WNZK (680

kHz 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 s−1, meaning that on ...

and 690 kHz) is a

commercial Commercial may refer to: * a dose of advertising conveyed through media (such as - for example - radio or television) ** Radio advertisement ** Television advertisement * (adjective for:) commerce, a system of voluntary exchange of products and s ...

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 A license (or licence) is an official permission or permit to do, use, or own something (as well as the document of that permission or permit). A license is granted by a party (licensor) to another party (licensee) as an element of an agreeme ...

Dearborn Heights, Michigan Dearborn Heights is a city in Wayne County, Michigan, Wayne County in the U.S. state of Michigan. With a population of 63,292 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census., Dearborn Heights is part of the Detroit metropolitan area, and is consid ...

, and serving the

Detroit metropolitan area The Detroit metropolitan area, often referred to as Metro Detroit, is a major metropolitan area in the U.S. State of Michigan, consisting of the city of Detroit and its surrounding area. There are varied definitions of the area, including the ...

. It is owned by the

Birach Broadcasting Corporation Birach Broadcasting Corporation is a company based in Southfield, Michigan, USA, that owns several AM radio stations and, formerly, one low-power television (LPTV Low-power broadcasting is broadcasting by a broadcast station at a low transmitte ...

and airs an

ethnic An ethnic group or an ethnicity is a grouping of people who identify with each other on the basis of shared attributes that distinguish them from other groups. Those attributes can include common sets of traditions, ancestry, language, history, ...

radio format A radio format or programming format (not to be confused with broadcast programming) describes the overall content broadcast on a radio station. The radio format emerged mainly in the United States in the 1950s, at a time when Radio broadcasting, ...

. The programming is brokered, where hosts pay for their time and may advertise their clients' goods and services during their shows. It broadcasts in a variety of languages, including

Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic languages, Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C ...

and several from

Eastern Europe Eastern Europe is a subregion of the Europe, European continent. As a largely ambiguous term, it has a wide range of geopolitical, geographical, ethnic, cultural, and socio-economic connotations. The vast majority of the region is covered by Russ ...

. WNZK identifies itself as "Station of the Nations." WNZK is unusual in that it broadcasts on two different frequencies. During the daytime, it is heard on 690

. But because that is a Canadian and Mexican clear channel frequency, WNZK must switch to 680 kHz at sunset. Although 680 AM is also a clear channel frequency, the Class A stations that operate on it are in

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

and

Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S., ...

. Therefore, WNZK can operate on this frequency at night with its regular power of 2,500

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 Wa ...

s, without interfering with those stations. It uses a

directional antenna A directional antenna or beam antenna is an antenna which radiates or receives greater power in specific directions allowing increased performance and reduced interference from unwanted sources. Directional antennas provide increased performance ...

with a six-

tower array A tower array is an arrangement of multiple radio towers which are mast radiators in a phased array. They were originally developed as ground-based tracking radars. Tower arrays can consist of free-standing or guyed towers or a mix of them. Tower a ...

off Will Carlton Road in

Huron Charter Township, Michigan Huron Charter Township is a charter township of Wayne County, Michigan, Wayne County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 15,879 at the 2010 United States census, 2010 census. Huron Charter Township is named after the Huron River (M ...

History

WNZK began broadcasting on .Broadcasting Yearbook 1992
page A-171,

Broadcasting & Cable ''Broadcasting & Cable'' (or ''Broadcasting+Cable'') is a weekly telecommunications industry trade magazine published by Future US. Previous names included ''Broadcasting-Telecasting'', ''Broadcasting and Broadcast Advertising'', and ''Broadcast ...

The western

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at th ...

suburb of

Westland Westland or Westlands may refer to: Places *Westlands, an affluent neighbourhood in the city of Nairobi, Kenya * Westlands, Staffordshire, a suburban area and ward in Newcastle-under-Lyme *Westland, a peninsula of the Shetland Mainland near Vaila ...

was its original

city of license In American, Canadian, and Mexican broadcasting, a city of license or community of license is the community that a radio station or television station is officially licensed to serve by that country's broadcast regulator. In North American broa ...

. It switched to Dearborn Heights by 1990. The station was always owned by Birach Broadcasting. The original studios were at 21700 Northwestern Highway in

Southfield, Michigan Southfield is a city in Oakland County, Michigan, Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census, the city had a population of 76,618. As a northern suburb of Detroit, Southfield shares part of its ...

. According to the

FCC 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 jurisdiction ...

onlin
database
WNZK is the only

AM radio AM broadcasting is radio broadcasting using amplitude modulation (AM) transmissions. It was the first method developed for making audio radio transmissions, and is still used worldwide, primarily for medium wave (also known as "AM band") transm ...

station in North America using two frequencies, one by day, one at night. At one time, several radio stations in Detroit were multi-lingual. 97.9 FM aired a similar ethnic format for many years with a similar call sign, WMZK. It used the same "Station of the Nations" slogan until 1980. That station is now

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 ...

WJLB WJLB (97.9 FM) is a radio station in Detroit, Michigan. Owned by iHeartMedia, it broadcasts an urban contemporary format. WJLB's studios are located in Farmington Hills. WJLB's transmitter is located in Highland Park near the intersection of ...

. Several Detroit-area AM stations were also aimed at different ethnic groups. But they have also changed to more mainstream formats.

References

External links

{{coord, 42, 05, 55, N, 83, 19, 48, W, type:landmark_region:US_source:FCC, display=title Arab-American culture in Michigan NZK Radio stations established in 1985 Birach Broadcasting Corporation stations 1985 establishments in Michigan

History

See also

References

External links