WJR
Broadcast areaSoutheast Michigan
Frequency760 kHz
BrandingNews Talk 760 WJR
Programming
FormatNews/talk
Affiliations
Ownership
Owner
WDVD
History
First air date
May 4, 1922 (1922-05-04)
Former call signs
  • WCX (1922–1925)
  • WJR-WCX (1925–1929)
Former frequencies
  • 833 & 619 kHz (1922)
  • 750 & 619 kHz (1922–1923)
  • 750 kHz (1923)
  • 580 kHz (1923–1927)
  • 680 kHz (1927–1928)
  • 750 kHz (1928–1941)
Call sign meaning
Former owner Jewett Radio & Phonograph Co.
Technical information[1]
Licensing authority
FCC
Facility ID8626
ClassA
Power50,000 watts (unlimited)
Transmitter coordinates
Repeater(s)96.3 WDVD-HD2 (Detroit)
Links
Public license information
WebcastListen live
Websitewww.wjr.com

WJR (760 AM) is a commercial radio station in Detroit, Michigan, owned by Cumulus Media, with a news/talk radio format. Most of WJR's broadcast studios, along with its newsroom and offices, are in the Fisher Building in Detroit's New Center area. A tower atop the Fisher Building relays WJR's audio to the transmitter site, and at one time WJR-FM (currently WDVD) also used this tower. There is an additional satellite studio in the Wintergarden of the GM Renaissance Center in downtown Detroit.

WJR is a Class A clear channel station, operating with 50,000 watts, the maximum power for AM stations in the United States, around the clock. WJR's 1934 transmitter building — which has been called "one of the best Art Deco transmitter buildings ever"[2] — and transmitter tower are located off Sibley Road in Riverview, Michigan.[3]

Due to WJR's low transmitting frequency and high power, plus the region's mostly flat land and good ground conductivity,[4] the station has unusually large daytime coverage, equivalent to that of a full-power FM station. Its daytime signal provides at least secondary coverage to most of the southern Lower Peninsula, as well as almost half of Ohio (with Cleveland and Toledo getting city-grade coverage) and slivers of Indiana and Pennsylvania. At night it can be heard throughout much of eastern North America with a good radio.

WJR programming is streamed via the web, and is simulcast on WDVD's 96.3 FM HD2 subchannel.[5] WJR is also licensed to broadcast a digital hybrid (HD) signal.[6]

WJR is Michigan's primary entry point station for the Emergency Alert System.

Programming

WJR airs a mix of local and nationally syndicated talk shows and local sports. As of June 2023, the station operates a fully local lineup during the daytime hours, with Paul W. Smith (the station's longtime morning host) hosting the lunch-hour time slot, Guy Gordon in morning drive, late morning hosts Kevin Dietz and Tom Jordan, and afternoon personalities Chris Renwick and Mitch Albom. Brokered programming airs in the early fringe time slot. It is the Detroit outlet for Westwood One syndicated talk shows Mark Levin, Ben Shapiro and Red Eye Radio. WJR is the flagship station of the Michigan State Spartans football and men's basketball[7] and the Michigan Panthers professional football team.[8] Late nights and weekends, world and national news from Fox News Radio begins each hour.

In 2006, WJR picked up the nationally syndicated Handyman Show with Glenn Haege, which originates from Detroit, and previously aired on WXYT and WDFN. The Handyman Show is a nationally syndicated show, originating from WJR's own studios, as is also the case with several other weekend shows such as The C.A.R. Show and The Real Estate Insiders. Music programming on WJR has been phased out almost entirely over the past two decades. As of June 2014, the only music-oriented show on the station was the Renfro Valley Gatherin', aired early Sunday mornings.

