WCVG
Encyclopedia
WCVG is a radio station licensed to Covington, Kentucky
, and serving the Cincinnati, Ohio
market. WCVG operates with 500 watts during daytime hours and 430 watts during nighttime hours from its tower site behind the Latonia Shopping Center in Covington. WCVG's daytime signal is directional, and resembles a "figure-8" pattern that covers the Cincinnati market inside the I-275 loop. WCVG's nighttime pattern points to the south and west and does not cover much of the Ohio portion of the market. The northern Kentucky counties still have a listenable nighttime signal.
On July 16, 2006, the station began broadcasting 24/7
regional Mexican
programming in the Spanish language
under the nickname "La Ley" Radio. The station's Latino/Hispanic music
broadcasts are to include contemporary Mexican music
and tropical rhythms such as salsa
and bachata.
On September 8, 2008, WCVG returned to its Urban Gospel format under the same management that had previously operated it. That group, TMH Media Inc. was approved for ownership of the station on June 23, 2009. However, the deal was never consummated and despite extensions of consummation filed with the FCC, the station's transmitter was shut off on Thursday, December 10, 2009.
, Notre Dame Fighting Irish
football
, and Cleveland Browns
football
. In 1981, WCLU switched to a rock and roll format. The city's former AM Top 40 station, WSAI
, had switched to country in 1978. WCLU had a decidedly "New Wave" sound until about 1983, when the station became "Cincinnati's Hit Playin' AM" and was dubbed "CLU-132." It was a moniker that sounded very similar to the city's FM Top 40 powerhouse station WKRQ
, or "Q-102." In 1985, announcers on the station stopped calling it "CLU-132" and went with the easier to say and remember, "AM 1320 WCLU." The Top 40 incarnation of WCLU, which operated only during the daytime, was plagued by a very weak signal, a lack of a promotional budget, and technical problems such as records frequently skipping. However, this era of WCLU had a few loyal fans who still hold the station in very high regard.
and WAXZ (Georgetown, Ohio
). Plessinger immediately moved the station from Covington to the WJOJ studios in Milford. WCLU's call letters were changed to WCVG and the format became "Kwick-Sell Classifieds." During this format, the station played soft adult contemporary music from the WJOJ library, and ran free on-air classified ads at specified times. The station also received permission from the Federal Communications Commission
to operate with nighttime service during this time.
In mid 1987, WCVG switched to a contemporary country format. That didn't last long as WCVG became the country's first "All Elvis" station in the summer of 1988. WCVG launched the "All Elvis" format on August 1, 1988.The concept of the Elvis station came from Steve Parton, then program director and John Stolz, General Manager for the Plessinger Group. The station under the "classified" format was bleeding money. Stolz said to Parton, let's go play Elvis records, we could make more money. Hence the station was born. It remained all-Elvis until the 12th anniversary of Elvis' death, August 16, 1989. On that date, WCVG became an affiliate of the Business Radio Network with 24 hours of business news and talk.
WCVG later became a Country/Sports Talk mix format as "Sports-Country 1320" in 1992. A satellite-delivered country music format aired during most of the day, with local sports talk programs airing on weekends and evenings. These shows emphasized northern Kentucky high school and Cincinnati professional sports talk. It was during this format that the station's studios were moved back into the Latonia site. In 1993, WCVG started a long run as the city's "Urban Gospel" station under LMA agreements with groups such as Kingdom Life Ministries. That ended in April 2006, when Plessinger switched the station's format to Classic Country.
In July 2006 the station was purchased for $1.9 million and began transitioning to Regional Mexican programing in the Spanish language
under Program Director
Mayra Arroyo and General Managaer Simon Cipriano.
On September 8, 2008, WCVG returned to its Urban Gospel format under the same management that had previously operated it, under the leadership of TMH Media Group and Kingdom Life Ministries led by Tracie M. Hunter. The station also brought back favorite gospel DJ Avery Corbin and his Gospel Express program to the airwaves.
