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WHOS

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This article is about the radio station in Alabama. For the singular of WHOs, see who (disambiguation).
WHOS
Broadcast areaHuntsville metropolitan area
Frequency800 kHz
BrandingThe Big Talker 800/1230
Programming
FormatTalk Radio
NetworkFox News Radio
AffiliationsPremiere Networks
Ownership
Owner
WBHP, WDRM, WQRV, WTAK-FM
History
First air date
October 1948; 76 years ago (1948-10)
Technical information[1]
Licensing authority
FCC
Facility ID44023
ClassD
Power1,000 watts day
215 watts night
Transmitter coordinates
34°35′55″N 87°00′24″W / 34.59861°N 87.00667°W / 34.59861; -87.00667
Links
Public license information
WebcastListen Live
Websitewbhpam.iheart.com

WHOS (800 kHz) is a commercial AM radio station licensed to Decatur, Alabama, with studios in Madison, Alabama. WHOS is one of five stations in the Huntsville radio market owned by iHeartMedia, Inc.[2] The station is simulcast on WBHP at 1230 AM in Huntsville, an FM translator at 106.5 MHz in Huntsville, and on 100.3 WQRV-HD2 (HD Radio).

WHOS broadcasts a talk radio format and serves northwest Alabama and south-central Tennessee.[3] By day, the station is powered at 1,000 watts. But 800 AM is a Mexican clear channel frequency. To prevent interference, it reduces power at night to 215 watts. The transmitter is off 2nd Street SW at 14th Avenue SW in Decatur.[4]

Programming

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Weekdays on WHOM and WBHP begin with Alabama's Morning News with J.T. Nyse, based at co-owned WERC-FM Mobile. The rest of the weekday schedule is made up of nationally syndicated talk shows, mostly from co-owned Premiere Networks: The Glenn Beck Radio Program, The Sean Hannity Show, The Michael Berry Show, The Jesse Kelly Show, Our American Stories with Lee Habeeb and Coast to Coast AM with George Noory.

Weekends feature shows on money, health, technology, travel and religion. Weekend syndicated programs include Rudy Maxa World Travel, The Weekend with Michael Brown, Armstrong & Getty, Rich DeMuro on Tech, The Ben Ferguson Show and Sunday Night with Bill Cunningham. Most hours begin with an update from Fox News Radio.

In addition to its regularly scheduled talk programming, the station is an affiliate of the Auburn Tigers football radio network.[5] It also carries Auburn Tigers men's basketball.[6]

History

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Early years

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The station signed on the air in October 1948; 76 years ago (1948-10). It was a 1,000-watt daytime-only station broadcasting at 800 kilocycles.[7] Originally owned by North Alabama Broadcasting, the station was randomly assigned the WHOS call letters by the Federal Communications Commission; they do not stand for anything in particular.[8]

As a daytime-only station, it could not broadcast at night. XEROK in Ciudad Juarez is the Class A station on the frequency and WHOS had to go off the air to avoid interference. WHOS ran a country music format for most of its first 40 years.

Financial problems

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In February 1987, the broadcast license for WHOS was transferred from Dixie Broadcasting, Inc., to Dixie Broadcasting, Inc. as Debtor-In-Possession. The transfer was approved by the FCC on February 26, 1987.[9] Dixie Broadcasting had filed bankruptcy in an effort to stave off an adverse civil lawsuit outcome regarding the contracted sale of WDRM to W.H. Pollard, Jr., the then-owner of WBHP (1230 AM) in Huntsville, Alabama.[10]

In October 1988, the station, which had been airing a Southern Gospel music format, flipped to an all-Elvis Presley format. It used the advertising tagline "WHOS alive?".[11] This novel format garnered the station national media attention, but failed to gain a local audience and lasted just six months, in effect a lengthy stunt.[12] After the Elvis format ended, WHOS switched to a simulcast of then co-owned WDRM and its country music format, which was by this time very successful and among North Alabama's top-rated stations.

In January 1992, a deal was reached for the broadcast license for WHOS to be transferred from Dixie Broadcasting, Inc. as Debtor-In-Possession back to Dixie Broadcasting, Inc. The deal was approved by the FCC on March 26, 1992, and the transaction was consummated on September 15, 1992.[13]

Mountain Lakes Broadcasting

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In December 1991, Dixie Broadcasting, Inc., reached an agreement to merge ownership of this station with the ownership of WBHP to a new company named Mountain Lakes Broadcasting, Inc., pending the resolution of Dixie's legal difficulties.[14] In October 1993, with Dixie Broadcasting back in good financial standing and the legal issues settled by the appeals courts, the merger moved forward.[15] The deal was approved by the FCC on November 3, 1993, and the transaction was consummated on November 11, 1993.[16]