History

The Fisher Building, a National Historic site in the city's New Center area, is home to the Fisher Theatre, with the WJR radio antenna

WCX

WJR traces its history to May 4, 1922. Effective December 1, 1921, the U.S. government for the first time adopted regulations formally defining "broadcasting stations". The wavelength of 360 meters (833 kHz) was designated for entertainment broadcasts, while 485 meters (619 kHz) was reserved for broadcasting official weather and other government reports.[9] On May 4, 1922, the Detroit Free Press newspaper was issued a license, with the randomly assigned call letters of WCX, for operation on both broadcasting wavelengths.[10]

WCX made its debut, broadcasting from the Free Press Building, on the same day it was licensed. The inaugural broadcast included an address by Michigan governor Alex J. Groesbeck.[11] 1922 saw a rapid expansion in the number of broadcasting stations, most sharing the single entertainment wavelength of 360 meters, which required progressively more complicated time sharing schedules among stations in the same region. The Detroit News, which operated station WWJ, bristled at having to suffer the "handicap" of being required to give up some airtime to WCX, which had, in the words of the News, decided to "break in".[12]

In late September 1922 a second entertainment wavelength, 400 meters (750 kHz), was made available for "Class B" stations, which had higher powers and better quality equipment and programming. Both WCX and WWJ qualified to use this new wavelength on a timesharing basis, and WCX ended use of the 485 meter "market and weather" wavelength.[13] In early 1923 the United States further expanded the broadcast station frequencies into a band running from 550 to 1350 kHz. The Class B frequency of 580 kHz was designated for use by qualified stations in the "Detroit/Dearborn" area,[14] and both WCX and WWJ were assigned to this frequency.[15]

On December 8, 1924, WCX opened studios atop the new Book-Cadillac Hotel in downtown Detroit, with transmitter facilities on the roof. Hometown poet Edgar A. Guest and the Jean Goldkette orchestra participated in the program. In January 1925, WWJ's reassignment to 850 kHz[16] left WCX as the sole station remaining on 580 kHz.

WJR-WCX

On August 20, 1925, the Jewett Radio & Phonograph Company received a license for a new station, WJR. The company also took over WCX, consolidating operations in Pontiac, Michigan, as WJR-WCX on 580 kHz.[17][18]

Goodwill Station ownership

1927 saw the adoption of the slogan "The Goodwill Station", plus NBC Blue network programs beginning on May 9.[19]

On January 1, 1927, the station was taken over by George A. Richards,[20] a local Oakland-Pontiac automobile dealer. Richards would later also assume control of WGAR in Cleveland and KMPC in Los Angeles.[21] WJR adopted the slogan "The Goodwill Station" and on May 9, 1927, began carrying programs from the recently formed NBC Blue network.[19]

In mid-1927 the joint stations moved to 680 kHz.[22] On November 11, 1928, the Federal Radio Commission implemented a major AM band reorganization, under the provisions of its General Order 40. This reallocation divided stations into three classes, which became known as "Clear", "Regional" and "Local". WJR-WCX was assigned as the sole North American occupant of the clear channel frequency of 750 kHz.[23]

On December 16, 1928, the station moved from the newspaper's offices to its current location in the Fisher Building in uptown Detroit, and began identifying as "WJR Detroit, from the Golden Tower of the Fisher Building". In 1929 the license was transferred to "WJR, Goodwill Station, Inc.", and on April 22, 1929, "WCX" was formally dropped from the dual call sign, with the station becoming just WJR.[24] In 1931, WJR raised its power to 10,000 watts. The station switched network affiliation from NBC Blue to CBS on September 29, 1935, and at the same time station officials formally dedicated WJR's new 50,000 watt transmitter.[25] On March 29, 1941, the station moved from 750 to 760 kHz, in accordance with the North American Regional Broadcasting Agreement frequency reallocations.[26]

Although station owner George A. Richards purchased the Detroit Lions professional football team in 1934, WJR did not begin to broadcast their games until the 1938 season.[27]

WJR signed on an FM outlet in 1948 at 96.3 MHz. This station was known as WJR-FM until 1982, when it became WHYT. The station is now WDVD.

Capital Cities ownership

In 1939, coverage by WJR and co-owned WGAR in Cleveland, "The Great Stations of the Great Lakes", was promoted as providing advertisers the ability to reach a "Golden Horseshoe" of midwestern listeners.[28]

Richards died in May 1951, and in 1964 Goodwill Stations was sold to Capital Cities Communications, which later merged with ABC and still later with the Walt Disney Company. Upon the sale, WJR's slogan became "The Great Voice of the Great Lakes". Also in 1964, WJR acquired full rights to Detroit Tigers baseball games, with announcers Ernie Harwell and George Kell, who had begun broadcasting Tiger games in 1960. Previously, WJR had carried only night games with day games on WKMH and WJBK. The station became the flagship of the Tiger Baseball Network.In the late 1960s, WJR also became the flagship station for Detroit Red Wings hockey and Detroit Pistons basketball.

