WWSJ
Encyclopedia
WWSJ is an AM
radio station broadcasting from St. Johns, Michigan
on 1580 kHz, featuring a Black Gospel format. The station transmits with 1,000 watts during the day using a directional antenna that sends the signal primarily to the north and south (including Lansing, Michigan
). At night it operates with a mere 3 watts, but still manages to cover much of Clinton County.
In the summer of 2010, WWSJ began to simulcast on translator W262BD 100.3 FM licensed to Dimondale, Michigan
, enabling it to get clearer FM coverage of the Lansing area day and night. W262BD operates with 22 watts from a transmitter in the heart of Lansing; despite being licensed to Dimondale, its primary signal contour does not actually reach Dimondale. W262BD is owned by Educational Media Foundation
and had previously operated using EMF's Air 1
format; although EMF continues to own the translator, it is being programmed by the owners of WWSJ.
). During the time the station was owned by Robert Ditmer it was a true community station playing a variety of music along with local high school sports, news and announcements.
-AM/FM, and implemented a Country music
format which was simulcast on both stations. AM 1580 changed calls again in November 1982, this time to WKZY
, when the station switched to an MOR format as "Cozy 16". The format did not last long, and by May 1983, the station had reverted back to the Country music
format, and also back to the WQTK
calls. The station implemented Al Ham's Music of Your Life
format in October 1983, this time adopting the call letters WVGO, which had recently been dropped by Lansing station WVIC
-AM. By the spring of 1985, the call station's call letters changed again, this time to WKLH
-AM, simulcasting the Country music
format of FM sister station WKLH
-FM (K-92). In early 1985, McLravy moved the WKLH-FM studios to the DeWitt
Shopping Center, although the WKLH-AM studio and transmitter remained on Parks Road, just south of St. Johns.
McLravy sold WKLH
-AM/FM, to Lansing Broadcasting Associates in July 1985, and on Labor Day
1985, the format of FM 92.1 was flipped to Album Oriented Rock. The call letters WGZS were applied for and assigned to AM-1580, in anticipation of a Christian
format, but the format never materialized. Instead, WGZS became a simulcast of AOR
sister station WLNZ-FM 92.1. The WGZS call letters, although assigned to the station for a short time, were never used on the air. Lansing Broadcasting Associates continued to maintain the AM studios on Parks Road, mainly because of an FCC requirement that the both the AM and FM stations originate 50% of their news and public affairs programming from the St. Johns studio. Part-time employees were paid to operate the St. Johns studio and transmitter.
In 1986, Robert Ditmer repurchased the AM station, now known as WLNZ, and changed the call sign to WWSJ. The station featured country music, talk, local news and high school sports. During a portion of this time it went by News Radio 1580 and featured syndicated talkers Phil Donahue, Church Harder and Jack Ellery. By the mid-1990s, the station added time-brokered Tejano music
programming to a portion of its broadcast day.
, who operated the station under the company name Mint City Radio. WWSJ continued with a mix of Country music
, community information, Tejano music
(time-brokered) and talk programs from the USA Radio Network
. The station dropped the Country music portion of its format in favor of Oldies
on Labor Day
1995, and was rebranded as AM-16 The Mint. The Evans' sold the station back to Ditmer in August 1996. Shortly thereafter, Ditmer resold the station to Larry Harp, Helen Harp, Wayne Hill and Elmira Hill, and it became Joy 1580 playing urban Christian
music. The station still uses the original studios at the transmitter on Parks Road, just south of St. Johns.
from June 2004 until September 2007. The station programmed an Oldies
format which was based upon the format previously programmed by WWSJ and was created by former station co-owner Steve Evans, who co-operated the station along with former WWSJ program director Dan Drolett. The mission of the station was to provide residents of Clinton County
with programming and services which were no longer being offered by terrestrial radio stations. The station's URL was http://www.clintoncountyradio.net.
