WBCK
WBCK (95.3 FM) is a radio station in Battle Creek, Michigan, United States, owned by Townsquare Media. It broadcasts in the FM radio band at 95.3 MHz and has a news-talk format.
 | |
| City | Battle Creek, Michigan |
|---|---|
| Broadcast area | |
| Frequency | 95.3 MHz |
| Branding | 95.3 WBCK |
| Slogan | Battle Creek's News/Talk Leader |
| Programming | |
| Format | News/Talk |
| Affiliations | Fox News Radio Michigan Radio Network |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | Townsquare Media (Townsquare Media Battle Creek License, LLC) |
| Sister stations | WBXX |
| History | |
| First air date | 1986 |
| Former call signs | WBCK-FM (9/8/07–7/10/14) WBXX (10/26/89–9/18/07) WMJC (4/30/87–10/26/89) WMKG (2/5/86–4/30/87) WDFP (?–2/5/86) |
| Call sign meaning | Battle CreeK |
| Technical information | |
| Facility ID | 37461 |
| Class | A |
| ERP | 3,000 watts |
| HAAT | 82 meters |
| Links | |
| Webcast | Listen Live |
| Website | wbckfm.com |
History
When 95.3 FM signed on in 1986 with the call letters WDFP, the owner was Donald F. Price and the format was Christian music and religious programming. In 1988 the station was sold to Captsar Broadcasting.
WMJC as Magic 95
With an ERP of 3,000 watts, 95.3 could be reached as far west as Kalamazoo and was changed to a top-40 station as WMKG then switched to WMJC as "Magic 95" these calls came from 94.7 FM in Detroit now WCSX. The ratings proved the best of this frequency has seen. Top-40 powerhouse WKFR was dominant mostly due to its signal on 103.3 FM which reached as far as Jackson to Benton Harbor. In the late 1990s the station began to take a more rhythmic sound similar to how WGRD was in the 1990s. Capstar introduced the station as "B95" WBXX.
WBXX as B95
As WBXX "B95", 95.3 FM was a very popular CHR-top 40 station in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Despite the station's high ratings (especially with younger listeners), B95 was unsuccessful in terms of revenue because it played hip hop and rap music that was unpopular with local advertisers. This led the station to change format to oldies and later adult contemporary; the latter format continued on 104.9 FM until 2016 when they flipped to its current alternative rock format.
The sale of the Battle Creek Radio Group from Clear Channel Communications has been completed. 95.3 began to simulcast with WBCK (930 AM) and WBXX began broadcasting on 104.9 (formerly WRCC). 95.3 FM became the permanent home of WBCK's news-talk format.
On March 21, 2008, AM 930 and FM 95.3 stopped the simulcast between both stations, while AM 930 began airing a classic country station as Country 93.
On August 30, 2013, a deal was announced in which Townsquare Media would acquire 53 Cumulus Media stations, including WBCK-FM, for $238 million. The deal was part of Cumulus' acquisition of Dial Global; Townsquare and Dial Global were both controlled by Oaktree Capital Management.[1][2] The sale to Townsquare was completed on November 14, 2013.[3] The "-FM" suffix was dropped from the station's call sign on July 10, 2014,[4] after 930 AM (which by this point had been sold separately to Midwest Communications) changed callsigns to WTOU.
References
- "Official: Cumulus Buys Dial Global, Spins Some Stations To Townsquare; Peak Stations Sold To Townsquare, Fresno Spun To Cumulus". All Access. August 30, 2013. Retrieved August 30, 2013.
- "Cumulus Makes Dial Global And Townsquare Deals Official". RadioInsight. August 30, 2013. Retrieved August 30, 2013.
- "Cumulus-Townsquare-Peak Deal Closes". All Access. November 15, 2013. Retrieved November 16, 2013.
- "Call Sign History". CDBS Public Access. Federal Communications Commission. Retrieved August 4, 2014.
External links
- WBCK in the FCC's FM station database
- WBCK on Radio-Locator
- WBCK in Nielsen Audio's FM station database