The year 1997 saw a number of significant events in radio broadcasting history.

Events

*January - Capstar buys Baltimore-based Benchmark Communications for $173 million. *7 January - Rádio Regina, a new regional station of

Slovenský rozhlas Slovenský rozhlas (; "Slovak Radio") or SRo was a state-owned nationwide public-service radio broadcaster in Slovakia. It was headquartered in Bratislava in a building shaped like an inverted pyramid. History SRo began broadcasting from Br ...

(Slovak Radio) in

Bratislava Bratislava (, also ; ; german: Preßburg/Pressburg ; hu, Pozsony) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Slovakia. Officially, the population of the city is about 475,000; however, it is estimated to be more than 660,000 — approxim ...

, starts broadcasting on 792 kHz. *24 January - Long-time

St. Louis St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...

Top 40 In the music industry, the Top 40 is the current, 40 most-popular songs in a particular genre. It is the best-selling or most frequently broadcast popular music. Record charts have traditionally consisted of a total of 40 songs. "Top 40" or " con ...

WKBQ WKBQ (93.5 FM) is a country music radio station in Covington, Tennessee, and serving the Memphis, Tennessee area, owned by Charles Ennis through licensee Grace Broadcasting Services, Inc. History WKBQ first signed on the air as WKBL-FM in 1965 ...

flips to

Modern AC Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul, R&B, quiet s ...

as "Alice 104.1." *15 February - After five years of Alternative Rock, WDRE flips to Urban as Philly 103.9 *18 February - Evergreen Media announce they will merge with Chancellor Broadcasting as part of a US$1.075 billion deal. At the same time, the combined company announces they will acquire Viacom's 10 station group. *24 February - 98.5 Kiss (Kiss Again 103.3)/Houston debuts after stunting with a loop of "

Kiss A kiss is the touch or pressing of one's lips against another person or an object. Cultural connotations of kissing vary widely. Depending on the culture and context, a kiss can express sentiments of love, passion, romance, sexual attraction, ...

" by

Prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. Th ...

. *23 May -

KBKS KBKS-FM (106.1 FM) – branded as ''Hits 106-1'' – is a commercial radio station licensed to Tacoma, Washington, and serving the Seattle metropolitan area. Owned by iHeartMedia, it broadcasts a Top 40/CHR format. The studios and offices are ...

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...

flips from gold-based

Rhythmic AC Rhythmic adult contemporary, often abbreviated as rhythmic AC or RAC, is an adult contemporary radio format. The format focuses primarily on rhythmic hits aimed towards an adult audience, often resembling a mixture of the classic hits and hot adult ...

-leaning

, rebranding as "Kiss 106.1." *June - Florida-based Paxson Communications sells its entire 169 station group to

Clear Channel Communications iHeartMedia, Inc., formerly CC Media Holdings, Inc., is an American mass media corporation headquartered in San Antonio, Texas. It is the holding company of iHeartCommunications, Inc. (formerly Clear Channel Communications, Inc.), a company fou ...

for $693 million. The deal closes in December. *22 June –

V-103 WVEE (103.3 FM, "V-103") is a commercial radio station in Atlanta, Georgia. It is owned by Audacy, Inc. and airs an urban contemporary radio format. WVEE is one of the highest-rated stations of the Atlanta radio market according to Nielsen Aud ...

Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

flips from its long-time

urban contemporary Urban contemporary music, also known as urban music, hip hop, urban pop, or just simply urban, is a music radio format. The term was coined by New York radio DJ Frankie Crocker in the early to mid-1970s as a synonym for Black music. Urban contem ...

format to

, branded as "102.7 XYV." *11 July –

KZQZ KZQZ was a commercial radio station that was licensed to serve St. Louis, Missouri at 1430 AM, and broadcast from 1922 to 2020. As WEB it was one of the first radio stations to have been established and licensed in the Greater St. Louis metro ...

/San Francisco debuts its

format, branded as "Z95.7." *1 August -

WDBZ WDBZ (1230 AM) is an urban talk/urban contemporary-formatted radio station serving Cincinnati, Ohio. The station mostly plays urban talk while also providing urban oldies and urban contemporary gospel music. Owned by Urban One, its studios ...

/New York changes call letters to WNSR with plans to flip back to a Gold-based AC on 18 August. However, Chancellor Media begins an LMA with 105.1 three days prior and the format flip is called off. The station still quietly evolves to more of a Hot AC format by October, calling themselves "FM 105.1", with plans for a new format of some sort to come in 1998. *4 August -

Hot AC Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul, R&B, quiet s ...