Clinton County Radio offered, in addition to Oldies
from the 1960s and 70's, local weather, daily programs from the U.S.D.A., hourly news from the FSN Radio Network (and later the USA Radio Network
), nostalgic radio programs under the title Radio's Golden Days, and a locally produced program entitled The Michigan Oldies Podcast. Through the use of digital automation, the station was able to operate with little if any overhead expense. Initially, the majority of announcing on the station was handled by Evans and Drolett, but Mark Walton and Bryan Mix-Dean were added as staff announcers in 2006. Both provided their services on a volunteer basis. Unlike its terrestrial predecessor WWSJ, Clinton County Radio was a non-profit operation.
Dan Drolett announced the sale of the internet station and its assets to Tony Clark of Rosebush, Michigan
in early September 2007. The station ceased operations as Clinton County Radio at midnight on September 30, 2007.
AM broadcasting
AM broadcasting is the process of radio broadcasting using amplitude modulation. AM was the first method of impressing sound on a radio signal and is still widely used today. Commercial and public AM broadcasting is carried out in the medium wave band world wide, and on long wave and short wave...
radio station broadcasting from St. Johns, Michigan
St. Johns, Michigan
As of the census of 2000, there were 7,485 people, 2,994 households, and 1,999 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,909.1 per square mile . There were 3,148 housing units at an average density of 802.9 per square mile...
on 1580 kHz, featuring a Black Gospel format. The station transmits with 1,000 watts during the day using a directional antenna that sends the signal primarily to the north and south (including Lansing, Michigan
Lansing, Michigan
Lansing is the capital of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is located mostly in Ingham County, although small portions of the city extend into Eaton County. The 2010 Census places the city's population at 114,297, making it the fifth largest city in Michigan...
). At night it operates with a mere 3 watts, but still manages to cover much of Clinton County.
In the summer of 2010, WWSJ began to simulcast on translator W262BD 100.3 FM licensed to Dimondale, Michigan
Dimondale, Michigan
Dimondale is a village in Eaton County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 1,342 at the 2000 census. The village is located within Windsor Charter Township. Dimondale is a suburb of Lansing, Michigan, which is northeast of the village in Ingham County, Michigan...
, enabling it to get clearer FM coverage of the Lansing area day and night. W262BD operates with 22 watts from a transmitter in the heart of Lansing; despite being licensed to Dimondale, its primary signal contour does not actually reach Dimondale. W262BD is owned by Educational Media Foundation
Educational Media Foundation
Educational Media Foundation is a not-for-profit organization that operates the K-LOVE and Air 1 radio networks. EMF is based in Rocklin, California....
and had previously operated using EMF's Air 1
Air 1
Air1 is a Christian music radio network in the United States, operated by the non-profit organization EMF Broadcasting. Air 1 is essentially a Top-40 station with Christian Music - so many of the rules that commercial Top-40 stations use for musical rotation apply.-History:In 1986, KLRD began...
format; although EMF continues to own the translator, it is being programmed by the owners of WWSJ.
Early History
The station began operation at 10 am on September 23, 1959, as WJUD. The original owner was Justin F. Marzke. In the 1960s, it was purchased by Robert D. Ditmer and began operating under the new callsign of WRBJ. In 1972 Ditmer added WRBJ-FM on 92.1 MHz (now WQTXWQTX
WQTX is a radio station broadcasting a country music radio format to Lansing, Michigan. Licensed to St. Johns, Michigan, it first began broadcasting in 1972 and has been through a number of different calls and formats during its history....
). During the time the station was owned by Robert Ditmer it was a true community station playing a variety of music along with local high school sports, news and announcements.
The 1980s Bring Changes
Robert Ditmer sold WRBJ AM and FM to R. Charles McLravy in 1981. McLravy changed the call letters of WRBJ-AM/FM to WQTKWQTK
WQTK is a 3,000 watt radio station licensed to Ogdensburg, New York. Owned and operated by Community Broadcasters, LLC, it broadcasts a news and talk radio format. Referred to as "The North Country's News And Talk Authority," it carries a national news feed from CBS Radio News at the top of each...
