WFTK
Encyclopedia
WFTK is a commercial modern rock
radio station in Cincinnati, operated by Cumulus Media
.
. In 1968, the station became a religious station and played contemporary Christian music. The station was originally licensed to Hamilton, Ohio, but the city of license was changed to Lebanon, Ohio in a deal with CBS Radio in 2002.
After the station was sold in 1974, the station switched to an adult contemporary/Top 40 format under the call letters WLWS. In 1979 the fomat changed to Top 40, as "Kiss 96", WSKS. By 1983, WSKS was playing a mix of classic rock
and modern rock
and changed their slogan to 96 Rock. After 3 years, the format switched again this time to country, WBVE, The Beaver. Four years later in 1990, Z Rock
made its debut. Z Rock
debuted with the WZRQ call letters, which were protested by crosstown CHR WKRQ. The call letters were then changed to WZRZ. The country format returned in August 1992, as "The River 96.5" and then WYGY "Young Country Y-96". "Y-96" was used as a flanker station to protect sister station WUBE, the heritage country station in Cincinnati. In 2000, the station was sold and the station's name was changed to "The New 96.5." In 2003, the name changed again to "Eagle 96.5", but due to a conflict with another station called "Eagle 99.3" in nearby Aurora, Indiana, the name was changed yet again to "96.5 The Star."
The call letters WPRV were introduced in September 2006, when Cumulus Media sold WMOJ
("Mojo 94.9") to Radio One, who moved the station to 100.3 FM. Cumulus Media launched WPRV at 94.9 FM, and temporarily used the frequency to simulcast its WYGY
("96.5 The Star"). Cumulus later traded the 94.9 FM frequency to Entercom, so in November 2006, the call letters WPRV were moved to 96.5 and "SuperTalk FM" was launched. The call letters were soon changed to WFTK.
As of Thursday, December 13, 2007, the talk format was dropped, and all that was played the entire day was looped construction
noise.
On December 14, 2007 at 12 noon
, the construction sounds came to an end, and 96 Rock, Cincinnati's Pure Rock was born with an active rock
format, with the format lasting for only a year. According to the station's playlist, the station has segued to modern rock
because of alternative rock
artists such as MGMT
, Bad Religion
and Franz Ferdinand
on the playlist. This occurred in January of 2009
when Cumulus acquired WOFX-FM
from Clear Channel
, and WOFX is a classic rock
-formatted station. The shift to alternative rock caused WSWD to change formats on May 21, 2009
, as its old "Sound" format was moved to 94.9 HD2 and the 97.3 frequency flipped formats back to country music
, leaving WFTK as the only alternative rock station in Cincinnati. Ratings have since increased since the station shifted to alternative rock. Mediabase
still reports the station as active rock
.
, Bill O'Reilly
, Dave Ramsey
, Dennis Miller
, in addition to the overnight feed from Sporting News Radio
. Until the switch to 96 Rock, the station added more local, live personalities. Andy Furman (Furball) sports talk and starting Monday October 1, 2007 the Two Angry Guys premier with Tom Gamble and Richard Skinner. Previous network syndicates Mancow's Morning Madhouse, Rusty Humphries
and Phil Valentine
were removed from the programing line up.
As of December 13, 2007 at 10 AM EST
, SuperTalk FM went off the air following The Two Angry Guys Show, and was replaced with the broadcast sounds of a construction site - hammers, saws, drills, workers shouting, trucks backing up, etc. The website listed seven new format possibilities, each with an accopanying logo. All seven logos could be seen one at a time when the page was refreshed. The possibilities were Y96 "Today's best country", Rdnx96 "Old-time mountain music", WRAS96 "Rasta and Reggae", WWJD96 "Christian", ES96 "Spanish", D96 "Disco", G96 "Alternative Lifestyle", and WJOC96 "Strictly Sports". On the station's Web site, there was a countdown
timer set for noon on December 14, 2007.
When the countdown
timer on the station's website
hit zero on December 14, the station flipped to active rock and began identifying itself as 96 Rock, Cincinnati's Pure Rock. The first song played was Metallica
's Enter Sandman
. The Two Angry Guys Show, which was SuperTalk's morning show before the format change, remained as 96 Rock's morning show. It returned in January, following their Christmas vacation. In fact, 96 Rock's tagline of "Angry all morning, pissed all day" is a direct reference to the Two Angry Guys Show. All of the station's other airstaff, including afternoon host Andy Furman were let go before the change, while all of the syndicated programs were discontinued.
WFTK was the 2007-2008 flagship station for Miami University
Men's Ice Hockey broadcasts. As well as the official radio station of the minor league hockey team the Cincinnati Cyclones
during the 2007-2008 season. Neither are part of the station's programming as of August 2008.
