WLZL (107.9
FM, "El Zol 107.9 FM") is a commercial
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 ...
licensed to serve
College Park, Maryland
College Park is a city in Prince George's County, Maryland, United States, and is approximately four miles (6.4 km) from the northeast border of Washington, D.C. The population was 34,740 at the 2020 United States Census. It is best known a ...
. The station is owned by
Audacy, Inc.
Audacy, Inc. is an American broadcasting company based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1968 as Entercom Communications Corporation, it is the second largest radio company in the United States, owning 235 radio stations across 48 media ...
through licensee Audacy License, LLC and broadcasts a
Spanish
Spanish might refer to:
* Items from or related to Spain:
**Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain
**Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries
**Spanish cuisine
Other places
* Spanish, Ontario, Cana ...
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 ...
format. Studios are located in
Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
while the station's broadcast tower is located east of
Crofton, Maryland
Crofton is a census-designated place and planned community in Anne Arundel County, Maryland, United States, located west of the state capital Annapolis, south of Baltimore, and east-northeast of Washington, D.C. The community was established i ...
at ().
WLZL broadcasts using
HD Radio
HD Radio (HDR) is a trademark for an in-band on-channel (IBOC) digital radio broadcast technology. It generally simulcasts an existing analog radio station in digital format with less noise and with additional text information. HD Radio is used ...
.
History
The station signed on for the first time in 1960 with the WFSI call sign. WFSI was owned by
Family Radio
Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...
and aired a
Christian radio
Christian radio is a Christian media radio format that focus on programming with a Christian message. Many such broadcasters play contemporary Christian music, though many programs include sermons, radio dramas, as well as news and talk progra ...
format.
On November 16, 2011, CBS Radio announced plans to acquire WFSI from
Family Radio
Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...
, with the intention of moving WLZL's Spanish Tropical format and ''El Zol'' branding from 99.1 to 107.9, with a new
all-news
All-news radio is a radio format devoted entirely to the discussion and broadcast of news.
All-news radio is available in both local and syndicated forms, and is carried on both major US satellite radio networks. All-news stations can run the ...
format to be launched on 99.1. The format change occurred on December 1, when both stations began simulcasting El Zol programming. WFSI also swapped call signs with
WBGR, a Family Radio-owned AM station in Baltimore, the same day. The 99.1/107.9 simulcast ended on December 12, 2011, with the WLZL call sign moving from 99.1 to 107.9 and the new
WNEW-FM
WNEW-FM (102.7 FM, ''NEW 102.7'') is a hot adult contemporary formatted radio station, licensed to New York, New York and owned by Audacy, Inc. The station's studios are located at the Audacy facility in the Hudson Square neighborhood of Manha ...
call sign debuting on 99.1.
On February 19, 2013, the FCC granted CBS Radio a construction permit for WLZL to lower its
ERP from 50,000 watts to 49,000 watts and to lower its
HAAT
Haat or hat, even haat bazaar, is an open-air market that serves as a trading venue for local people in rural areas and towns of Indian subcontinent, especially in India, Nepal, Bangladesh and Bhutan. Haat bazaars are conducted on a regular ba ...
from to . These changes brought WLZL into compliance with current FCC rules regarding maximum ERP and HAAT for a Class B station. WLZL had been operating using facilities that exceeded these parameters as a "grandfathered" facility. On May 7, 2014, the FCC granted a request by CBS Radio to change the community of license for the station from
Annapolis, Maryland
Annapolis ( ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Maryland and the county seat of, and only incorporated city in, Anne Arundel County. Situated on the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, south of Baltimore and about east o ...
to College Park, Maryland, as a modification of the construction permit. The reason given was to provide College Park with its first local transmission service.
On February 2, 2017, CBS Radio announced it would merge with
Entercom
Audacy, Inc. is an American broadcasting company based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1968 as Entercom Communications Corporation, it is the second largest radio company in the United States, owning 235 radio stations across 48 media ...
. The merger was approved on November 9, 2017, and was consummated on the 17th.
References
External links
*
*
{{Entercom
LZL
LZL
Tropical music radio stations
Radio stations established in 1960
1960 establishments in Maryland
Audacy, Inc. radio stations