-AM/FM, and implemented a 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...
format which was simulcast on both stations. AM 1580 changed calls again in November 1982, this time to WKZY
WKZY
WKZY is a commercial radio station in Cross City, Florida, broadcasting to the Gainesville-Ocala, Florida area on 106.9 FM.-History:...
, when the station switched to an MOR format as "Cozy 16". The format did not last long, and by May 1983, the station had reverted back to the 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...
format, and also back to the WQTK
WQTK
WQTK is a 3,000 watt radio station licensed to Ogdensburg, New York. Owned and operated by Community Broadcasters, LLC, it broadcasts a news and talk radio format. Referred to as "The North Country's News And Talk Authority," it carries a national news feed from CBS Radio News at the top of each...
calls. The station implemented Al Ham's Music of Your Life
Music of Your Life
Music of Your Life is a satellite-delivered radio network featuring the Adult Standards music format. Created by record executive and jingle writer Al Ham, and now under the direction of Marc Angell, Music of Your Life has more than 50 AM, FM and HD-2 radio station affiliates, and has been in...
format in October 1983, this time adopting the call letters WVGO, which had recently been dropped by Lansing station WVIC
WVIC
WVIC is a radio station broadcasting a modern rock format. Licensed to Jackson, Michigan, it first began broadcasting on July 14, 1958 as WMKZ-FM simulcasting WIBM-AM. The station broadcasts from a tower near Springport, Michigan. The station can be heard from Kalamazoo to Ypsilanti, and from...
-AM. By the spring of 1985, the call station's call letters changed again, this time to WKLH
WKLH
WKLH is a classic rock-formatted radio station in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The station is owned by Saga Communications.-History:The station received its Federal Communications Commission license on November 30, 1955...
-AM, simulcasting the 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...
format of FM sister station WKLH
WKLH
WKLH is a classic rock-formatted radio station in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The station is owned by Saga Communications.-History:The station received its Federal Communications Commission license on November 30, 1955...
-FM (K-92). In early 1985, McLravy moved the WKLH-FM studios to the DeWitt
DeWitt, Michigan
DeWitt is a city in Clinton County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 4,507 at the 2010 census.-History:DeWitt was named after DeWitt Clinton, Governor of New York during the 1830s. It was first settled by Captain David Scott, who moved there from Ann Arbor in 1833, and platted the...
Shopping Center, although the WKLH-AM studio and transmitter remained on Parks Road, just south of St. Johns.
McLravy sold WKLH
WKLH
WKLH is a classic rock-formatted radio station in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The station is owned by Saga Communications.-History:The station received its Federal Communications Commission license on November 30, 1955...
-AM/FM, to Lansing Broadcasting Associates in July 1985, and on Labor Day
Labor Day
Labor Day is a United States federal holiday observed on the first Monday in September that celebrates the economic and social contributions of workers.-History:...
1985, the format of FM 92.1 was flipped to Album Oriented Rock. The call letters WGZS were applied for and assigned to AM-1580, in anticipation of a Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
format, but the format never materialized. Instead, WGZS became a simulcast of AOR
Album-oriented rock
Album-oriented rock is an American FM radio format focusing on album tracks by rock artists.-Music played:Most radio formats are based on a select, tight rotation of hit singles...
sister station WLNZ-FM 92.1. The WGZS call letters, although assigned to the station for a short time, were never used on the air. Lansing Broadcasting Associates continued to maintain the AM studios on Parks Road, mainly because of an FCC requirement that the both the AM and FM stations originate 50% of their news and public affairs programming from the St. Johns studio. Part-time employees were paid to operate the St. Johns studio and transmitter.
In 1986, Robert Ditmer repurchased the AM station, now known as WLNZ, and changed the call sign to WWSJ. The station featured country music, talk, local news and high school sports. During a portion of this time it went by News Radio 1580 and featured syndicated talkers Phil Donahue, Church Harder and Jack Ellery. By the mid-1990s, the station added time-brokered Tejano music
Tejano music
Tejano music or Tex-Mex music is the name given to various forms of folk and popular music originating among the Mexican-American populations of Central and Southern Texas...
programming to a portion of its broadcast day.
