WTMX (101.9 FM "The Mix") is a

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 ...

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 ...

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

. Licensed to the suburb of Skokie, it is owned by

Hubbard Broadcasting Hubbard Broadcasting, Inc. is an American television and radio broadcasting corporation based in St. Paul, Minnesota. It was founded by Stanley E. Hubbard. The corporation has broadcast outlets scattered across Minnesota, Wisconsin, Missouri, ...

. WTMX has its studios located at

One Prudential Plaza One Prudential Plaza (formerly known as the Prudential Building) is a 41-story structure in Chicago completed in 1955 as the headquarters for Prudential's Mid-America company. It was the first skyscraper built in Chicago since the Great Depr ...

and its transmitter co-located atop

Willis Tower The Willis Tower (originally the Sears Tower) is a 108-story, skyscraper in the Loop community area of Chicago in Illinois, United States. Designed by architect Bruce Graham and engineer Fazlur Rahman Khan of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM), ...

(the former Sears Tower). WTMX broadcasts in the HD digital hybrid format.

History

WRSV

The station began broadcasting August 18, 1961, and held the call sign WRSV, which stood for "Radio Skokie Valley", its owner at the time.
1966 Broadcasting Yearbook
',

Broadcasting Broadcasting is the distribution (business), distribution of sound, audio or video content to a dispersed audience via any electronic medium (communication), mass communications medium, but typically one using the electromagnetic spectrum (radio ...

, 1966. p. B-49. Retrieved January 16, 2019. Radio Skokie Valley was owned by M. Earlene Stebbins. The station aired a

full service Full service or Full Service may refer to: * Full-service radio, a wide range of programming * Full Service Network, a communications company Entertainment * "Full Service", a song by the New Kids on the Block from their album ''The Block'' * F ...

format, with a wide variety of local programs along with

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 ...

and

standards Standard may refer to: Symbols * Colours, standards and guidons, kinds of military signs * Standard (emblem), a type of a large symbol or emblem used for identification Norms, conventions or requirements * Standard (metrology), an object th ...

. The station originally broadcast at 98.3 MHz. Its transmitter was located in Skokie, Illinois, and had an ERP of 1,000 watts at a

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 ...

of 125 feet. The station's frequency resulted in interference problems with 98.7

WFMT WFMT is an FM broadcasting, FM radio station in Chicago, Illinois, featuring a format of fine arts, classical music programming, and shows exploring such genres as folk music, folk. The station is managed by Window to the World Communications, In ...

. To eliminate this problem, WRSV's frequency was changed to 101.9 MHz in 1966. The frequency became available in 1964, when 101.9 WCLM in Chicago had its license revoked. In 1969, the station's transmitter was moved to the

Civic Opera Building The Civic Opera Building is a 45-story office tower (plus two 22-story wings) located at 20 North Wacker Drive in Chicago. The building opened November 4, 1929, and has an Art Deco interior. It contains a 3,563-seat opera house, the Civic Opera ...

and its ERP was increased to 12,000 watts. In 1970, controlling interest in Radio Skokie Valley was sold to

Bonneville International Bonneville International Corporation is a media and broadcasting company, wholly owned by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) through its for-profit arm, Deseret Management Corporation. It began as a radio and TV network ...

for $479,000.Ownership changes
, ''

''. August 17, 1970. p. 70. Retrieved January 16, 2019.

WCLR

On December 10, 1970, the station's call sign was changed to WCLR, standing for "clear", a theme that was used heavily in its advertising.Duston, Anne.
WCLR-FM Clarions 'Clear Sound' MOR as Others Probe Rock Chance
, ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

''. April 14, 1973. pp. 22 & 24. Retrieved January 17, 2019. WCLR aired a

beautiful music Beautiful music (sometimes abbreviated as BM, B/EZ or BM/EZ for "beautiful music/easy listening") is a mostly instrumental music format that was prominent in North American radio from the late 1950s through the 1980s. Easy listening, elevator musi ...

format through 1975.
Broadcasting Yearbook 1975
',

, 1975. p. C-60. Retrieved January 16, 2019. WCLR played approximately 75%

instrumental An instrumental is a recording normally without any vocals, although it might include some inarticulate vocals, such as shouted backup vocals in a big band setting. Through semantic widening, a broader sense of the word song may refer to instru ...

s, along with contemporary

easy listening Easy listening (including mood music) is a popular music genre and radio format that was most popular during the 1950s to 1970s. It is related to middle-of-the-road (MOR) music and encompasses instrumental recordings of standards, hit songs, n ...

vocals and a few standards. In 1971, the station's transmitter was moved to the

John Hancock Center The John Hancock Center is a 100-story, 1,128-foot supertall skyscraper located in Chicago, Illinois. Located in the Magnificent Mile district, the building was officially renamed 875 North Michigan Avenue in 2018. The skyscraper was designed ...

, and in 1974 its transmitter was moved to the

Sears Tower The Willis Tower (originally the Sears Tower) is a 108-story, skyscraper in the Loop community area of Chicago in Illinois, United States. Designed by architect Bruce Graham and engineer Fazlur Rahman Khan of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM), ...