The station's advertising campaigns and jingles included "W-J-R ... Radio 76 ... Cares About Detroit"[29] and "This is America's finest - AM stereo 76". J. P. McCarthy regularly stated, in a nonchalant way, "This is the world's greatest radio station, WJR Detroit", with a manner that made it seem like the most obvious of facts.

WJR broadcast in AM stereo, using the C-QUAM system, from 1982 to 2006, and was received in stereo at great distances at night. WJR's Detroit Tigers home games were broadcast in stereo, as were the Thanksgiving Day Parades.

For much of its history, WJR served as a powerhouse in Michigan sports radio. However, in 2001, the station lost its longtime flagship rights to the Detroit Tigers and Detroit Red Wings, both of which moved to CBS-owned WXYT and WXYT-FM. Then, in 2005, the station dropped its status as the flagship station for Michigan Wolverines football and basketball in favor of a flagship rights deal with the Michigan State Spartans. WJR had served as flagship for Michigan State prior to 1976.[7]

Cumulus Media ownership

WJR was sold with other ABC Radio stations to Citadel Broadcasting on June 12, 2007. Citadel merged with Cumulus Media on September 16, 2011.[30]

WJR broadcast an HD Radio signal for about a two-year period (2006–2008) (also on WDRQ's HD2 digital subchannel), eventually eliminating night time HD radio use, then dropping it completely on both WJR and WDRQ-HD2, returning to only its signal.

On November 20, 2015, WJR announced it would take over as flagship station of the Detroit Lions in 2016, with the team moving over from WXYT-FM.[31][32] The live sporting events meant that regular programming might be pre-empted. (During parts of the season when Michigan football and Tiger baseball were both on, Tiger baseball took precedence, and if a Michigan football game was either just beginning or really good when Tiger baseball came on, an announcement would come on as the football game faded out, stating the need to switch due to contractual obligations. Otherwise, the announcement would just simply state the station is leaving the Michigan game for the Tigers. Either way, listeners were directed to CKLW 800 AM in nearby Windsor, Ontario, for the conclusion of the game.)

On December 18, 2020, the Detroit Lions announced that Audacy signed a deal for WXYT-FM to become the flagship station for the 2021 NFL season after a five-year partnership.[33]

For many years, WJR aired Rush Limbaugh in early afternoons. Following Limbaugh's death in 2021, Dan Bongino took over the noon to 3 pm time slot on WJR and many other Cumulus stations. Bongino's show is distributed by Westwood One, which is the national syndication arm of Cumulus Media. Following disputes with Westwood One and Cumulus over a COVID-19 vaccine mandate, Bongino announced plans to end his Cumulus radio show at the end of his contract 18 months in the future.[34] Cumulus began phasing his show out of its stations' lineups, including WJR in June 2023.[35] At that time, WJR announced a new lineup of local personalities weekdays from 5 am to 8 pm.[36] Morning show host Paul W. Smith would move to early afternoons in place of Bongino, with Guy Gordon who previously hosted afternoons moving to morning drive.[37] New shows hosted by Chris Renwick and Sean Baligian were also added to the schedule.[38]

Father Coughlin broadcasts

Father Charles Coughlin was a local Roman Catholic priest, whose controversial weekly radio sermons largely originated at WJR. At the height of his popularity, Coughlin reported receiving thousands of letters daily.[39] He was also extremely polarizing, described by one biographer as "a man of kindness and beautiful understanding",[40] while another labeled him "the father of hate radio".[41]

Father Coughlin made his radio debut on October 17, 1926, speaking over WJR via a microphone installed by the station at the altar at the Shrine of the Little Flower.[42] His commentaries initially addressed perceived social ills, opposing prohibition, divorce and birth control as damaging to American society. During the Great Depression he moved heavily into political issues. On October 5, 1930, he began a weekly broadcast carried over the CBS network that originated at that network's Detroit affiliate, WXYZ.[43] But a year later CBS dropped him for being too divisive, by implementing a ban on commercially sponsored religious programs. With the assistance of WJR station manager Leo Fitzpatrick, Father Coughlin responded by forming his own network, with WJR as the key station.[44] "The Golden Hour" broadcasts began on October 4, 1931, initially on about 20 stations. By October 16 of the next year this expanded to 26 stations, said at the time to be "the largest independent network ever arranged",[45] and by early 1938 the network had grown to 58 stations.[46]