Into the '90s
In February 1995, Ditmer sold the station to Steve and Cheryl Evans of DeWitt, MichiganDeWitt, Michigan
DeWitt is a city in Clinton County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 4,507 at the 2010 census.-History:DeWitt was named after DeWitt Clinton, Governor of New York during the 1830s. It was first settled by Captain David Scott, who moved there from Ann Arbor in 1833, and platted the...
, who operated the station under the company name Mint City Radio. WWSJ continued with a mix of 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...
, community information, Tejano music
Tejano music
Tejano music or Tex-Mex music is the name given to various forms of folk and popular music originating among the Mexican-American populations of Central and Southern Texas...
(time-brokered) and talk programs from the USA Radio Network
USA Radio Network
The USA Radio Network is a syndicator of talk radio programming established in 1985. It provides programming to approximately 1,100 radio stations around the world, plus the American Forces Network and XM Satellite Radio, and can be heard on the internet from USA Radio's website.On March 5, 2008,...
. The station dropped the Country music portion of its format in favor of 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....
on Labor Day
Labor Day
Labor Day is a United States federal holiday observed on the first Monday in September that celebrates the economic and social contributions of workers.-History:...
1995, and was rebranded as AM-16 The Mint. The Evans' sold the station back to Ditmer in August 1996. Shortly thereafter, Ditmer resold the station to Larry Harp, Helen Harp, Wayne Hill and Elmira Hill, and it became Joy 1580 playing urban Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
music. The station still uses the original studios at the transmitter on Parks Road, just south of St. Johns.
Clinton County Radio
Clinton County Radio was an internet radio station serving Clinton County, MichiganClinton County, Michigan
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 64,753 people, 23,653 households, and 17,976 families residing in the county. The population density was 113 people per square mile . There were 24,630 housing units at an average density of 43 per square mile...
from June 2004 until September 2007. The station programmed an 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....
format which was based upon the format previously programmed by WWSJ and was created by former station co-owner Steve Evans, who co-operated the station along with former WWSJ program director Dan Drolett. The mission of the station was to provide residents of Clinton County
Clinton County, Michigan
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 64,753 people, 23,653 households, and 17,976 families residing in the county. The population density was 113 people per square mile . There were 24,630 housing units at an average density of 43 per square mile...
with programming and services which were no longer being offered by terrestrial radio stations. The station's URL was http://www.clintoncountyradio.net.
Clinton County Radio offered, in addition to 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....
from the 1960s and 70's, local weather, daily programs from the U.S.D.A., hourly news from the FSN Radio Network (and later the USA Radio Network
USA Radio Network
The USA Radio Network is a syndicator of talk radio programming established in 1985. It provides programming to approximately 1,100 radio stations around the world, plus the American Forces Network and XM Satellite Radio, and can be heard on the internet from USA Radio's website.On March 5, 2008,...
), nostalgic radio programs under the title Radio's Golden Days, and a locally produced program entitled The Michigan Oldies Podcast. Through the use of digital automation, the station was able to operate with little if any overhead expense. Initially, the majority of announcing on the station was handled by Evans and Drolett, but Mark Walton and Bryan Mix-Dean were added as staff announcers in 2006. Both provided their services on a volunteer basis. Unlike its terrestrial predecessor WWSJ, Clinton County Radio was a non-profit operation.
Dan Drolett announced the sale of the internet station and its assets to Tony Clark of Rosebush, Michigan
Rosebush, Michigan
Rosebush is a village in Isabella County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 379 at the 2000 census. The village is within Isabella Township.-History:...
in early September 2007. The station ceased operations as Clinton County Radio at midnight on September 30, 2007.
Sources
- Michiguide.com - WWSJ History
- History of Clinton County (1980) page 314