Sources
Covington, Kentucky
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 43,370 people, 18,257 households, and 10,132 families residing in the city. The population density was 3,301.3 people per square mile . There were 20,448 housing units at an average density of 1,556.5 per square mile...
, and serving the Cincinnati, Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
market. WCVG operates with 500 watts during daytime hours and 430 watts during nighttime hours from its tower site behind the Latonia Shopping Center in Covington. WCVG's daytime signal is directional, and resembles a "figure-8" pattern that covers the Cincinnati market inside the I-275 loop. WCVG's nighttime pattern points to the south and west and does not cover much of the Ohio portion of the market. The northern Kentucky counties still have a listenable nighttime signal.
On July 16, 2006, the station began broadcasting 24/7
24/7
24/7 is an abbreviation which stands for "24 hours a day, 7 days a week", usually referring to a business or service available at all times without interruption...
regional Mexican
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
programming in the Spanish language
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
under the nickname "La Ley" Radio. The station's Latino/Hispanic music
Latin music in the United States
Latin music has long influenced American popular music, jazz, rhythm and blues, and even country music. For an early example , the bridge to "St. Louis Blues"--"Saint Louie woman, with her diamond rings"--has a habanera beat, prompting Jelly Roll Morton to comment, "You've got to have that Spanish...
broadcasts are to include contemporary Mexican music
Music of Mexico
The music of Mexico is very diverse and features a wide range of different musical styles. It has been influenced by a variety of cultures, most notably indigenous Mexican and European, since the Late Middle Ages...
and tropical rhythms such as salsa
Salsa music
Salsa music is a genre of music, generally defined as a modern style of playing Cuban Son, Son Montuno, and Guaracha with touches from other genres of music...
and bachata.
On September 8, 2008, WCVG returned to its Urban Gospel format under the same management that had previously operated it. That group, TMH Media Inc. was approved for ownership of the station on June 23, 2009. However, the deal was never consummated and despite extensions of consummation filed with the FCC, the station's transmitter was shut off on Thursday, December 10, 2009.
History
WCVG started life in 1965 as WCLU, owned by WCLU Broadcasting Company, Inc. headed by former Kansas City radio executive Irving Schwartz. WCLU was a daytime-only station that played "Modern Country" music and went by the "Big CLU Country" nickname. The station also ran auto racingAuto racing
Auto racing is a motorsport involving the racing of cars for competition. It is one of the world's most watched televised sports.-The beginning of racing:...
, Notre Dame Fighting Irish
Notre Dame Fighting Irish
Notre Dame's nickname is inherited from Irish immigrant soldiers who fought in the Civil War with the Union's Irish Brigade, , recollected among other places in the poetry of Joyce Kilmer who served with one of the Irish Brigade regiments during World War I...
football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
, and Cleveland Browns
Cleveland Browns
The Cleveland Browns are a professional football team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They are currently members of the North Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
. In 1981, WCLU switched to a rock and roll format. The city's former AM Top 40 station, WSAI
WSAI
WSAI is an AM radio station broadcasting out of Cincinnati, Ohio. Its studios are in the Towers of Kenwood building next to I-71 in the Kenwood section of Sycamore Township and its transmitter is located in Mount Healthy.WSAI is known as "Fox Sports 1360," including The Dan Patrick Show and The...
, had switched to country in 1978. WCLU had a decidedly "New Wave" sound until about 1983, when the station became "Cincinnati's Hit Playin' AM" and was dubbed "CLU-132." It was a moniker that sounded very similar to the city's FM Top 40 powerhouse station WKRQ
WKRQ
WKRQ, known on-air as Q102, is a radio station located in the Cincinnati, Ohio area and broadcasts at 101.9 FM. Its transmitter is located in Cincinnati. It carries an adult top 40 format and is owned by Hubbard Broadcasting.-History:...