Coughlin's fervent anti-communism led to the perception that he was in favor of the rise of fascism in Europe, and he was accused of being anti-Jewish.[47] Although initially supported by the local church hierarchy, his personal attacks on political figures eventually resulted in official restrictions and rebukes.[48][49] In 1939 the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) adopted a code of conduct that included restrictions on controversial commercial broadcasts,[50] which was seen as primarily directed toward Coughlin, and WJR vice president John F. Pratt argued that "the provision on controversial subjects seems to many of us the first shackle on freedom of speech on the radio".[51] The NAB code led to a loss of participating stations,[52] and this, combined with subject matter restrictions imposed by his church superiors, resulted in Coughlin ending his radio broadcasts.

WJR personalities

Past WJR personalities included J.P. McCarthy, Jimmy Launce, Warren Pierce, Mike Whorf, Murray Gula, Joel Alexander, Jay Roberts, Charles Coughlin and many others. WJR Program Directors during the Capital Cities era included Joe Bacarella, Curt Hahn and AC radio consultant Gary Berkowitz.

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Facility Technical Data for WJR". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
  2. ↑ "WJR transmitter building". www.detroit1701.org. October 2007.
  3. ↑ "WJR-AM 760 kHz - Detroit, MI". radio-locator.com.
  4. ↑ "Map of Effective Ground Conductivity in the United States for AM Broadcast Stations" (FCC.gov)
  5. ↑ "HD Radio: Detroit, MI". HD Radio. Archived from the original on November 23, 2015. Retrieved December 16, 2015.
  6. ↑ "Station Search Details". Federal Communications Commission. Retrieved December 16, 2015.
  7. 1 2 "MSU Announces Football Broadcast Team" (Press release). Michigan State University. May 8, 2006. Retrieved December 16, 2015.
  8. ↑ WJR revamps programming lineup with Paul W. Smith moving to 12pm, Guy Gordon to mornings. Retrieved June 5, 2023.
  9. ↑ "Miscellaneous: Amendments to Regulations", Radio Service Bulletin, January 3, 1922, page 10.
  10. ↑ "New stations", Radio Service Bulletin, June 1, 1922, page 2. Limited Commercial license, serial #699, issued May 4, 1922 to the Detroit Free Press for operation on 360 and 485 meters for a three month period.
  11. ↑ "America Given Concert by Free Press", Detroit Free Press, May 5, 1922, page 1.
  12. ↑ "WWJ (An Explanation)", Detroit News, May 4, 1922, page 1.
  13. ↑ "Alterations and corrections", Radio Service Bulletin, May 1, 1923, page 8.
  14. ↑ "Radio Conference Recommendations: New Wave Lengths", Radio Age, May 1923, page 11. Beginning with these assignments radio stations ended the practice of broadcasting their market reports and weather forecasts on the separate 485 meter wavelength.
  15. ↑ "Alterations and corrections", Radio Service Bulletin, June 1, 1923, pages 11-12.
  16. ↑ "Alterations and corrections", Radio Service Bulletin, February 2, 1925, page 10.
  17. ↑ "New Stations", Radio Service Bulletin, September 1, 1925, page 3.
  18. ↑ "Alterations and corrections", Radio Service Bulletin, September 1, 1925, page 7. There were only a small number of dual call sign stations during the 1920s and 1930s, usually resulting from station consolidations. Most remaining examples disappeared after May 15, 1933, when the Federal Radio Commission requested that stations drop call letters no longer in regular use. ("Double Call Letters Are Being Eliminated", Washington (D.C.) Evening Star, June 25, 1933, Part 4, page 6.)
  19. 1 2 "WJR" (advertisement), Detroit Times, May 8, 1927, Part 2, page 8.
