WKDQ
Encyclopedia
WKDQ is a country music
formatted radio station
in Henderson, Kentucky
radio market, broadcasting to Evansville, Indiana
. The owner is Townsquare Media.
(860 AM), the station received the call letters WSON-FM when it went on the air in 1947, and most of the FM station's programming in the early years was simulcast from the AM station. In 1971, the FM station switched to a rock format and the call letters were changed to WKDQ.
By the mid-to-late 1980s, WKDQ had switched to an adult contemporary/oldies hybrid format and was known on-air as "KQ99." While it did reasonably well, management saw greater opportunity in challenging "WYNG 105" (now WJLT
, 105.3 FM) and WBKR (92.5 FM), so in 1992 they flipped WKDQ to country.
The station instantly became a success, surpassing WYNG and WBKR in ratings. Eventually, WYNG's country format was completely eliminated and eventually those call letters moved to 94.9 FM in Mt. Carmel, Illinois. WKDQ is currently the highest rated country station in the Evansville market and a close second to WIKY (104.1 FM) among all stations in the market.
television affiliate WEHT
News25's weather coverage is aired on WKDQ until the severe weather has moved out of the listening area http://www.news25.us/global/Story.asp?s=3392577.
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...
formatted radio station
Radio station
Radio broadcasting is a one-way wireless transmission over radio waves intended to reach a wide audience. Stations can be linked in radio networks to broadcast a common radio format, either in broadcast syndication or simulcast or both...
in Henderson, Kentucky
Henderson, Kentucky
Henderson is a city in Henderson County, Kentucky, United States, along the Ohio River in the western part of the state. The population was 27,952 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Evansville Metropolitan Area often referred to as "Kentuckiana", although "Tri-State Area" or "Tri-State" are more...
radio market, broadcasting to Evansville, Indiana
Evansville, Indiana
Evansville is the third-largest city in the U.S. state of Indiana and the largest city in Southern Indiana. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 117,429. It is the county seat of Vanderburgh County and the regional hub for both Southwestern Indiana and the...
. The owner is Townsquare Media.
History
Begun by Hecht Lackey, owner of WSONWSON
WSON is a radio station broadcasting a classic hits format. It services the Henderson, Kentucky, USA, listening area. The station is currently owned by Henson Media and features news, sports, weather and music features programing from ABC Radio News and Westwood One, as well as locally produced...
(860 AM), the station received the call letters WSON-FM when it went on the air in 1947, and most of the FM station's programming in the early years was simulcast from the AM station. In 1971, the FM station switched to a rock format and the call letters were changed to WKDQ.
By the mid-to-late 1980s, WKDQ had switched to an adult contemporary/oldies hybrid format and was known on-air as "KQ99." While it did reasonably well, management saw greater opportunity in challenging "WYNG 105" (now WJLT
WJLT
WJLT is a radio station licensed to broadcast at 105.3 on the FM in Evansville, Indiana.- History :The station started as WVHI-FM, a religious station....
, 105.3 FM) and WBKR (92.5 FM), so in 1992 they flipped WKDQ to country.
The station instantly became a success, surpassing WYNG and WBKR in ratings. Eventually, WYNG's country format was completely eliminated and eventually those call letters moved to 94.9 FM in Mt. Carmel, Illinois. WKDQ is currently the highest rated country station in the Evansville market and a close second to WIKY (104.1 FM) among all stations in the market.
Other facts
During severe weather situations, the audio of ABCAmerican Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
television affiliate WEHT
WEHT
WEHT is the ABC-affiliated television station for the Tri-State area of Southwestern Indiana, Northwestern Kentucky and Southeastern Illinois; it is owned by Nexstar Broadcasting Group under a shared services agreement with independent station WTVW...
News25's weather coverage is aired on WKDQ until the severe weather has moved out of the listening area http://www.news25.us/global/Story.asp?s=3392577.