KWYL
KWYL (102.9 FM, "Wild 102.9") is a commercial radio station located in South Lake Tahoe, California, United States, broadcasting to the Reno, Nevada, area. The station broadcasts in full 5.1 digital surround sound and has a Top 40 music format. It is owned by Cumulus Media. Its studios are located on Plumb Lane in South Reno, and its transmitter is located near Slide Mountain.
 | |
| City | South Lake Tahoe, California |
|---|---|
| Broadcast area | Reno, Nevada |
| Frequency | 102.9 MHz (HD Radio) |
| Branding | Wild 102.9 |
| Slogan | Today's Hottest Hits |
| Programming | |
| Format | Top 40/CHR |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | Cumulus Media (Radio License Holding CBC, LLC) |
| Sister stations | KBUL-FM, KKOH, KNEV |
| History | |
| First air date | 1966 (as KTHO-FM at 103.1) |
| Former call signs | KTHO-FM (1966-1990) KZFF (1990-1992) KGLE (1992-1996) KZZF (1996-2000) KNVQ (2000-2003) |
| Former frequencies | 103.1 MHz (1966-1980s) |
| Call sign meaning | K WYL = WYLD. Pronounced WILD |
| Technical information | |
| Facility ID | 67816 |
| Class | C |
| ERP | 39,000 watts |
| HAAT | 892 meters |
| Links | |
| Webcast | Listen live |
| Website | wild1029.com |
History
The station which is now KWYL originated in April 1966 as KTHO-FM, 103.1, duplicating the programming of its sister AM station KTHO 590, both licensed then to Tahoe Valley, California. The owner was Emerald Broadcasting Company. The licensing was changed to South Lake Tahoe since Tahoe Valley had become part of the newly incorporated City of South Lake Tahoe, CA. The AM-FM simulcast format became primarily middle-of-the-road music per the "Billboard" magazine Easy Listening charts along with much news and talk material from ABC networks. In 1973, KTHO-FM became fully automated and was separately programmed with beautiful music. Later, its call-sign was changed to KZFR ("K-Zephyr"), then briefly another change, but changed again to KZFF when its sought previous KZFR letters had already been re-assigned elsewhere. In the early 1980s, the station slightly shifted its dial position from 103.1 to 102.9 which allowed more coverage from a new transmitter location atop Genoa Peak on the eastern side of Lake Tahoe. A new ownership of the AM-FM combo sold-off the FM station to a Carson City, Nevada, operator who made another change of call-letters but that station was short-lived. Ultimately, and with another change of ownership, the transmitter site was moved again, to Slide Mountain, NV, affording greatly increased power and coverage. With its current call-sign KWYL at 102.9 and broadcasting from Reno, NV, it remains licensed as a South Lake Tahoe, CA station.
KWYL began broadcasting in 2001 as "Wild 93.7", but in 2003 switched frequencies to 102.9, giving the station more signal coverage. Prior to this change, it was a rhythmic oldies outlet known as KGVN ("93.7 The Groove") from 2000 to 2001.
The 93.7 signal was later used by two more top 40s stations after KWYL: Rhythmic KYWD ("93.7 The Bomb") from 2003 to 2004, and KWNZ, which later returned to its former home at 97.3 as mainstream urban KSGG, only to later move to an AM signal and a combined FM translator/HD2 channel by 2013; the AM switched formats to Sports in March 2014 but the HD2/FM translator broadcasts continues on as the sub channels of Top 40/CHR rival KLCA. KWYL, which had reported to music trades as a Mainstream Top 40 while still in a rhythmic top 40 direction, was officially moved to Mediabase's Rhythmic panel in April 2014 (BDS followed suit in June 2016)[1]
References
- "Mediabase Announces Panel Changes" from All Access (April 22, 2014)
External links
- KWYL in the FCC's FM station database
- KWYL on Radio-Locator
- KWYL in Nielsen Audio's FM station database