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WKSG (98.3
In March 2018, the station Strong Tower Christian Media Launches 98.3 The Rock
/ref>
MHz
The hertz (symbol: Hz) is the unit of frequency in the International System of Units (SI), equivalent to one event (or cycle) per second. The hertz is an SI derived unit whose expression in terms of SI base units is sā1, meaning that one he ...
) is an FM 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 radio ...
broadcasting and licensed to Garrison, Kentucky, United States; the station is currently owned by Fowler Media Partners, LLC and is being operated by Strong Tower Christian Media ahead of a sale to the company. and serves Portsmouth, OH
Portsmouth is a city in and the county seat of Scioto County, Ohio, United States. Located in southern Ohio south of Chillicothe, it lies on the north bank of the Ohio River, across from Kentucky, just east of the mouth of the Scioto River. Th ...
and the OH-KY-WV Tri-State area. The station's transmitter tower is located in Greenup County
Greenup County is a county located along the Ohio River in the northeastern part of the U.S. state of Kentucky. As of the 2020 census, the population was 35,962. The county was founded in 1803 and named in honor of Christopher Greenup. Its co ...
near the community of Garrison
A garrison (from the French ''garnison'', itself from the verb ''garnir'', "to equip") is any body of troops stationed in a particular location, originally to guard it. The term now often applies to certain facilities that constitute a mil ...
and the Lewis County line.
History
Originally licensed in 1998 as WOKE and branded as ''Joy FM'' playingsouthern gospel
Southern gospel music is a genre of Christian music. Its name comes from its origins in the southeastern United States. Its lyrics are written to express either personal or a communal faith regarding biblical teachings and Christian life, as ...
music, the station subsequently shifted to contemporary Christian music
Contemporary Christian music, also known as CCM, Christian pop, and occasionally inspirational music is a genre of modern popular music, and an aspect of Christian media, which is lyrically focused on matters related to the Christian faith and s ...
branded as ''Ignite FM'', before flipping to a secular contemporary hit radio
Contemporary hit radio (also known as CHR, contemporary hits, hit list, current hits, hit music, top 40, or pop radio) is a radio format that is common in many countries that focuses on playing current and recurrent popular music as determined by ...
format branded as ''Pulse 98.3''. In 2018, the station was sold to Fowler Media Partners.
In March 2018, the station stunted
Stunted growth is a reduced growth rate in human development. It is a primary manifestation of malnutrition (or more precisely undernutrition) and recurrent infections, such as diarrhea and helminthiasis, in early childhood and even before birth, ...
as " Trump 98.3" for a week, promising to "Make Radio Great Again". This emulated a similar stunt by related station WVWF, with a playlist of songs referencing money, patriotism, and walls. On March 8, 2018, WOKE flipped to a "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 ...
Superstars" format and changed its call letters to WPAY-FM. The call sign was acquired from the local K-Love station now known as WPYK
WPYK (104.1 FM) is a radio station licensed to Portsmouth, Ohio. The station became notable when it stayed on air during the floods in Portsmouth in 1937, giving up-to-the-minute news and announcements to those separated and weary from the flo ...
, which operated as a country station under the WPAY-FM call letters from 1966 until 2011 and again briefly identifying as WPAY-FM in 2017ā2018 after assuming the K-Love format. Sean King of WOKE became the morning host on the new WPAY-FM.
The station changed its call sign to WFHT on July 23, 2021, and to WZGR on October 25, 2021.
On November 29, 2021, WZGR changed its format from classic country
Classic country is a music radio format that specializes in playing mainstream country and western music hits from past decades.
Repertoire
The radio format specializes in hits from the 1950s through the early 1980s, and focus primarily on innov ...
to southern gospel, branded as "Grace-FM 98.3".
On January 17, 2022, WZGR changed its format from southern gospel to hot adult contemporary, branded as "98.3 Hot-FM" and changed its call sign back to WFHT on January 26, then changed them again to WITO on March 6. The WITO call letters were then swapped with the former WIRO in Ironton, Ohio, on May 10.
Fowler Media Partners announced the sale of WIRO, which by then had shifted to contemporary hit radio, to Strong Tower Christian Media of Xenia, Ohio
Xenia ( ) is a city in southwestern Ohio and the county seat of Greene County, Ohio, United States. It is east of Dayton and is part of the Dayton Metropolitan Statistical Area, as well as the Miami Valley region. The name comes from the Greek l ...
, with the intention of returning the station to a southern gospel format using an LMA even before the completion of the sale, late in 2022. The station changed its call sign to WKSG on October 20, 2022; on November 23, the station began stunting with Christmas music as "98.3 The Rock" as Strong Tower began operation of the station by local marketing agreement
In North American broadcasting, a local marketing agreement (LMA), or local management agreement, is a contract in which one company agrees to operate a radio or television station owned by another party. In essence, it is a sort of lease or tim ...
. On December 26, 2022 the station launched a full time Southern Gospel Hits format./ref>
References
External links
* * Radio stations established in 1998 1998 establishments in Kentucky Southern Gospel radio stations in the United States KSG {{Kentucky-radio-station-stub