Modern rock
Modern rock is a rock format commonly found on commercial radio; the format consists primarily of the alternative rock genre...
radio station in Cincinnati, operated by Cumulus Media
Cumulus Media
Cumulus Media, Inc. is the second largest Owner and Operator of AM and FM radio stations in the United States, behind Clear Channel Communications, operating 570 stations in 150 markets as of September 16, 2011. The company also owns Cumulus Media Networks...
.
History
The station began in 1958 as WQMS, Quality Music Station, playing beautiful musicBeautiful music
Beautiful music is a mostly instrumental music format that was prominent in American radio from the 1960s through the 1980s...
. In 1968, the station became a religious station and played contemporary Christian music. The station was originally licensed to Hamilton, Ohio, but the city of license was changed to Lebanon, Ohio in a deal with CBS Radio in 2002.
After the station was sold in 1974, the station switched to an adult contemporary/Top 40 format under the call letters WLWS. In 1979 the fomat changed to Top 40, as "Kiss 96", WSKS. By 1983, WSKS was playing a mix of classic rock
Classic rock
Classic rock is a radio format which developed from the album-oriented rock format in the early 1980s. In the United States, the classic rock format features music ranging generally from the late 1960s to the late 1980s, primarily focusing on the hard rock genre that peaked in popularity in the...
and modern rock
Modern rock
Modern rock is a rock format commonly found on commercial radio; the format consists primarily of the alternative rock genre...
and changed their slogan to 96 Rock. After 3 years, the format switched again this time to country, WBVE, The Beaver. Four years later in 1990, Z Rock
Z Rock
Z-Rock was a nationally syndicated radio network based out of Dallas, Texas, USA, in the mid-1980s through the mid-1990s that played heavy metal and hard rock music. The format was one of ABC Radio Network's 24-hour satellite formats...
made its debut. Z Rock
Z Rock
Z-Rock was a nationally syndicated radio network based out of Dallas, Texas, USA, in the mid-1980s through the mid-1990s that played heavy metal and hard rock music. The format was one of ABC Radio Network's 24-hour satellite formats...
debuted with the WZRQ call letters, which were protested by crosstown CHR WKRQ. The call letters were then changed to WZRZ. The country format returned in August 1992, as "The River 96.5" and then WYGY "Young Country Y-96". "Y-96" was used as a flanker station to protect sister station WUBE, the heritage country station in Cincinnati. In 2000, the station was sold and the station's name was changed to "The New 96.5." In 2003, the name changed again to "Eagle 96.5", but due to a conflict with another station called "Eagle 99.3" in nearby Aurora, Indiana, the name was changed yet again to "96.5 The Star."
The call letters WPRV were introduced in September 2006, when Cumulus Media sold WMOJ
WMOJ
WMOJ-FM is a rhythmic oldies radio station licensed to Norwood, Ohio.On September 2, 2006, Radio One, Inc. acquired the intellectual property and call letters of the station from Cumulus Media Partners, and moved it from 94.9 FM to 100.3 FM...
("Mojo 94.9") to Radio One, who moved the station to 100.3 FM. Cumulus Media launched WPRV at 94.9 FM, and temporarily used the frequency to simulcast its WYGY
WYGY
WYGY is a radio station broadcasting a country music format. Licensed to the suburb of Fort Thomas, Kentucky, it serves the Cincinnati, Ohio metropolitan area. It first began broadcasting in 1993 under the call sign WAAR...
("96.5 The Star"). Cumulus later traded the 94.9 FM frequency to Entercom, so in November 2006, the call letters WPRV were moved to 96.5 and "SuperTalk FM" was launched. The call letters were soon changed to WFTK.
As of Thursday, December 13, 2007, the talk format was dropped, and all that was played the entire day was looped construction
Construction
In the fields of architecture and civil engineering, construction is a process that consists of the building or assembling of infrastructure. Far from being a single activity, large scale construction is a feat of human multitasking...
noise.
On December 14, 2007 at 12 noon
Noon
Noon is usually defined as 12 o'clock in the daytime. The word noon is also used informally to mean midday regarding the location of the sun not the middle of a persons day. Although this is a time around the middle of the day when people in many countries take a lunch break...
, the construction sounds came to an end, and 96 Rock, Cincinnati's Pure Rock was born with an active rock
Active rock
Active rock is a radio format used by many commercial radio stations across the United States and Canada. Active rock plays contemporary rock artists with a mix of songs common in the classic rock radio format.-Format background:...
format, with the format lasting for only a year. According to the station's playlist, the station has segued to modern rock
Modern rock
Modern rock is a rock format commonly found on commercial radio; the format consists primarily of the alternative rock genre...
because of alternative rock
Alternative rock
Alternative rock is a genre of rock music and a term used to describe a diverse musical movement that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1980s and became widely popular by the 1990s...
artists such as MGMT
MGMT
MGMT is an American alternative rock band founded by Benjamin Goldwasser and Andrew VanWyngarden. After the release of their first album, the members of their live band, Matthew Asti, James Richardson and Will Berman, joined the core band in the studio...