-formatted

WMTX WMTX (100.7 FM) is a commercial radio station in Tampa, Florida, known as "Mix 100.7". It has an adult contemporary radio format, switching to Christmas music for much of November and December. It is owned by iHeartMedia, Inc., with its studio ...

Tampa Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and the seat of Hillsborough County ...

flips to

as "Star 95.7" WSSR. *2 September -

KOAZ KOAZ (1510 AM broadcasting, AM) is a radio station licensed to Vanguard Media LLC. at Isleta Pueblo, New Mexico. It is operating at "Isleta Pueblo, New Mexico, Isleta" with 5,000 watts daytime and 25 watts nighttime, from . The station serves th ...

Phoenix Phoenix most often refers to: * Phoenix (mythology), a legendary bird from ancient Greek folklore * Phoenix, Arizona, a city in the United States Phoenix may also refer to: Mythology Greek mythological figures * Phoenix (son of Amyntor), a ...

flips from

smooth jazz Smooth jazz is a genre of commercially-oriented crossover jazz and easy listening music that became dominant in the mid 1970s to the early 1990s. History Smooth jazz is a commercially oriented, crossover jazz which came to prominence in the 19 ...

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, while the ...

as "Wild Country 103.5." *5 September – WFLN/Philadelphia ends 40 years of Classical music. At 6 PM this day, the station flips to

as "Max 95.7" *18 September - Kansas City's heritage rock station KYYS "KY 102" drops its 23-year-old AOR format to become modern AC "102.1 The Zone." The staff, several of whom have been with the station its entire run, is informed of the decision to change its format and their termination just 90 minutes in advance. The venerable KYYS call letters would be replaced by "KOZN" about a month later. *19 September - American Radio Systems announces they will merge with

Westinghouse Broadcasting The Westinghouse Broadcasting Company, also known as Group W, was the broadcasting division of Westinghouse Electric Corporation. It owned several radio and television stations across the United States and distributed television shows for syndicat ...

(which would be renamed CBS, Inc.), getting 98 stations and $2.6 billion as part of the deal. *October - Kansas City's WHB 710 and KCMO 810 swap frequencies. *1 October – Windy 100 (WPNT-FM, now

WSHE-FM WSHE-FM (100.3 MHz) is a radio station licensed to Chicago, Illinois with an adult contemporary format focused on the 90s and 2000s with some 80s and 2010s music. The station is currently owned by Hubbard Broadcasting, Its studios are located ...

)/Chicago debuts with an

adult contemporary Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul, R&B, quie ...

format *20 October – KMJM-FM/

moves from 107.7 to 104.9 at midnight. After 12 hours of stunting, 107.7 relaunches as

KSLZ KSLZ (107.7 FM "Z107-7") is a Top 40 (CHR) radio station in St. Louis, Missouri, United States. The iHeartMedia (previously Clear Channel Communications) outlet broadcasts at 107.7 MHz with an ERP of 100 kW. Its transmitter is locat ...

"Z107.7." Also on this day, longtime easy listening station KLTH/Kansas City picks up the discarded AOR format of KYYS and much of the ex-KY 102 staff and becomes "99.7 KY." *19 November –

KIBB KIBB (97.1 FM) is a radio station licensed to Haven, Kansas, the station serves the Wichita area. The station is currently owned by Rocking M Media. The station's studios are located in Wellington, Kansas, and the transmitter is in Colwich, K ...

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

flips from

Urban Oldies Urban adult contemporary, often abbreviated as urban AC or UAC, (also known as adult R&B,) is the name for a format of radio music, similar to an urban contemporary format. Radio stations using this format usually would not have hip hop music on ...

, branded as "Mega 100". The station is a pioneer, becoming one of the first stations to adopt the format, and resulting in the launches of similar stations around the country over the next 3 years. *21 November – After 37 years of

classical music Classical music generally refers to the art music of the Western world, considered to be distinct from Western folk music or popular music traditions. It is sometimes distinguished as Western classical music, as the term "classical music" also ...

, WQRS/Detroit flips to

Modern Rock Modern rock is an umbrella term used to describe rock music that is found on college rock radio stations. Some radio stations use this term to distinguish themselves from classic rock, which is based in 1960s–1980s rock music. Radio format Mod ...

