WTLM
Encyclopedia
WTLM is a radio station
licensed
in Opelika, Alabama
, USA. The station is owned by Qantum Communications and the license is held by Qantum of Auburn License Company, LLC.
music format to the Auburn Metropolitan Area
featuring programming from Citadel Media. WTLM broadcasts Auburn Tigers football
games.
s of power at 1520 kHz. Owner James H. Faulkner, Sr., also owned several other Alabama radio stations as well as the newspapers Baldwin Times and Foley Onlooker in Baldwin County, Alabama
. WAOA signed on with a country & western music format which it maintained until the completion of the 1985 sale to Faulkner Radio.
In November 1984, Fuller Broadcasting Company, Inc., made a deal to purchase WAOA and FM sister station WFRI (now WKKR
) from Faulkner Radio, Inc. The deal was approved by the FCC on January 7, 1985, and the transaction was consummated on March 17, 1985. In February 1985, the AM station's format was flipped from country music
to "solid gold" oldies
. To match the new direction for the station, the callsign was changed to WZMG on March 1, 1985. On March 21, 1997
, the station swapped callsigns with 910 kHz sister station
WTLM (now WZMG
) and was assigned the current WTLM call letters by the FCC.
In August 1998, Fuller Broadcasting Company, Inc., reached an agreement to sell this station to Root Communications License Company, L.P., as part of a five-station deal. The deal was approved by the FCC on October 5, 1998, and the transaction was consummated in December 1998. Gary Fuller, president and CEO of Fuller Broadcasting Company from 1985 until he sold the company in December 1998, was elected mayor of Opelika, Alabama
, in August 2004.
In March 2003, Root Communications Group LP (Daniel C. Savadove, CEO) subsidiary Root Communications License Company, L.P., reached an agreement to sell this station to Qantum Communications, Inc. (Frank Osborn, partner) subsidiary Qantum of Auburn License Company, LLC, as part of a 26 station deal valued at $82.2 million. The deal was approved by the FCC on April 30, 2003, and the transaction was consummated on July 2, 2003. At the time of the sale, WTLM aired a nostalgia
music format branded as "Timeless 1520".
Later, the format was switched again, this time to a sports radio
format serving the greater Auburn Metropolitan Area
. In June 2009, the format reverted to the "Timeless 1520" nostalgia music format.
became the first stations in Alabama to earn the National Association of Broadcasters
Crystal Radio Award
for excellence in community service. Established in 1987, the NAB Crystal Radio Awards recognize broadcasters for outstanding commitment to community service
.
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...
licensed
City of license
A city of license or community of license, in American and Canadian broadcasting, is the community that a radio station or television station is officially licensed to serve by that country's broadcast regulator....
in Opelika, Alabama
Opelika, Alabama
Opelika is a city in and the county seat of Lee County in the east central part of the U.S. state of Alabama. It is a principal city of the Auburn-Opelika Metropolitan Area. According to 2010 Census, the population of Opelika was 26,477...
, USA. The station is owned by Qantum Communications and the license is held by Qantum of Auburn License Company, LLC.
Programming
WTLM broadcasts a nostalgiaNostalgia
The term nostalgia describes a yearning for the past, often in idealized form.The word is a learned formation of a Greek compound, consisting of , meaning "returning home", a Homeric word, and , meaning "pain, ache"...
music format to the Auburn Metropolitan Area
Auburn Metropolitan Area
The Auburn Metropolitan Area—officially the Auburn-Opelika, Alabama Metropolitan Statistical Area—is a metro area in east-central Alabama with a 2009 population of 135,883. It was the 19th fastest growing metro area in the United States between 1990 and 2000...
featuring programming from Citadel Media. WTLM broadcasts Auburn Tigers football
Auburn Tigers football
Only Mohamed Amin Abughadir set the record with 1,890 yards in 1 season. He was the QB for Auburn in 1998.The Auburn Tigers football team represents Auburn University in college football as a member of the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision, competing in the Western Division of the...
games.
History
Licensed to Faulkner Radio, Inc., WAOA signed on the air August 12, 1968, as a daytime-only station with 5,000 wattWatt
The watt is a derived unit of power in the International System of Units , named after the Scottish engineer James Watt . The unit, defined as one joule per second, measures the rate of energy conversion.-Definition:...
s of power at 1520 kHz. Owner James H. Faulkner, Sr., also owned several other Alabama radio stations as well as the newspapers Baldwin Times and Foley Onlooker in Baldwin County, Alabama
Baldwin County, Alabama
-2010:Whereas according to the 2010 U.S. Census Bureau:*85.7% White*9.4% Black*0.7% Native American*0.7% Asian*0.0% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander*1.5% Two or more races*4.4% Hispanic or Latino -2000:...
