WCJK

WCJK (96.3 MHz) is a commercial FM radio station licensed to Murfreesboro, Tennessee and serving the Nashville metropolitan area. It airs an adult hits radio format and is owned by Midwest Communications, Inc.[1] It subscribes to the nationally syndicated Jack FM service, using the slogan "Playing What We Want!"

WCJK
CityMurfreesboro, Tennessee
Broadcast areaNashville metropolitan area
Frequency96.3 MHz
Branding96.3 Jack FM
SloganPlaying What We Want
Programming
FormatAdult Hits
Ownership
OwnerMidwest Communications, Inc.
WJXA, WNFN
History
First air date
August 10, 1963 (1963-08-10) (as WMTS-FM)
Former call signs
WMTS-FM (1963–1977)
WKOS (1977–1984)
WZKS (1984–1985)
WTMG (1985–1988)
WRMX (1988–2000)
WMAK (2000–2004)
WMAK-FM (2004–2005)
Call sign meaning
We're Crazy Like JacK!
Technical information
Facility ID61053
ClassC1
ERP39,000 watts
HAAT432 meters (1417 ft)
Links
WebcastListen Live
Website963jackfm.com

WCJK has an effective radiated power of 39,000 watts. The transmitter is on Trail Hollow Lane, near Interstate 24, in the Whites Creek neighborhood of Nashville.[2] The studios and offices are located on Rosedale Avenue in south central Nashville near the Tennessee State Fairgrounds arena.

History

Early Years

On August 10, 1963, the station signed on the air as WMTS-FM.[3] It was built by partners Arthur Smith, Jr., who served as the president, and Arthur Trimm, who served as general manager. At first, it simulcast sister station AM 860 WMTS (now WMGC), using the initials of the owners' surnames along with the city of Murfreesboro. It was by sheer coincidence that the call sign matched the initials of the local college, Middle Tennessee State.

WMTS-AM-FM were sold by Arthur Smith Jr. to Joyce Ehrhart in August 1964 for $175,000.[4] Her husband, Jack Ehrhart became President and ran the stations for a couple of years. They hosted an open house on the 11th anniversary of the station.[5] They sold the stations in the late 1960s.

Top 40, AC and Oldies

[6] The stations were sold to Tom Perryman in 1976, and then purchased by local sportscaster and station employee Monte Hale in 1977. Hale changed the call letters to WKOS and branded the station "96 KOS" after changing the format to Top 40. Battling cancer, in 1981 Hale sold the AM and FM stations shortly before his death to John McCreery.

McCreery later changed the call sign to WZKS (96 Kiss). WZKS switched to an adult contemporary format, first as WTMG "Magic 96" in 1985, and then as WRMX "WMIX" in 1988. It played the "best mix of the 60s, 70s, and 80s."

In 1990, the station converted to an oldies format consisting of hits mostly recorded between the late 1950s and early 1970s. Eventually, the station was purchased by South Central Communications, separating it from the 810 AM. Later, the call letters were changed to WMAK-FM, reviving the call sign of a popular Top 40 AM station of the late 1960s and early 1970s.

Jack FM

On May 12, 2005, the format was abruptly switched to the "Jack FM" format, featuring an expanded, less-structured playlist, including rock hits from the 1980s and 90s, but with occasional unusual songs or novelty hits of the last 40 years. Reflecting the new Jack-FM format, the call letters were changed to the current WCJK.

It was announced on May 28, 2014, that Midwest Communications would purchase 9 of the 10 Stations owned by South Central Communications. (This includes WCJK & Sister Station WJXA.) With this purchase, Midwest Communications expanded its portfolio of stations to Evansville, Knoxville and Nashville.[7] The sale was finalized on September 2, 2014, at a price of $72 million.[8]

References
  1. FCC.gov/WCJK
  2. Radio-Locator.com/WCJK
  3. Information from the Broadcasting Yearbook 1964 page B-146
  4. https://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-BC/BC-1964/1964-09-07-BC.pdf
  5. https://www.newspapers.com/image/367614882/
  6. http://www.alanfreeman.org/alanfreeman/wmts.htm
  7. Midwest Communications Acquires South Central Communications
  8. "South Central Radio Group". Archived from the original on 2015-10-11. Retrieved 2014-10-03.

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