, branded as "105.1 The Edge." *26 November -

WVTY WVTY (92.1 FM, "92-1 VTY Country") is a country music-formatted radio station in Racine in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. It serves Racine, Kenosha and Milwaukee's southern suburbs. WVTY is owned by David Magnum, through licensee Magnum Communicatio ...

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

shifts from

adult top 40 The Adult Pop Airplay (formerly known as Adult Pop Songs and Adult Top 40) chart is published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine and ranks "the most popular adult top 40 as based on radio airplay detections measured by Nielsen Broadcast Data Systems ...

as "96.1 The River." The move comes due to a sale from Hearst to SFX Broadcasting, which brings about a major restructuring move at both WVTY (who would later change call letters to WDRV) and sister WTAE (AM), resulting in a mass amount of layoffs, as well as a format change on WTAE from news/talk to sports.

Debuts

* ''Ron and Ron Show'' disbands, and

Ron Bennington Ronald Lee Bennington (born December 31, 1958) is an American radio personality and comedian who is currently the co-host of '' Bennington'' and host of '' Unmasked''. Additionally, he has been a co-host of a number of radio shows, including '' ...

teams up with

Fez Whatley Todd Hillier (March 31, 1964 – August 14, 2021), better known by his on-air name Fez Marie Whatley, was an American comedian and radio producer and personality who gained prominence as the co-host of '' The Ron and Fez Show'' with Ron Benni ...

to create '' The Ron and Fez Show''. * ''

Dennis and Callahan ''Dennis and Callahan'' was an American morning radio show on WEEI-FM, a sports radio station in Boston, Massachusetts. On November 16, 2010, a live three-hour simulcast began airing on NESN at 6–10 AM Eastern time each weekday. The show ...

'' debuts on WEEI in Boston

Deaths

* 8 January –

Harman Grisewood Harman Joseph Gerard Grisewood, CBE (8 February 1906 – 8 January 1997) was an English radio actor, radio and television executive, novelist and non-fiction writer.

, 90, English radio actor and administrator. * 20 January –

Dennis Main Wilson Dennis Geoffrey William Wilson, known as Dennis Main Wilson (1 May 1924 – 20 January 1997) was a British producer of radio and television programmes, mainly for the BBC. Main Wilson has been described by ''Screenonline'' as "arguably the ...

, 72, English broadcast comedy producer. * 7 July –

Jerry Doggett Jerome Howard Doggett (September 14, 1916 – July 7, 1997) was an American sportscaster who called games for the Brooklyn and Los Angeles Dodgers of Major League Baseball from 1956 to 1987. Early days Doggett was born in Moberly, Missouri and ...

, 80,

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

sportscaster, play-by-play for

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

and

Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brooklyn ...

baseball games from 1956 in radio to 1987. * 30 September –

Al "Jazzbo" Collins Albert Richard "Jazzbo" Collins (January 4, 1919 – September 30, 1997) was an American disc jockey and musician who hosted ''The Tonight Show'' in 1957. Career Born in Rochester, New York, in 1919, Collins grew up on Long Island, New York. In ...

, 78, American disc jockey, radio personality and recording artist, briefly host of NBC television's ''

Tonight Tonight may refer to: Television * ''Tonight'' (1957 TV programme), a 1957–1965 British current events television programme hosted by Cliff Michelmore that was broadcast on BBC * ''Tonight'' (1975 TV programme), a 1975–1979 British current ...

'' show in 1957. * 18 October –

Nancy Dickerson Nancy Dickerson (January 19, 1927 – October 18, 1997) was an American radio and television journalist and researcher for the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. As famous as a celebrity and socialite as she was for her journalism, she later ...

, 60, pioneering American radio and television newswoman.Cox, Jim (2008). ''This Day in Network Radio: A Daily Calendar of Births, Debuts, Cancellations and Other Events in Broadcasting History''. McFarland & Company, Inc. . * 21 December –

Roger Barkley Roger Barkley (September 11, 1936, Odebolt, Iowa, USA – December 21, 1997, Duarte, California) was an American radio personality, based in Los Angeles, California, best remembered for his work with Al Lohman as part of ''The Lohman and Barkley ...

, 60, Los Angeles radio personality, teamed with Al Lohman as part of ''The Lohman and Barkley Show'' on

KFI KFI (640 AM broadcasting, AM) is a radio station in Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, owned and operated by iHeartMedia, Inc. It began operations in 1922 and became one of the first high-powered, clear-channel station, clear-channel List of ...

References

{{reflist Radio by year

Events

Debuts

Deaths

See also

References