, Bad Religion
Bad Religion
Bad Religion is a punk rock band that formed in Los Angeles in 1979. Their current line-up consists of Greg Graffin , Brett Gurewitz , Jay Bentley , Greg Hetson , Brian Baker and Brooks Wackerman . Gurewitz is also the founder of the label Epitaph Records, which has released almost all of the...
and Franz Ferdinand
Franz Ferdinand (band)
Franz Ferdinand are a Scottish post-punk revival band formed in Glasgow in 2002. The band is composed of Alex Kapranos , Bob Hardy , Nick McCarthy , and Paul Thomson .The band first experienced chart success when their second single, "Take Me Out", reached #3 in...
on the playlist. This occurred in January of 2009
2009 in radio
The following events occurred in radio in 2009.- Events :* January 1: Kurdish TV starts broadcasting in Turkey.* January: Michael Smerconish, morning host at talk radio WPHT Philadelphia, begins syndication of his morning show to WHFS in Washington and WOR in New York City.* January 17: Two well...
when Cumulus acquired WOFX-FM
WOFX-FM
WOFX-FM is an American radio station in Cincinnati, Ohio. The station plays a classic rock format. The station is owned and operated by Cumulus Media. It broadcasts with an effective radiated power of 16,000 watts...
from Clear Channel
Clear channel
A clear-channel station is an AM band Radio station in North America that has the highest protection from interference from other stations, particularly concerning night-time skywave propagation. Usually known as class A stations since 1982, they are occasionally still referred to by their former...
, and WOFX is a classic rock
Classic rock
Classic rock is a radio format which developed from the album-oriented rock format in the early 1980s. In the United States, the classic rock format features music ranging generally from the late 1960s to the late 1980s, primarily focusing on the hard rock genre that peaked in popularity in the...
-formatted station. The shift to alternative rock caused WSWD to change formats on May 21, 2009
2009 in radio
The following events occurred in radio in 2009.- Events :* January 1: Kurdish TV starts broadcasting in Turkey.* January: Michael Smerconish, morning host at talk radio WPHT Philadelphia, begins syndication of his morning show to WHFS in Washington and WOR in New York City.* January 17: Two well...
, as its old "Sound" format was moved to 94.9 HD2 and the 97.3 frequency flipped formats back to country music
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
, leaving WFTK as the only alternative rock station in Cincinnati. Ratings have since increased since the station shifted to alternative rock. Mediabase
Mediabase
Mediabase is a music industry service that monitors radio station airplay in 180 US and Canadian markets. Mediabase publishes music charts and data based on the most played songs on terrestrial and satellite radio, and provides in-depth analytical tools for radio and record industry professionals...
still reports the station as active rock
Active rock
Active rock is a radio format used by many commercial radio stations across the United States and Canada. Active rock plays contemporary rock artists with a mix of songs common in the classic rock radio format.-Format background:...
.
- More information: 2006 Cincinnati radio station reorganization.
Programming
WFTK's initial programming consisted solely of syndicated programs from Glenn BeckGlenn Beck
Glenn Edward Lee Beck is an American conservative radio host, vlogger, author, entrepreneur, political commentator and former television host. He hosts the Glenn Beck Program, a nationally syndicated talk-radio show that airs throughout the United States on Premiere Radio Networks...
, Bill O'Reilly
Bill O'Reilly (commentator)
William James "Bill" O'Reilly, Jr. is an American television host, author, syndicated columnist and political commentator. He is the host of the political commentary program The O'Reilly Factor on the Fox News Channel, which is the most watched cable news television program on American television...
, Dave Ramsey
Dave Ramsey
David L. Ramsey III is an American financial author, radio host, television personality, and motivational speaker.Ramsey's syndicated radio program The Dave Ramsey Show is promoted with a tagline that "It's about your life and your money," and it is heard on over 450 radio stations throughout the...
, Dennis Miller
Dennis Miller
Dennis Miller is an American stand-up comedian, political commentator, actor, sports commentator, and television and radio personality. He is known for his critical assessments laced with pop culture references...
, in addition to the overnight feed from Sporting News Radio
Sporting News Radio
Yahoo! Sports Radio, formerly Sporting News Radio is a United States sports radio network that broadcasts sports news, talk, scores, and highlights 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. On August 1, 2011, it was announced the network would change its name to Yahoo! Sports Radio, effective...
