WKSH
Encyclopedia
WKSH is the Radio Disney
affiliate for the Milwaukee
area, and is licensed to Sussex, Wisconsin
. WKSH is Wisconsin's only station owned by ABC
and parent The Walt Disney Company
.
format in the early 1980s until it was sold to a group of investors. Those investors turned the station into a 24 hour a day station (requiring the change in city of license to Sussex), changed the call letters to WGNW and launched a news-talk format. However the low power prevented the station from ever seriously competing against power houses like WTMJ
and WISN.
In 1985, the owners ended the news talk format, and entered into a local marketing agreement with Wisconsin Petra Productions, which changed the call letters to WKSH, re-branded the station as KS-14 and programmed an adult contemporary Christian music format. Later, a group called "Heir Force Ministries" operated the station for a number of years. In the 1990s the station's programming was taken over by "Life Message" who changed the format to a more conservative mix of teaching and inspirational music. The owner of WKSH shut down the 1370 kHz frequency and moved programming to 1640 kHz, a new station on the expanded AM band, in 1998.
In late 2002, WKSH's owner shut down their business, and Disney
's ABC Radio Networks division bought the station in order to convert the station to Radio Disney. Currently the station airs the network's entire schedule with no local programming and automated station identification
s, although the station maintains a local staff which promotes the station through public events, live remotes and contests and does so on air from time-to-time.
Radio Disney
Radio Disney is a radio network based in Burbank, California and headquartered out of the Disney Channel headquarters on West Alameda Ave., from where it has been based since November 2008. Prior to that, the network was based in Dallas, Texas...
affiliate for the Milwaukee
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Milwaukee is the largest city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin, the 28th most populous city in the United States and 39th most populous region in the United States. It is the county seat of Milwaukee County and is located on the southwestern shore of Lake Michigan. According to 2010 census data, the...
area, and is licensed to Sussex, Wisconsin
Sussex, Wisconsin
Sussex is a village in Waukesha County, Wisconsin, United States. It is approximately northwest of Milwaukee and north of Waukesha. The village is at an elevation of 930 feet. The population was 8,828 at the 2000 census, with an estimated population of 10,045 in 2008...
. WKSH is Wisconsin's only station owned by ABC
American 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...
and parent The Walt Disney Company
The Walt Disney Company
The Walt Disney Company is the largest media conglomerate in the world in terms of revenue. Founded on October 16, 1923, by Walt and Roy Disney as the Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio, Walt Disney Productions established itself as a leader in the American animation industry before diversifying into...
.
History
The station originally signed on in 1979 as WCQL (Waukesha County Quality Listening), a highly directional daytime-only station at 1370 AM. After a failure to generate adequate ratings or revenue, the station's owners, George and Mary Scoufis, experimented with a Contemporary Christian MusicContemporary Christian music
Contemporary Christian music is a genre of modern popular music which is lyrically focused on matters concerned with the Christian faith...
format in the early 1980s until it was sold to a group of investors. Those investors turned the station into a 24 hour a day station (requiring the change in city of license to Sussex), changed the call letters to WGNW and launched a news-talk format. However the low power prevented the station from ever seriously competing against power houses like WTMJ
WTMJ (AM)
WTMJ is a radio station in Milwaukee, Wisconsin broadcasting at 620 AM. It is a 50,000-watt station airing a format of news, talk and sports. WTMJ is owned by Journal Broadcast Group, which also owns the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and sister station WLWK-FM....
and WISN.
In 1985, the owners ended the news talk format, and entered into a local marketing agreement with Wisconsin Petra Productions, which changed the call letters to WKSH, re-branded the station as KS-14 and programmed an adult contemporary Christian music format. Later, a group called "Heir Force Ministries" operated the station for a number of years. In the 1990s the station's programming was taken over by "Life Message" who changed the format to a more conservative mix of teaching and inspirational music. The owner of WKSH shut down the 1370 kHz frequency and moved programming to 1640 kHz, a new station on the expanded AM band, in 1998.
In late 2002, WKSH's owner shut down their business, and Disney
The Walt Disney Company
The Walt Disney Company is the largest media conglomerate in the world in terms of revenue. Founded on October 16, 1923, by Walt and Roy Disney as the Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio, Walt Disney Productions established itself as a leader in the American animation industry before diversifying into...
's ABC Radio Networks division bought the station in order to convert the station to Radio Disney. Currently the station airs the network's entire schedule with no local programming and automated station identification
Station identification
Station identification is the practice of radio or television stations or networks identifying themselves on air, typically by means of a call sign or brand name...
s, although the station maintains a local staff which promotes the station through public events, live remotes and contests and does so on air from time-to-time.