WAFS (1190 kHz) is an AM

radio station Radio broadcasting is transmission of audio (sound), sometimes with related metadata, by radio waves to radio receivers belonging to a public audience. In terrestrial radio broadcasting the radio waves are broadcast by a land-based radi ...

licensed to

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,7 ...

that broadcasts Catholic talk programming, as an affiliate of

Relevant Radio Relevant Radio (corporate name Relevant Radio, Inc.) is a radio network in the United States, mainly broadcasting talk radio and religious programming involving the Catholic Church. It is the largest Catholic radio network by owned station base. R ...

. The station is classified as a Class D AM broadcast station according to the

Federal Communications Commission The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that regulates communications by radio, television, wire, satellite, and cable across the United States. The FCC maintains jurisdicti ...

, with 25,000

watt The watt (symbol: W) is the unit of power or radiant flux in the International System of Units (SI), equal to 1 joule per second or 1 kg⋅m2⋅s−3. It is used to quantify the rate of energy transfer. The watt is named after James ...

s of power during the daytime using a non-directional antenna. WAFS also operates pre-sunrise (

PSRA In USA AM broadcasting, presunrise authorization (PSRA) and postsunset authorization (PSSA) are permission from the Federal Communications Commission to broadcast in AM on mediumwave using a power level higher than what would normally be permitted ...

) with 350 watts and post-sunset (PSSA) with power levels from 54 to 150 watts. (

WNIV WNIV (970 AM) is a commercial Christian radio station licensed to Atlanta, Georgia. It is one of three Salem Media Group-owned stations in the Atlanta metropolitan area carrying a Christian talk and teaching radio format. AM 590 WDWD carries a ...

, AM 970 kHz, broadcasts from the same tower as WAFS using an antenna diplexing system.)

History

WGKA

The station was first licensed on January 24, 1956 as WGKA, transmitting on 1600 AM. In its earliest days, WGKA was owned by Glenkaren Associates, headed by Locke E. Glenn, hence the acronym. Glenkaren Associates also owned a hi-fi audio store adjoining the radio station. In 1967, the station moved to 1190 kHz under the supervision of Chief Engineer, Lewis Edge. Shortly afterward, the station's Chief Engineer installed a new stereo transmitter and a 150' tower erected on the roof of the Peachtree Center Building. Studios were also moved from the building housing the hi-fi audio store to the Peachtree Center Building. Like WGKA AM, WGKA-FM 92.9 was a classical-music station in Atlanta from the 1950s to 1971. Although it existed in the days before

NPR National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other ...

, it occasionally carried programs which were not locally produced, such as '' BBC Music Showcase'', hosted by British composer/lecturer

Antony Hopkins Antony Hopkins CBE (21 March 1921 – 6 May 2014) was a composer, pianist, and conductor, as well as a writer and radio broadcaster. He was widely known for his books of musical analysis and for his radio programmes ''Talking About Music'', b ...

(not to be confused with film actor

Anthony Hopkins Sir Philip Anthony Hopkins (born 31 December 1937) is a Welsh actor, director, and producer. One of Britain's most recognisable and prolific actors, he is known for his performances on the screen and stage. Hopkins has received many accolad ...

). Several of the hosts who once worked at the station, such as Jonathan Phelps and David Jacobs, switched to working at WABE FM when WGKA-FM was sold and their program format changed. Lee Nance and Arthur Borgeson were also hosts. The station's call letters also changed to

WZGC WZGC (92.9 FM) – branded 92-9 The Game – is a commercial sports radio station licensed to serve Atlanta, Georgia, covering the Atlanta metropolitan area. Owned by Audacy, Inc., WZGC is the Atlanta affiliate for CBS Sports Radio; the flag ...

, which still exists on 92.9 today. WGKA was later sold to

Salem Communications Salem Media Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: SALM; formerly Salem Communications Corporation) is an American radio broadcaster, Internet content provider, and magazine and book publisher formerly based in Camarillo, California (moved most operations to Irv ...

WAFS

On March 24, 2004 the

Moody Bible Institute Moody Bible Institute (MBI) is a private evangelical Christian Bible college founded in the Near North Side of Chicago, Illinois, US by evangelist and businessman Dwight Lyman Moody in 1886. Historically, MBI has maintained positions that have ...

sold their station, WAFS on 920 kHz, to Salem Communications. Salem next swapped the call letters between WGKA and WAFS, effective August 2, 2004, resulting in the WAFS call moving to 1190 kHz, and the

WGKA WGKA (920 AM) – branded AM 920 The Answer – is a commercial conservative talk radio station licensed to Atlanta, Georgia, serving primarily the Atlanta metropolitan area. Currently owned by Salem Media Group, WGKA serves as the Atlanta affi ...

call letters transferring to 920 kHz. In July 2006, Salem entered a Local marketing agreement (LMA) that changed the station's format to Spanish

Tropical The tropics are the regions of Earth surrounding the Equator. They are defined in latitude by the Tropic of Cancer in the Northern Hemisphere at N and the Tropic of Capricorn in the Southern Hemisphere at S. The tropics are also referred to ...

under the brand of "Mega 1190". However, the arrangement was abruptly pulled by Salem in February 2007 due to a dispute with the LMA. WAFS then switched to a Spanish language Christian format with "Radio Luz" branding until April 2010. On April 6, 2010, the format was changed again, to a business news and talk radio format with "Biz 1190" branding, carrying programming from the

Bloomberg Radio Bloomberg Radio is a radio service of Bloomberg L.P. that provides global business news programming 24 hours a day. The format is general and financial news, offering local, national and international news reports along with financial market up ...

network. On August 15, 2019, Salem announced the sale of WAFS and eight other stations to Immaculate Heart Media for $8.7 million. The sale was consummated in November 2019, and it became an affiliate of

.Application Search Details – BAL-20190814AAU
fcc.gov. Retrieved November 23, 2019.

References

External links

FCC History Cards for WAFS (covering 1955-1979 as WGKA)
{{Daytime-only radio stations in Georgia AFS Radio stations established in 1956 Relevant Radio stations AFS