WIL-FM
| Broadcast area | Greater St. Louis |
|---|---|
| Frequency | 92.3MHz(HD Radio) |
| Branding | 92.3 WIL |
| Programming | |
| Format | Country |
| Subchannels | |
| Ownership | |
| Owner |
|
| KPNT,KSHE,WARH,WXOS | |
| History | |
First air date | July 15, 1962 |
Former call signs | KFMS (March 30, 1973-September 1, 1974) |
Call signmeaning | carried over from the formerWIL (1430 AM) |
| Technical information[1] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 72390 |
| Class | C0 |
| ERP |
|
| HAAT | 300 meters (980 ft) |
| Translator(s) | HD3:94.3W232CR (Alton, Illinois) |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
| Webcast | Listen Live |
| Website | 923wil |
WIL-FM(92.3MHz) is acommercialradio stationinSt. Louis, Missouri.It airs acountry musicformatand is owned byHubbard Broadcasting.[2]The studios are on Olive Boulevard, nearInterstate 270inCreve Coeur(with a St. Louis address).
WIL-FM is aClass Cstation. It has aneffective radiated power(ERP) of 100,000watts,the maximum for most stations.[3]Thetransmitteris on Butler Hill Road near Keller Road in St. Louis, amid thetowersfor other local FM and TV stations.[4]WIL-FM usesHD Radiotechnology. Its HD2subchannelplaysAmericana music,known as "Second Fiddle." The HD3 subchannel playsoldiesand feedsFM translatorW232CRat 94.3 MHz.
Format
[edit]WIL-FM plays a variety of country music, concentrating on the hits from the current charts and the last 25 years.[5]WIL-FM personalities include Remy & Kasey and Marty Brooks. WIL-FM is programmed by Tommy Mattern and the music director is Marty Brooks. WIL-FM primarily competes withiHeartMedia'sKSD-FMfor country listeners in St. Louis.
History
[edit]WIL-FMsigned onthe air on July 15, 1962,as the FMsister stationtoWIL (1430 AM).[6]In its first decade, it mostlysimulcastthe AM station, which aired aTop 40format, and were owned by WIL, Inc., a subsidiary of Balaban Stations. At the time, their studios were in Broadcasting House in St. Louis. WIL-FM was only powered at 30,000 watts, a fraction of its current output.
WIL-FM took thecall signKFMS on March 30, 1973. After a year, it returned to WIL-FM, effective September 1, 1974.[7]In the 1970s, WIL had switched to a personality country format, while the FM aired a more music-intensive country format, with less chatter and fewer commercials.[8]
Over time, as more people tuned to the FM band for music listening, WIL-FM became the dominant station. Eventually, the AM station changed its call letters to KZQZ and is nowdark.WIL-FM was later acquired bySalt Lake City-basedBonneville International.
Bonneville announced its sale of WIL-FM (and 16 other stations) toHubbard Broadcastingon January 19, 2011.[9]The sale was completed on April 29, 2011.[10]
On January 30, 2017, WIL-FM re-branded as "New Country 92.3".[11]On October 6, 2020, the station dropped the "New Country 92.3" branding and returned to using its call letters in its branding as "92.3 WIL".[12]
HD Radio
[edit]Starting in 2012, WIL-FM'sHD2digital subchannelbegan airingAmericana music,calling itself "Second Fiddle". Previously, WIL-FM-HD2 was branded as "Kerosene Country", and largely had the sameplaylistas WIL-FM.
On February 18, 2020, WIL-FM signed on a third subchannel, and began airing anoldiesformat, branded as "My Mix 94.3." The subchannel feedsFM translatorW232CRat 94.3 MHz inAlton, Illinois.[13]
References
[edit]- ^"Facility Technical Data for WIL-FM".Licensing and Management System.Federal Communications Commission.
- ^"WIL-FM Facility Record".United StatesFederal Communications Commission,audio division.Retrieved2009-12-22.
- ^FCC.gov/WIL-FM
- ^Radio-Locator.com/WIL-FM
- ^"Station Information Profile".Arbitron.Summer 2009. Archived fromthe originalon September 23, 2009.Retrieved2009-12-22.
- ^Broadcasting Yearbook 1965page B-91. Retrieved June 2, 2024.
- ^FCC’s history cards for WIL-FM; retrieved April 28, 2021.
- ^Broadcasting Yearbook 1977page C-124. Retrieved June 2, 2024.
- ^"$505M sale: Bonneville sells Chicago, D.C., St. Louis and Cincinnati to Hubbard".Radio-Info.com.January 19, 2011. Archived fromthe originalon January 22, 2011.RetrievedJanuary 19,2011.
- ^"Hubbard deal to purchase Bonneville stations closes".Radio Ink.May 2, 2011. Archived fromthe originalon March 12, 2012.RetrievedMay 2,2011.
- ^WIL Rebrands as New Country 92.3Radioinsight - January 30, 2017
- ^WIL Rebrands Back To Its Call LettersRadioinsight - October 6, 2020
- ^"WBGZ Moves to 107.1; Launches Oldies My Mix 94.3".
External links
[edit]- Official website
- WIL Radio Collectionfinding aid at theSt. Louis Public Library
- Facility details for Facility ID 72390 (WIL-FM)in theFCCLicensing and Management System
- WIL-FMinNielsen Audio's FM station database
- STLRadio.com- Historic information about St. Louis radio broadcasting
- Facility details for Facility ID 144705 (W232CR)in theFCCLicensing and Management System
- W232CRat FCCdata.org