WMAY

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For the radio station in Taylorville, Illinois at 92.7 FM, see WMAY-FM.
WMAY
WMAY NewsTalk94.7-970 logo.png
CitySpringfield, Illinois
Broadcast areaSpringfield metropolitan area
Frequency970 kHz
BrandingNews Talk 92.7 94.7 & 970 WMAY
SloganDepend On Us!
Programming
FormatNews/Talk
AffiliationsWestwood One Network
Premiere Networks
ABC Radio News
Ownership
OwnerMid-West Family Broadcasting
(Long Nine, Inc.)
WMAY-FM, WNNS, WQLZ
History
First air date
October 15, 1950
Technical information
Facility ID38348
ClassB
Power1,000 watts day
500 watts night
ERP250 watts (94.7 MHz translator)
Transmitter coordinates
39°51′42.00″N 89°32′32.00″W / 39.8616667°N 89.5422222°W / 39.8616667; -89.5422222
Translator(s)94.7 W234CC (Sherman)
102.5 MHz W273DR (Springfield)
Links
WebcastListen Live
Websitewmay.com

WMAY (970 kHz) is a commercial AM radio station in Springfield, Illinois. The station is owned by Mid-West Family Broadcasting and the license is held by Long Nine, Inc.[1] The station airs a News/Talk radio format. On weekdays, WMAY features local hosts in the daytime and nationally syndicated shows at night. Most hours begin with ABC Radio News. WMAY's principal competitor in the talk radio format is 1240 WTAX.

Programming is simulcast on FM translator W234CC at 94.7 MHz in Sherman, Illinois[2] and 92.7 WMAY-FM.[3] WMAY's transmitter, studios and offices are all located on North Third Street in Riverton, Illinois.[4]

Programs[]

WMAY's programs are a mix of Westwood One, Premiere Networks, and independent syndication. Programs include:

Weekends feature programs on money, health, law, real estate, computers, guns and an hour devoted to the music of the Grateful Dead. Some weekend shows are paid brokered programming. Syndicated weekend hosts include Kim Komando, Bob Brinker, Bruce DuMont, Bill Cunningham, Cigar Dave and Fox Sports Radio.

History[]

WMAY first signed on the air on October 15, 1950.[5] It was owned by Lincoln Broadcasting. In 1963, the station was acquired by Springfield Broadcasting, a division of Stuart Stations. It aired a full service middle of the road music format, using NBC Radio News for its world and national news coverage.

Mid-West Family Broadcasting bought the station in 1976, switching it to country music a short time later.[6] In the early 1990s, WMAY went with an oldies format, and it flipped to its current talk radio format in 1995. Mid-West Family Broadcasting also owns local stations 98.7 WNNS-FM, 97.7 WQLZ and 92.7 WMAY-FM. Three of the most well-known broadcasters to pass through the studio were Bob Hale (hired directly from Clear Lake, IA after the Buddy Holly plane crash in 1959. He mc'd the show at the Surf Ballroom that night, gave casualties the next day, and was hired by WMAY; he purportedly made the coin flip between Ritchie Valens and Tommy Allsup for the final seat on the plane.); Cal Schrum ("The State Policeman's Friend," on the overnight shift; starred in several B westerns and was beloved by law enforcement personnel working the "graveyard shift"); and Red Barnes (Gregory Harutunian), his 1980s successor who would "set the chickens free," in the early morning hours. The station was also known in the 1980s for its “Little Black Box” promotion that awarded keys to a new vehicle to the finder of a hidden box containing keys to a new vehicle. The station would air clues for listeners to scavenger hunt the surrounding metro area for the “black box”. The promotion ended around the time the station switched from its long-running Country format.

On August 28, 2020, it was announced by Midwest Family that WUSW (now WMAY-FM) would drop their country format and begin simulcasting WMAY on September 1. The addition of 92.7 expands WMAY's FM coverage to areas to the south and east of Springfield.[3]

References[]

  1. ^ "WMAY Facility Record". United States Federal Communications Commission, audio division.
  2. ^ Radio-Locator.com/W234CC
  3. ^ Jump up to: a b WUSW To Flip To WMAY Simulcast
  4. ^ Radio-Locator.com/WMAY
  5. ^ Broadcasting Yearbook 1951 page 135
  6. ^ Broadcasting Yearbook 1980 page C-72

External links[]

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