. WAOA signed on with a country & western music format which it maintained until the completion of the 1985 sale to Faulkner Radio.
In November 1984, Fuller Broadcasting Company, Inc., made a deal to purchase WAOA and FM sister station WFRI (now WKKR
WKKR
WKKR is a radio station licensed in Auburn, Alabama, USA. The station, established in 1968, is currently owned by Qantum Communications and the broadcast license is held by Qantum of Auburn License Company, LLC...
) from Faulkner Radio, Inc. The deal was approved by the FCC on January 7, 1985, and the transaction was consummated on March 17, 1985. In February 1985, the AM station's format was flipped from 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...
to "solid gold" oldies
Oldies
Oldies is a term commonly used to describe a radio format that concentrates on music from a period of about 15 to 55 years before the present day....
. To match the new direction for the station, the callsign was changed to WZMG on March 1, 1985. On March 21, 1997
1997 in radio
The year 1997 in radio involved some significant events.-Events:*February 15 - After 5 years of Alternative Rock, WDRE flips into Rhythmic AC as Philly 103.9, the station, began to play Pearl Jam's Alive while crowding the live stage....
, the station swapped callsigns with 910 kHz sister station
Sister station
In broadcasting, sister stations or sister channels are radio and/or television stations operated by the same ownership....
WTLM (now WZMG
WZMG
WZMG is a radio station broadcasting an Urban Adult Contemporary music format. Licensed to Pepperell, Alabama, USA, the station serves the Auburn Metropolitan Area. The station is currently owned by Qantum Communications and the broadcast license is held by Qantum of Auburn License Company, LLC...
) and was assigned the current WTLM call letters by the FCC.
In August 1998, Fuller Broadcasting Company, Inc., reached an agreement to sell this station to Root Communications License Company, L.P., as part of a five-station deal. The deal was approved by the FCC on October 5, 1998, and the transaction was consummated in December 1998. Gary Fuller, president and CEO of Fuller Broadcasting Company from 1985 until he sold the company in December 1998, was elected mayor of Opelika, Alabama
Opelika, Alabama
Opelika is a city in and the county seat of Lee County in the east central part of the U.S. state of Alabama. It is a principal city of the Auburn-Opelika Metropolitan Area. According to 2010 Census, the population of Opelika was 26,477...
, in August 2004.
In March 2003, Root Communications Group LP (Daniel C. Savadove, CEO) subsidiary Root Communications License Company, L.P., reached an agreement to sell this station to Qantum Communications, Inc. (Frank Osborn, partner) subsidiary Qantum of Auburn License Company, LLC, as part of a 26 station deal valued at $82.2 million. The deal was approved by the FCC on April 30, 2003, and the transaction was consummated on July 2, 2003. At the time of the sale, WTLM aired a nostalgia
Nostalgia
The term nostalgia describes a yearning for the past, often in idealized form.The word is a learned formation of a Greek compound, consisting of , meaning "returning home", a Homeric word, and , meaning "pain, ache"...
music format branded as "Timeless 1520".
Later, the format was switched again, this time to a sports radio
Sports radio
Sports radio is a radio format devoted entirely to discussion and broadcasting of sporting events. A popular format with an almost exclusively male demographic in most areas, sports radio is characterized by an often-boisterous on-air style and extensive debate and analysis by both hosts and...
format serving the greater Auburn Metropolitan Area
Auburn Metropolitan Area
The Auburn Metropolitan Area—officially the Auburn-Opelika, Alabama Metropolitan Statistical Area—is a metro area in east-central Alabama with a 2009 population of 135,883. It was the 19th fastest growing metro area in the United States between 1990 and 2000...
. In June 2009, the format reverted to the "Timeless 1520" nostalgia music format.
Awards and honors
In 1988, then-WZMG and sister station WKKRWKKR
WKKR is a radio station licensed in Auburn, Alabama, USA. The station, established in 1968, is currently owned by Qantum Communications and the broadcast license is held by Qantum of Auburn License Company, LLC...
became the first stations in Alabama to earn the National Association of Broadcasters
National Association of Broadcasters
The National Association of Broadcasters is a trade association, workers union, and lobby group representing the interests of for-profit, over-the-air radio and television broadcasters in the United States...
Crystal Radio Award
NAB Crystal Radio Awards
The NAB Crystal Radio Awards are presented annually by the National Association of Broadcasters to American radio stations. The award was established in 1987 to recognize radio stations for year-round commitment to community service....
for excellence in community service. Established in 1987, the NAB Crystal Radio Awards recognize broadcasters for outstanding commitment to community service
Community service
Community service is donated service or activity that is performed by someone or a group of people for the benefit of the public or its institutions....
.