KWCL-FM (96.7 MHz) is an American radio station licensed by the FCC to serve Oak Grove, Louisiana, in West Carroll Parish in the northeastern portion of the state.
The license is assigned to Holland Broadcasting, LLC, a division of Holland Entertainment.[2]
History
On February 23, 1957, Carroll Broadcasting Company applied to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) for a new radio station in Oak Grove. It was awarded 1280 kHz as a 500-watt, daytime-only operation on April 16, 1958.[3] KWCL, named for its parish,[4] began broadcasting on August 15, 1958.[5]
Irene Robinson's husband, "Poison" Ivy Robinson, co-owned the station with David Blossman from 1969 to 1980. During this time, the station obtained an FM construction permit and signed on what was originally known as KWCL-FM on February 1, 1973.[6] The station adopted its own programming as KDDI in March 1975 with a taped gospel format[7] but reverted to the KWCL-FM designation in 1978.[8] When Blossman died in 1980, the station was sold, and Ivy Robinson moved to Shreveport.[9]
In February 1984, an application was filed to transfer the license from Baker Broadcasting to Heart of Dixie Broadcasting Corp, owned by Bennett Strange.[10]
Irene Robinson has owned KWCL since 1990 after she repurchased the station along with other partners that she later bought out.[9] The AM station was off the air by 1991.
On March 23, 2022, the station was sold to Adam Holland of Holland Entertainment, which also operates the Fiske Theatre in Oak Grove.[11] On June 1, the FCC transferred the license to Holland Broadcasting, LLC, ending the Robinson family's 40-plus year affiliation with the station. In anticipation of the sale, the station flipped to hot adult contemporary as "Mix 96.7" in January 2023.
References
- ^ "Facility Technical Data for KWCL-FM". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
- ^ KWCL-FM fcc.gov. Accessed September 29, 2012
- ^ FCC History Cards for KWCL (AM)
- ^ "KWCL call letters granted OG station". The West Carroll Gazette. Oak Grove, Louisiana. May 29, 1958. p. 1. Retrieved September 23, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Local radio station slates broadcasting". The West Carroll Gazette. Oak Grove, Louisiana. August 7, 1958. p. 1. Retrieved September 23, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "KWCL initiates FM broadcasting". The West Carroll Gazette. Oak Grove, Louisiana. February 8, 1973. p. 1. Retrieved September 23, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Radio station initiates new system here". The West Carroll Gazette. Oak Grove, Louisiana. April 17, 1975. p. 1. Retrieved September 23, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ FCC History Cards for KWCL-FM
- ^ a b Mott, Ashley; Baldwin, Hannah (March 26, 2017). "KWCL: A window on Main Street Oak Grove". The News-Star. Monroe, Louisiana. p. 1A, 14A. Retrieved September 23, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Firm seeks to get stations". The Times. Shreveport, Louisiana. February 1, 1984. p. 13-C. Retrieved September 23, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Venta, Lance (March 25, 2022). "Station Sales Week Of 3/25". RadioInsight.
External links
- KWCL-FM's official website
- KWCL in the FCC FM station database
- KWCL in Nielsen Audio's FM station database