  20. ↑ "WJR Officials Work Tirelessly For WJZ", Detroit Times, May 8, 1927, Part 2, page 8.
  21. ↑ Fulton, Walter & Halley (1951), Memorandum of WJR, KMPC and WGAR in support of proposed findings of fact and conclusions, Federal Communications Commission, retrieved November 4, 2018
  22. ↑ "Broadcasting Stations by Wave Lengths" (effective June 15, 1927), Radio Service Bulletin, May 31, 1927, page 10.
  23. ↑ "Revised list of broadcasting stations, by frequencies, effective 3 a. m., November 11, 1928, eastern standard time", Second Annual Report of the Federal Radio Commission for the Year Ended June 30, 1928, Together With Supplemental Report for the Period From July 1, 1928, to September 30, 1928, page 202.
  24. ↑ "Alterations and corrections", Radio Service Bulletin, April 30, 1929, page 13.
  25. ↑ "Stations in Detroit Realigned Sept. 29". Broadcasting. Vol. 8, no. 7. October 1, 1935. p. 22. Retrieved December 18, 2021.
  26. ↑ "List of Radio Broadcast Stations, Alphabetically by Call Letters as of March 29, 1941", page 74 (Federal Communications Commission)
  27. ↑ "General Mills, Chrysler Sponsoring Pro Football', Broadcasting, August 1, 1938, page 73.
  28. ↑ "WJR/WGAR" (advertisement), Broadcasting, June 1, 1939, page 10.
  29. ↑ "W-J-R ... Radio 76 ... Cares About Detroit" (recordings of assorted WJR jingles)
  30. ↑ "Cumulus now owns Citadel Broadcasting". Atlanta Business Journal. September 16, 2011. Retrieved September 16, 2011.
  31. ↑ Dave Birkett (November 19, 2015). "Want to listen to the Lions in 2016? Tune in to WJR-AM". Detroit Free Press. Retrieved November 20, 2015.
  32. ↑ Tony Paul (November 20, 2015). "CBS Detroit: Lions censorship demands caused split". The Detroit News. Retrieved November 20, 2015.
  33. ↑ "Detroit Lions Return To Entercom's 'The Ticket' WXYT-FM". Insideradio.com. December 18, 2020. Retrieved January 28, 2021.
  34. ↑ Leaf, Maria (December 16, 2022). "LISTEN: Dan Bongino announces end of national radio show". Washington Examiner. Retrieved January 6, 2023.
  35. ↑ "Dan Bongino To Be Replaced By Paul W. Smith At WJR Detroit". Insideradio.com. June 5, 2023. Retrieved June 6, 2023.
  36. ↑ "WJR Revamps Programming Lineup with Paul W. Smith Moving To 12pm & Guy Gordon To Mornings". RadioInsight. June 5, 2023. Retrieved September 2, 2023.
  37. ↑ "WJR's Paul W. Smith moving to new time slot as part of station revamp". Detroit Free Press. Retrieved September 2, 2023.
  38. ↑ "WJR-AM". WJR-AM.
  39. ↑ Father Coughlin: the radio priest, of the Shrine of the Little Flower by Ruth Mugglebee, 1933, page 215.
  40. ↑ Mugglebee (1933) page 312.
  41. ↑ Radio Priest: Charles Coughlin, the Father of Hate Radio by Donald I. Warren, 1996.
  42. ↑ Mugglebee (1933) page 164.
  43. ↑ Mugglebee (1933) pages 202-203.
  44. ↑ "Radio Saga Links WJR, Coughlin", Detroit Times, September 29, 1935, Part 6, pages 2-3.
  45. ↑ "Rev. Coughlin Program Over 26 Station Net", Broadcasting, October 15, 1932, page 10.
  46. ↑ "Net of 58 Stations for Fr. Coughlin", Broadcasting, January 15, 1938, page 34.
  47. ↑ "Coughlin's Anti-Semitism", Detroit United Automobile Worker, November 26, 1938, page 5.
  48. ↑ "Coughlin Reproved by New Archbishop", Lewiston Evening Journal, October 8, 1937, page 8.
  49. ↑ "Coughlin Gets Official Rebuke", Bend (Oregon) Bulletin, November 22, 1937, page 3.
  50. ↑ "Text of First Ruling of Code Compliance Committee", Broadcasting, October 15, 1939, page 13.
  51. ↑ "Code's Restrictions Are Blow to Freedom, Pratt Tells NAB", Broadcasting, October 15, 1939, page 12.
  52. ↑ "First Code Action Brings NAB Discord" by Sol Taishoff, Broadcasting, October 15, 1939, page 11.
  53. ↑ Guy Gordon (WJR.com)
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