 | |
| Broadcast area | Huntington, West Virginia Ironton, Ohio Ashland, Kentucky |
|---|---|
| Frequency | 97.9 MHz |
| Branding | 97.9 The River |
| Programming | |
| Format | Classic hits Oldies |
| Affiliations | Westwood One |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | Fifth Avenue Broadcasting Company, Inc. (dba Kindred Communications) |
| WXBW, WDGG, WRVC, WCMI, WCMI-FM | |
| History | |
First air date | 2006 |
Call sign meaning | W MAGic (previous format) |
| Technical information | |
| Facility ID | 164110 |
| Class | A |
| ERP | 3,500 watts |
| HAAT | 133 meters |
Transmitter coordinates | 38°25′26.0″N 82°32′8.0″W / 38.423889°N 82.535556°W |
| Links | |
| Webcast | Listen Live |
| Website | 979theriver.com |
WMGA (97.9 FM, "The River") is a classic hits and oldies formatted broadcast radio station licensed to Kenova, West Virginia, serving Huntington, West Virginia, Ironton, Ohio, and Ashland, Kentucky. WMGA is licensed to Fifth Avenue Broadcasting Company, Inc.
History
On July 26, 2012, WMGA changed their format from soft AC (as "Magic 97.9") to hot AC, branded as "Hits 97.9".[1] On May 6, 2017, WMGA changed their format to "80s and More! Hits 97.9" On February 26, 2018, WMGA changed their format from 1980s hits to adult contemporary, branded as "97.9 The River".[2]
On October 19, 2023, 97.9 the River was the very first radio station in the United States to flip to all Christmas music for the 2023 holiday season. No media outlets had noticed WMGA's change until October 31, when WMXL in Lexington, Kentucky was thought to have been the first for that year[3] (which would have been, in reversal of the Christmas creep trend, the latest such first overall flip in over a decade); Radio Insight, which tracks such format flips, later added an addendum to that report that "we have been told" WMGA had been doing so since the 19th.[4] Inside Radio, which also identified WMXL as first, stated that WMGA had "slipp(ed) under the radar."[5]
Following the Christmas music stint, on December 26, 2023, the station, still under the "River" branding, shifted to an oldies format focused primarily on 1960s and 1970s music. The format shift was deemed a "very personal" project for Kindred president/CEO Mike Kirtner, who had grown up in the Huntington area and claimed said music was deemed a "forgotten generation" by most radio outlets in the area.[6] The station is otherwise unchanged, with morning hosts Bob and Sheri remaining on the station through the move.
References
- ↑ Hits Hit Huntington Radioinsight - July 26, 2012
- ↑ WMGA Goes From 80s to AC Radioinsight - February 26, 2018
- ↑ "Merry Halloween: The Christmas Flips Have Begun". Insideradio.com. 2023-10-31. Retrieved 2023-11-01.
- ↑ Venta, Lance (2023-10-31). "No trick: WMXL becomes first all-Christmas station of 2023". Retrieved 2023-10-31.
- ↑ "November Blizzard: Christmas Flips Are Busting Out All Over The Dial". Insideradio.com. 2023-11-01. Retrieved 2023-11-01.
- ↑ 97.9 The River Shifts to Oldies
External links
- 97.9 The River Online
- WMGA in the FCC FM station database
- WMGA in Nielsen Audio's FM station database