. Until the switch to 96 Rock, the station added more local, live personalities. Andy Furman (Furball) sports talk and starting Monday October 1, 2007 the Two Angry Guys premier with Tom Gamble and Richard Skinner. Previous network syndicates Mancow's Morning Madhouse, Rusty Humphries
Rusty Humphries
Ralph E. "Rusty" Humphries is an American radio host, conservative political commentator, and songwriter. Humphries' nationally-syndicated radio show, The Rusty Humphries Show, based in Atlanta, Georgia, airs on over 250 stations through Talk Radio Network.-Career:Humphries has hosted as a...
and Phil Valentine
Phil Valentine
Phil Valentine is a conservative talk radio show host in Nashville, Tennessee. He broadcasts daily on , a Cumulus Media Station, from 4:00 p.m. until 8:00 p.m. Central Time. His producer and sidekick, Johnny B. Valentine, is probably best known in Tennessee for leading protests against a state...
were removed from the programing line up.
As of December 13, 2007 at 10 AM EST
Eastern Time Zone
The Eastern Time Zone of the United States and Canada is a time zone that falls mostly along the east coast of North America. Its UTC time offset is −5 hrs during standard time and −4 hrs during daylight saving time...
, SuperTalk FM went off the air following The Two Angry Guys Show, and was replaced with the broadcast sounds of a construction site - hammers, saws, drills, workers shouting, trucks backing up, etc. The website listed seven new format possibilities, each with an accopanying logo. All seven logos could be seen one at a time when the page was refreshed. The possibilities were Y96 "Today's best country", Rdnx96 "Old-time mountain music", WRAS96 "Rasta and Reggae", WWJD96 "Christian", ES96 "Spanish", D96 "Disco", G96 "Alternative Lifestyle", and WJOC96 "Strictly Sports". On the station's Web site, there was a countdown
Countdown
A countdown is a sequence of counting backward to indicate the seconds, days, or other time units remaining before an event occurs or a deadline expires. Typical events for which a countdown is used include the launch of a rocket or spacecraft, the detonation of a bomb, the start of a race, and the...
timer set for noon on December 14, 2007.
When the countdown
Countdown
A countdown is a sequence of counting backward to indicate the seconds, days, or other time units remaining before an event occurs or a deadline expires. Typical events for which a countdown is used include the launch of a rocket or spacecraft, the detonation of a bomb, the start of a race, and the...
timer on the station's website
Website
A website, also written as Web site, web site, or simply site, is a collection of related web pages containing images, videos or other digital assets. A website is hosted on at least one web server, accessible via a network such as the Internet or a private local area network through an Internet...
hit zero on December 14, the station flipped to active rock and began identifying itself as 96 Rock, Cincinnati's Pure Rock. The first song played was Metallica
Metallica
Metallica is an American heavy metal band from Los Angeles, California. Formed in 1981 when James Hetfield responded to an advertisement that drummer Lars Ulrich had posted in a local newspaper. The current line-up features long-time lead guitarist Kirk Hammett and bassist Robert Trujillo ...
's Enter Sandman
Enter Sandman
"Enter Sandman" is a 1991 song by the American heavy metal band Metallica. It was released as the first single from their eponymous fifth album, Metallica. The music was written by Kirk Hammett, James Hetfield and Lars Ulrich...
. The Two Angry Guys Show, which was SuperTalk's morning show before the format change, remained as 96 Rock's morning show. It returned in January, following their Christmas vacation. In fact, 96 Rock's tagline of "Angry all morning, pissed all day" is a direct reference to the Two Angry Guys Show. All of the station's other airstaff, including afternoon host Andy Furman were let go before the change, while all of the syndicated programs were discontinued.
WFTK was the 2007-2008 flagship station for Miami University
Miami University
Miami University is a coeducational public research university located in Oxford, Ohio, United States. Founded in 1809, it is the 10th oldest public university in the United States and the second oldest university in Ohio, founded four years after Ohio University. In its 2012 edition, U.S...
Men's Ice Hockey broadcasts. As well as the official radio station of the minor league hockey team the Cincinnati Cyclones
Cincinnati Cyclones
The Cincinnati Cyclones are a professional hockey team based in Cincinnati, Ohio. The team is a member of the ECHL. Founded in 1990, the team first played their games in the Cincinnati Gardens and now play at U.S. Bank Arena....
during the 2007-2008 season. Neither are part of the station's programming as of August 2008.
Callsign history
- WFTK from 11/09/2006
- WPRV from 11/02/2006
- WYGY from 01/09/1993
- WZRZ from 01/30/1991
- WZRQ from 12/27/1990