. In 1975, the station shifted to middle of the road (MOR) format, with an 80/20 vocal to instrumental ratio, in contrast to its previous strong emphasis on instrumental music.Duston, Anne.
WCLR Chicago Ballyhoos Its Beautiful Programming
, ''

''. October 4, 1975. p. 16. Retrieved January 16, 2019.
Broadcasting Yearbook 1976
',

, 1976. p. C-63. Retrieved January 16, 2019. The station played a mixture of

pop standards Traditional pop (also known as classic pop and pre-rock and roll pop) is Western pop music that generally pre-dates the advent of rock and roll in the mid-1950s. The most popular and enduring songs from this era of music are known as pop standards ...

, and

soft rock Soft rock is a form of rock music that originated in the late 1960s in Southern California and the United Kingdom which smoothed over the edges of singer-songwriter and pop rock, relying on simple, melodic songs with big, lush productions. S ...

. By the early 1980s, WCLR's format had shifted to

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 ...

. The station aired a Saturday night all-request

oldies Oldies is a term for musical genres such as pop music, rock and roll, doo-wop, surf music (broadly characterized as classic rock and pop rock) from the second half of the 20th century, specifically from around the mid-1950s to the 1980s, as we ...

program in the 1980s, hosted by Peter Dean. In the late 1980s, WCLR was branded "Chicago's Lite Rock".
Chicagoland Radio Waves
', MediaTies. Summer 1988. Retrieved January 17, 2019.

WTMX

On February 21, 1989, the station's call sign was changed to WTMX, and it became known as "The New Mix 102", airing a mix of adult contemporary and oldies. By 1992, the station's format had shifted to

. In the mid 1990s, the station shifted towards a

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 ...

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 ...

format, and on January 25, 1996, it adopted the slogan "Today's Rock Mix".NAB Marconi Award Finalist Profiles: WTMX (FM)
, ''

Radio World ''Radio World'' is a trade journal published by Future US targeted at radio broadcast executives and operations personnel worldwide. Multiple editions are published for the United States, Canada, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia, and the Car ...

''. August 17, 2015. Retrieved January 17, 2019. By 2006, the station's format shifted to Adult Top 40. On January 19, 2011, Bonneville International announced the sale of WTMX, as well as 16 other stations, to

. The sale was completed on April 29, 2011. From September 1996 until 2017, WTMX was home to the "Eric & Kathy" morning show hosted by Eric Ferguson and Kathy Hart.Johnson, Steve.
Buddies in the morning
, ''

Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is a daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, owned by Tribune Publishing. Founded in 1847, and formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" (a slogan for which WGN radio and television ar ...

''. January 10, 2010. Retrieved January 17, 2019.Venta, Lance.
Kathy Hart Will Not Return to WTMX Chicago
, ''Radio Insight''. September 7, 2017. Retrieved January 17, 2019. Feder, Robert.
'Eric & Kathy' kaput: The Mix fires Kathy Hart
, RobertFeder.com. September 7, 2017. Retrieved January 17, 2019. The show drew consistently strong ratings, and the duo was inducted into the

National Radio Hall of Fame The Radio Hall of Fame, formerly the National Radio Hall of Fame, is an American organization created by the Emerson Radio Corporation in 1988. Three years later, Bruce DuMont, founder, president, and CEO of the Museum of Broadcast Communicatio ...

in 2016. In April 2017, Kathy Hart left the program, and on September 7, 2017,

Hubbard Radio Hubbard Broadcasting, Inc. is an American television and radio broadcasting corporation based in St. Paul, Minnesota. It was founded by Stanley E. Hubbard. The corporation has broadcast outlets scattered across Minnesota, Wisconsin, Missouri, ...

announced that she would not be returning to the station. Ferguson continued to host mornings, along with Melissa McGurren, Brian "Whip" Paruch, Violeta Podrumedic, Melissa "MelD" Dever, Cynthia DeNicolo and John "Swany" Swanson, and the show was rebranded as "Eric in the Morning with Melissa and Whip". During the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

, Melissa "MelD" Dever and Cynthia DeNicolo were laid off from the show. On June 18, 2020, an internal restructure of talent was announced with the Nikki hosting the Midday show, Chris Petlak with Lisa Allen hosting Afternoon MIX, and Jordan "Dash" Orman–Weiss hosting the evening show and THE MIX New Music Club. On December 16, 2020, after 22 years with WTMX, it was announced that Melissa McGurren had declined a contract extension, much to station management's surprise. Jeff England, Vice President and Market Manager at Hubbard Chicago, stated, "We were disappointed by her decision not to renew her contract, but also know that this year has led all of us to assess our lives in different ways. When she informed me of her decision, she described her time at the station as 'a privilege' and that feeling is completely mutual. We wish her the best." On October 29, 2021, WTMX morning show host Eric Ferguson released a statement that he and the station agreed that he will be stepping away from radio for the time being after allegations of sexual harassment by Ferguson began to surface. On January 18, 2022, the station announced that afternoon host Chris Petlak would join Nikki, Whip, Violeta, and Swany as host of “The Morning MIX.”The Mix taps Chris Petlak to replace Eric Ferguson in mornings
, RobertFeder.com. January 18, 2022. Retrieved January 23, 2022.

References

External links

*

''Chicago Sun-Times'', January 27, 2011
Chicago's celebrity dads dish on fatherhood - 101.9fm THE MIX's Eric Ferguson
Chicago Parent, May 24, 2010 * {{coord, 41.879, N, 87.636, W, type:landmark_region:US_source:FCC, display=title Hot adult contemporary radio stations in the United States TMX Hubbard Broadcasting Radio stations established in 1961 1961 establishments in Illinois