WVAL (800 AM) is a

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 ...

serving

St. Cloud, Minnesota St. Cloud is a city in the U.S. state of Minnesota and the largest population center in the state's central region. The population was 68,881 at the 2020 census, making it Minnesota's 12th-largest city. St. Cloud is the county seat of Stear ...

airing a

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 ...

format. It airs news on the hour from

CBS News Radio CBS News Radio, formerly known as CBS Radio News and historically known as the CBS Radio Network, is a radio network that provides news to more than 1,000 radio stations throughout the United States. The network is owned by Paramount Global. It ...

. The station is owned by

Tri-County Broadcasting Tri-County Broadcasting is a radio broadcasting company located in Sauk Rapids, Minnesota. It was founded by Herbert M. Hoppe, long time local radio broadcaster who started out building small AM stations. The stations serve the St. Cloud, Minnesota ...

. WVAL first aired in 1963, went on hiatus in the early 1980s, returning to the airwaves in 1999. The station shares AM towers with its three other sister stations, WMIN, WBHR, and WXYG. There are seven total towers. The call sign is based on owner Herb Hoppe's wife Val.http://www.fybush.com/site-20141219 Site of the Week 12/19/2014

History

In January 1996, Tri-County Broadcasting filed to build a radio station on 800 kHz in Sauk Rapids, which came to air on March 29, 1999. However, the frequency was not new to the company. The original WVAL had operated on the frequency until moving to 660 kHz in 1983; however, relaxed ownership rules allowed the company to start a second AM. Tri-County moved the WVAL call sign from 660 kHz to the new station and also revived the music it had played in its glory days in the 1970s and early 1980s with

, a rarity for the time.

References

External links

AM 800 WVAL official website
* * {{coord, 45, 36, 18, N, 94, 08, 21, W, type:landmark_region:US_source:FCC, display=title Radio stations in St. Cloud, Minnesota Classic country radio stations in the United States Radio stations established in 1999 1999 establishments in Minnesota