1972 in radio

The year 1972 in radio involved some significant events.

List of years in radio (table)
In television
1969
1970
1971
1972
1973
1974
1975

Events
  • February – WOC-FM (103.7 FM) in Davenport, Iowa flips from a format that formatted beautiful music and also simulcasted WOC's AM signal to a contemporary hit radio format, and adopts the call sign KIIK-FM, or KIIK 104 as it would be known to fans. It is the Quad Cities market's first FM top 40 station and – with the advantage of an FM stereo signal – will be the first serious challenge to KSTT (1170 AM), the market's top-rated station.
  • Two new Top 40 stations launch in major Canadian cities, as CFTR Toronto abandons its simulcast of beautiful music CHFI-FM for Top 40 early in the year, and in Ottawa, CKPM becomes CFGO on June 21.[1][2]
  • June 6 - KPOO-FM signs on in San Francisco, becoming the first black-owned non-commercial radio station in the western United States.[3]
  • July 7 – WCBS-FM in New York City debuts its Oldies format.

Also
  • Bill and Becky Ann Stewart sell WPBC and WPBC-FM, both of Richfield, Minnesota, to Fairchild Industries. Later that year, both stations become WYOO.
  • WDRQ Detroit, having debuted the previous year as a news/talk station, flips to Top 40, as does WAAM in nearby Ann Arbor (dropping its longtime MOR format). Detroit also loses a Top 40 station on April 25, 1972, as WKNR changes from "Keener 13" to beautiful music as WNIC, simulcast with its FM sister (formerly WKNR-FM).
  • NBC sells off their Cleveland radio stations (WKYC-AM and WKYC-FM) to Ohio Communications, headed by Cleveland Indians, Cleveland Cavaliers and Cleveland Arena owner Nick Mileti, and radio executive Jim Embrescia. The stations were renamed "3WE" WWWE-AM and "M105" WWWM-FM, with the AM station attaining flagship rights to the Indians and Cavaliers, and hired pioneering sports/talk host Pete Franklin for "Sportsline."
  • Metromedia sells off their Cleveland stations, WHK and WMMS, to the Detroit-based Malrite Communications Group. After protests and pleas from WMMS' devoted following, Malrite vows to maintain the FM stations' progressive rock format, and relocates their corporate headquarters to Cleveland. Farther west in Toledo, progressive rock fans get a Christmas gift as WCWA-FM becomes WIOT-FM on Christmas Day.

Debuts

Closings

Births

Deaths
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References
  1. "CFGO-AM History". Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2019-08-24.
  2. "CFTR-AM History". Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2019-08-24.
  3. Walker, Jesse (2004). Rebels on the Air: An Alternative History of Radio in America. New York, NY: NYU Press. pp. 138–139. ISBN 9780814793824.
  4. Cox, Jim (2008). This Day in Network Radio: A Daily Calendar of Births, Debuts, Cancellations and Other Events in Broadcasting History. McFarland & Company, Inc. ISBN 978-0-7864-3848-8. P. 6.
  5. "Mr Douglas Smith". The Times. London. 1972-10-16. p. 14.


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