WTLX
 | |
| Broadcast area | Madison metropolitan area |
|---|---|
| Frequency | 100.5 MHz |
| Branding | 100.5 FM ESPN |
| Programming | |
| Format | Sports |
| Affiliations | ESPN Radio Milwaukee Brewers Milwaukee Bucks Madison Mallards |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | Good Karma Brands |
| WTMJ, WBEV, WBEV-FM, WKTI, WMVP | |
| History | |
First air date | July 16, 1990 (as WYKY) |
Former call signs | WWAM (1989–1990) WYKY (1990–1998) |
Call sign meaning | From the station's previous hot TaLk format, "100 X" |
| Technical information[1] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 4477 |
| Class | A |
| ERP | 6,000 watts |
| HAAT | 55 meters (180 ft) |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
| Webcast | Listen Live |
| Website | espnwisconsin.com |
WTLX (100.5 FM "100.5 FM ESPN") is a commercial radio station licensed to Monona, Wisconsin, and serving the Madison metropolitan area. The station is owned by Good Karma Broadcasting, LLC, and runs a sports radio format as a network affiliate of ESPN Radio. It shares most programming with Milwaukee-based sister station WKTI-FM, identifying jointly on air as ESPN Wisconsin.
WTLX is a Class A FM station, with an effective radiated power (ERP) of 6,000 watts. The transmitter is off Tower Road, using an antenna on the water tower at the Mendota Mental Health Institute in Madison.[2] The studios are in the SPARK Building on East Washington Avenue in downtown Madison.
Programming
[edit]WTLX's schedule includes programming from ESPN Radio as well as Wisconsin-based shows also airing on Milwaukee-area sister station WKTI 94.5 FM. Local programming includes KBN with Kyle Wallace, Ben Brust, and Brad Nortman. Rutledge and Hamilton with Jim Rutledge and Olympic Gold medalist Matt Hamilton, and Wilde & Tausch, hosted by three-time Wisconsin sportswriter of the year Jason Wilde[3] and former Wisconsin Badger and Green Bay Packer Mark Tauscher. Weekday ESPN Radio programming on the station includes "Unsportsmanlike" with Evan Cohen, Michelle Smallmon, and Chris Canty and Greeny with Mike Greenberg. Local weekday and speciality programming includes Wisconsin College GameDay, Mr. Irrelevant with Alex Strouf, and Prep Mania.
Live sports programming on WTLX features Milwaukee Bucks basketball and Milwaukee Brewers baseball.[4] The station airs select local high school sports play-by-play. The station also carries national sports play-by-play from ESPN Radio, including NBA basketball, Major League Baseball, and college football games.
History
[edit]The station first signed on the air on July 16, 1990.[5] The original call sign was WWAM and its city of license was Columbus, Wisconsin. In 1990 it changed call letters to WYKY, airing an adult contemporary music format as "Key 100.5." Then in 1998, it changed to WTLX with a "hot talk" format as "100X."[6] The 100X schedule included The Howard Stern Show and The Don and Mike Show, along with sports programming from Sporting News Radio and later Fox Sports Radio.
By the mid-2000s, the station eliminated the hot talk and concentrated on an all-sports format, with both national and Wisconsin-based programming. On January 1, 2009, WTLX became a network affiliate of ESPN Radio, whose programming had been airing in Madison on rival station 1070 WTSO.[7] Along with that affiliation change, WTLX's city of license moved from Columbus, 27 miles (43 km) northeast of Madison, to the Madison suburb of Monona.
According to Jason Wilde on an episode of "Wilde & Tausch" from December 21, 2021, the radio studio when he joined ESPN Madison was located on Regent Street under the Regent Apartments. The address was 1402 Regent Street in Madison, a block east of Camp Randall Stadium.[8] The same episode of "Wilde & Tausch" also mentions that previous to Pinckney Street the radio studio had been located at the WISC-TV studios at 7025 Raymond Road on the southwest side of Madison. Since January of 2022, the station has operated out of the American Family Insurance SPARK Building located on E. Washington Ave in downtown Madison.[9][10]
In December 2024, Good Karma announced that Milwaukee Brewers baseball broadcasts would move from rival sports station WOZN 1670 AM to WTLX. The move would take effect with the 2025 Major League Baseball season. WTLX's sister station, WTMJ 620 AM in Milwaukee, is the flagship station on the Milwaukee Brewers Radio Network.[11]
References
[edit]- ^ "Facility Technical Data for WTLX". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
- ^ "WTLX-FM Radio Station Coverage Map".
- ^ "Wisconsin Sportswriter of the Year". National Sports Media Association.
- ^ InsideRadio.com "Brewers Switch Affiliastes in Madison" Dec. 27, 2024. Retrieved Dec. 30, 2024
- ^ Broadcasting & Cable Yearbook 2010 page D-595. Retrieved Dec. 30, 2024.
- ^ "100X website" on Archive.org
- ^ "Sports: Madison's ESPN radio changes stations to 100.5 FM". Archived from the original on 2008-12-23.
- ^ "Wilde & Tausch - Wisconsin on Demand". 22 December 2021.
- ^ "Contact ESPN Madison". 9 August 2016.
- ^ "Wilde & Tausch - Wisconsin on Demand". 22 December 2021.
- ^ Inside Radio.com "Brewers Switch Affiliates in Madison" Dec. 27, 2024.
External links
[edit]- WTLX official website
- Facility details for Facility ID 742650 (WTLX) in the FCC Licensing and Management System
- WTLX in Nielsen Audio's FM station database