In November 1996, J. Mack Bramlett, W.H. Pollard Jr., and Trust B Under The Will Of W.H. Pollard Sr. reached an agreement to transfer control of Mountain Lakes Broadcasting, licensee of this station as well as WDRM and WBHP, to Osborn Communications Corporation.[17] The deal was approved by the FCC on January 29, 1997.[18] In November 1997, WHOS and WBHP dropped their shared country music format for an all-news format featuring CNN Radio 24 hours a day.[19]

In August 1998, Osborn-owned Mountain Lakes Broadcasting, LLC, reached an agreement to sell this station to AMFM Inc. a subsidiary of Ameron Broadcasting Corporation.[20] The deal was approved by the FCC on October 2, 1998, and the transaction was consummated on November 5, 1998.[21]

Clear Channel ownership

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In February 1999, AMFM Inc.'s Ameron Broadcasting Corporation made a deal to sell this station to Clear Channel Communications through its Capstar Royalty II Corporation subsidiary.[22] The deal was approved by the FCC on March 2, 1999, and the transaction was consummated on March 5, 1999.[23]

This deal, a small part of a larger $16.6 billion transaction, included all five of the Huntsville stations then in Clear Channel's Huntsville station group.[22] In 2014, Clear Channel changed its name to iHeartMedia, current owner of WHOS.

Former on-air staff

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Notable former WHOS on-air staff included George Rose, who, along with his alter-ego "Cousin Josh" character, hosted "The Cousin Josh Jam-O-Ree" on several North Alabama radio stations in a career that began in 1948 and ended with his death in 2006.[24]

Former programming

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WHOS and sister station WBHP were the broadcast flagships for the 1999-2000 final season of the Huntsville Channel Cats and for the short-lived Huntsville Tornado for the 2000-2001 hockey season.[25] Both teams played their home games at the Von Braun Center and competed in the Central Hockey League.

References

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  1. ^ "Facility Technical Data for WHOS". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
  2. ^ Welch, Chris (August 29, 2004). "Critics blast Clear Channel; Superpower of radio, music dominates markets". The Huntsville Times. p. 3G.
  3. ^ "Station Information Profile". Arbitron.
  4. ^ Radio-Locator.com/WHOS
  5. ^ "Football Affiliates". The Auburn University Official Athletic Site. Retrieved December 4, 2008.
  6. ^ "Basketball Affiliates". The Auburn University Official Athletic Site. Retrieved December 4, 2008.
  7. ^ Broadcasting Yearbook. Broadcasting Publications. 1952.
  8. ^ "Call Sign History". FCC Media Bureau CDBS Public Access Database.
  9. ^ "Application Search Details (BAL-19870217GF)". FCC Media Bureau. February 26, 1987.
  10. ^ "871 F.2d 1023 In re Dixie Broadcasting Inc". United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit. April 28, 1989.
  11. ^ Voland, John (1988-10-05). "Radio". Los Angeles Times. Straight from the gospel to the Pelvis . . . such is the overnight odyssey of radio station WHOS in Decatur, Ala., which switched formats overnight from gospel music and religious programming to an all-Elvis format Monday morning...
  12. ^ Plasketes, George (1997). Images of Elvis Presley in American Culture, 1977-1997: The Mystery Terrain. Haworth Press. p. 22. ISBN 1-56024-910-2. WHOS in Decatur, Alabama underwent a similar short-lived experiment, converting from gospel to an all-Elvis format, which for six months generated more media attention than listenership.
  13. ^ "Application Search Details (BAL-19920129HE)". FCC Media Bureau. September 15, 1992.
  14. ^ "Application Search Details (BTC-19911204HS)". FCC Media Bureau. November 11, 1993.
  15. ^ "Area radio stations merge". The Huntsville Times. November 20, 1993. p. A2.
  16. ^ "Application Search Details (BAL-19931008GE)". FCC Media Bureau. November 11, 1993.
  17. ^ Kaylor, Mike (November 21, 1996). "WDRM gets new owner; format to stay country". The Huntsville Times. p. B1.
  18. ^ "Application Search Details (BTC-19961205GJ)". FCC Media Bureau. January 29, 1997.
  19. ^ Smallwood, Dean. "AM stations switch to all news format". The Huntsville Times. p. G6.
  20. ^ "Five area stations involved in radio merger". The Huntsville Times. August 27, 1998. p. B6.
  21. ^ "Application Search Details (BAL-19980928GE)". FCC Media Bureau. November 5, 1998.
  22. ^ a b "Clear Channel buys AMFM for $16.6B". The Huntsville Times. October 5, 1999. p. B6.
  23. ^ "Application Search Details (BAL-19990203GK)". FCC Media Bureau. March 5, 1999.
  24. ^ Bishop, Kristen (2006-12-09). "George Rose, famous as radio's 'Cousin Josh,' dies at 78; funeral today". The Decatur Daily.
  25. ^ Ponder, Darrell (October 5, 2000). "City's 'new' CHL club hits ice for exhibition". The Huntsville Times. p. C3.
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