WOOD-FM

WOOD-FM (106.9 FM, "NewsRadio 106.9") is an American radio station in Muskegon, Michigan, broadcasting a news/talk format, and is owned by iHeartMedia.

This article is about the current WOOD-FM in Muskegon, Michigan. For the station that bore the WOOD-FM call letters from 1962 to 2010, see WSRW-FM.
WOOD-FM
CityMuskegon, Michigan
Broadcast areaMuskegon, Michigan, Grand Rapids, Michigan
Frequency106.9 MHz (HD Radio)
BrandingNewsRadio 106.9/1300 WOOD
SloganWest Michigan's News, Talk, and Weather
Programming
FormatNews/Talk
AffiliationsMichigan IMG Sports Network
Ownership
OwneriHeartMedia
(iHM Licenses, LLC)
WKBZ, WMRR, WMUS, WSNX
History
First air date
November 1962
Former call signs
WMUS-FM (1962–1965)
WFFM (1965–1970)
WMUS-FM (1979–2005)
WMUS (2005–2010)
Call sign meaning
see WOOD (AM)
Technical information
Facility ID25086
ClassB
ERP50,000 watts
HAAT146 meters (479 ft)
Links
WebcastListen Live
Websitehttps://woodradio.iheart.com/

The station can be received across all of West-Michigan and as far east as Alma, St. Johns, and Northwest Lansing, with reception also possible in Eastern Wisconsin across Lake Michigan, especially in Sheboygan and Ozaukee Counties; a short-spaced allocation and higher power means that the Brookfield-licensed WNRG-FM has a much smaller coverage area than most Milwaukee stations due to the heritage of the 106.9 signal in Muskegon. WSAE 106.9 "Home FM" in Spring Arbor, Michigan tends to overpower the frequency across south-west lower Michigan. Since switching from stereo to monaural broadcasting, 106.9 FM can now be heard over a slightly larger coverage area than previously.

WOOD-FM originally began broadcasting as WMUS-FM in 1947 at 100.5 on the FM dial; it was Muskegon's first FM station and came on the air just a few months after its AM sister, WMUS. By 1950, WMUS-FM had gone dark, but the station was revived in November 1962 at its current frequency of 106.9 MHz and a power of 2,850 watts (gradually increased to the current 50,000 watts over the years). WMUS-FM's original programming consisted of a simulcast of its AM sister.

In 1965, WMUS 1090 changed format from middle of the road music to country as "Top Gun Radio." Rather than continue to simulcast, WMUS-FM separated programming and adopted the new call sign WFFM. In a "storecast" arrangement with Hasper's, a local grocery-store chain, WFFM aired instrumental easy listening music in monaural sound, interspersed with promotional announcements about Hasper's.[1]

The WMUS-FM call letters returned to 106.9 in 1970 and the station resumed its simulcast of the AM's country format. FM stereo broadcasting was added in 1975. Eventually the AM and FM signals switched roles, with the 50,000-watt stereo FM signal becoming the primary station and AM 1090 becoming the simulcast. The simulcast ended in April 2001 when AM 1090 changed to a news/talk format, eventually taking the calls WKBZ (which one belonged to one of WMUS' biggest competitor stations).[2]

At Noon on January 5, 2011, WMUS-FM became WOOD-FM. WOOD-FM is now an FM simulcaster for sister station WOOD 1300 in Grand Rapids, Michigan and now broadcasts in mono. At the same time the WMUS calls and format were moved to 107.9 FM.[3] It acts primarily to fill in gaps in the AM station's nighttime signal.

Grand Valley State Laker football

WMUS is the main affiliate and flagship station for the Grand Valley State Laker football radio network.[4]

HD Radio

WOOD-FM broadcasts in HD Radio and features a simulcast of Muskegon-oriented talk-formatted sister station WKBZ 1090 on its HD2 side channel.

References
  1. "Essay on the early days of FM radio in Muskegon" (PDF). Michigude.
  2. "WMUS FM 106.9 Muskegon". Michigude.
  3. "MLive article on WMUS". MLive. Retrieved 10 December 2010.
  4. "GRAND VALLEY STATE OFFICIAL ATHLETIC SITE". Grand Valley State Lakers. Retrieved 24 November 2010.

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