Stan Lipp, who hosted WBSM's "Open Line" for almost 40 years. Before him, there was Hal Peterson. Henry Carreiro had a bit part in the film Jaws, and Hall of Fame broadcasters Don Gillis and Fairhaven's own Gil Santos got their starts on WBSM.

WBSM went on the air on July 17, 1949 – a Sunday – and has been broadcasting from the same tower ever since, even as the studios moved from Pope's Island to downtown New Bedford and then finally to Fairhaven.

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Thanks to our engineer and the help of Spinner Publications, we've unearthed some photos of WBSM's early days to share with you. If you have any old WBSM-related photos you'd like to share with us so we can add them to our photo gallery, please send them along to tim@wbsm.com.

A lot has changed in New Bedford since 1949; we've gone through wars, through peacetime, through civil unrest, periods of prosperity and times of troubles. One thing has remained constant throughout, however: WBSM has been here bringing you all the important news and information that matters most to you.

The first 70-plus years have gone by in an instant, and we can't wait to see what the next 70 will bring to the SouthCoast.