, or "Q-102." In 1985, announcers on the station stopped calling it "CLU-132" and went with the easier to say and remember, "AM 1320 WCLU." The Top 40 incarnation of WCLU, which operated only during the daytime, was plagued by a very weak signal, a lack of a promotional budget, and technical problems such as records frequently skipping. However, this era of WCLU had a few loyal fans who still hold the station in very high regard.
New owners and All Elvis
In April 1987, Schwartz sold the station to Richard L. Plessinger, who also owned WJOJ-FM in Milford, OhioMilford, Ohio
Milford is a city in Clermont and Hamilton counties in the U.S. state of Ohio, along the Little Miami River in the southwestern part of the state. It is a part of Greater Cincinnati. Milford, an abbreviated form of mill ford, was so named because it was the first safe ford across the Little Miami...
and WAXZ (Georgetown, Ohio
Georgetown, Ohio
Georgetown is a village in Brown County, Ohio, United States. The population was 3,691 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Brown County. Georgetown was the childhood home of Ulysses S...
). Plessinger immediately moved the station from Covington to the WJOJ studios in Milford. WCLU's call letters were changed to WCVG and the format became "Kwick-Sell Classifieds." During this format, the station played soft adult contemporary music from the WJOJ library, and ran free on-air classified ads at specified times. The station also received permission from the Federal Communications Commission
Federal Communications Commission
The Federal Communications Commission is an independent agency of the United States government, created, Congressional statute , and with the majority of its commissioners appointed by the current President. The FCC works towards six goals in the areas of broadband, competition, the spectrum, the...
to operate with nighttime service during this time.
In mid 1987, WCVG switched to a contemporary country format. That didn't last long as WCVG became the country's first "All Elvis" station in the summer of 1988. WCVG launched the "All Elvis" format on August 1, 1988.The concept of the Elvis station came from Steve Parton, then program director and John Stolz, General Manager for the Plessinger Group. The station under the "classified" format was bleeding money. Stolz said to Parton, let's go play Elvis records, we could make more money. Hence the station was born. It remained all-Elvis until the 12th anniversary of Elvis' death, August 16, 1989. On that date, WCVG became an affiliate of the Business Radio Network with 24 hours of business news and talk.
WCVG later became a Country/Sports Talk mix format as "Sports-Country 1320" in 1992. A satellite-delivered country music format aired during most of the day, with local sports talk programs airing on weekends and evenings. These shows emphasized northern Kentucky high school and Cincinnati professional sports talk. It was during this format that the station's studios were moved back into the Latonia site. In 1993, WCVG started a long run as the city's "Urban Gospel" station under LMA agreements with groups such as Kingdom Life Ministries. That ended in April 2006, when Plessinger switched the station's format to Classic Country.
In July 2006 the station was purchased for $1.9 million and began transitioning to Regional Mexican programing in the Spanish language
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
under Program Director
Program director
In service industries, such as education, a program director or programme director researches, plans, develops and implements one or more of the firm's professional services...
Mayra Arroyo and General Managaer Simon Cipriano.
On September 8, 2008, WCVG returned to its Urban Gospel format under the same management that had previously operated it, under the leadership of TMH Media Group and Kingdom Life Ministries led by Tracie M. Hunter. The station also brought back favorite gospel DJ Avery Corbin and his Gospel Express program to the airwaves.
External links
- WCVG 1320 AM "La Ley", announcement (in Spanish)
- New Spanish radio station es buena, article in the Cincinnati Enquirer
- wcvg.com, urban gospel programming via. Live365Live365Live365 is an Internet radio network where members can create their own online radio station or listen to other Live365 broadcasters' online stations. As of October 2006, there were about 6,500 active stations, some of which play niche genres seldom heard on AM/FM radio...
. - Rod Williams story of the "All Elvis" radio station.
Sources
- http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060719/ENT/607190305/-1/all Story about WCVG flip to Spanish