WXFX (95.1
FM, "95.1 The Fox") is an American
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 the
community
A community is a social unit (a group of living things) with commonality such as place, norms, religion, values, customs, or identity. Communities may share a sense of place situated in a given geographical area (e.g. a country, village, tow ...
of
Prattville, Alabama
Prattville is a city located within both Autauga and Elmore counties in the State of Alabama but serves as the county seat of Autauga County. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 37,781. Nicknamed "The Fountain City" due to t ...
. The station, established in 1977 as WQIM, is currently owned by
Cumulus Media
Cumulus Media, Inc. is an American broadcasting company and is the third largest owner and operator of AM and FM radio stations in the United States behind Audacy and iHeartMedia. As of June 2019, Cumulus lists ownership of 428 stations in 87 ...
and the
broadcast license
A broadcast license is a type of spectrum license granting the licensee permission to use a portion of the radio frequency spectrum in a given geographical area for broadcasting purposes. The licenses generally include restrictions, which vary ...
is held by Cumulus Licensing LLC. The WXFX studios are located on the 3rd floor of The Colonial Financial Center in downtown Montgomery, and the transmitter tower is in Montgomery's northeast side.
Programming
WXFX broadcasts a
Mainstream rock
Mainstream rock (also known as heritage rock) is a radio format used by many commercial radio stations in the United States and Canada.
Format background
Mainstream rock stations represent the middle ground between classic rock and active rock ...
music
format
Format may refer to:
Printing and visual media
* Text formatting, the typesetting of text elements
* Paper formats, or paper size standards
* Newspaper format, the size of the paper page
Computing
* File format, particular way that informatio ...
to the
Montgomery, Alabama
Montgomery is the capital city of the U.S. state of Alabama and the county seat of Montgomery County. Named for the Irish soldier Richard Montgomery, it stands beside the Alabama River, on the coastal Plain of the Gulf of Mexico. In the 202 ...
market.
Notable on air personalities include Rick Hendrick and "The Big Show" with
John Boy and Billy
John Isley (born August 15, 1956) and Billy James (born August 31, 1957), known as John Boy & Billy, are American radio personality, radio hosts based in Charlotte, North Carolina. Their comedic morning program ''The John Boy & Billy Big Show'' br ...
.
WXFX also broadcasts digitally in
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 ...
with its own programming on the HD1 channel, a
sports radio
Sports radio (or sports talk radio) is a radio format devoted entirely to discussion and broadcasting of sporting events. A widespread programming genre that has a narrow audience appeal, sports radio is characterized by an often- boisterous on-ai ...
simulcast of
WMSP
WMSP (740 AM, "Sports Radio 740") is a radio station licensed to serve Montgomery, Alabama, United States. The station is owned by Cumulus Media and the broadcast license is held by Cumulus Licensing LLC. Originally licensed in 1953 as WBAM, the ...
on HD2, and a
news/talk
Talk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues and consisting entirely or almost entirely of original spoken word content rather than outside music. Most shows are regularly hosted by a single individual, and often featur ...
simulcast of
WLWI on HD3.
History
This station received its original
broadcast license
A broadcast license is a type of spectrum license granting the licensee permission to use a portion of the radio frequency spectrum in a given geographical area for broadcasting purposes. The licenses generally include restrictions, which vary ...
from the
Federal Communications Commission
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 ...
in August 1977, signing on with a
Top 40
In the music industry, the Top 40 is the current, 40 most-popular songs in a particular genre. It is the best-selling or most frequently broadcast popular music. Record charts have traditionally consisted of a total of 40 songs. "Top 40" or " con ...
music format broadcast with 3,000
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 of
effective radiated power
Effective radiated power (ERP), synonymous with equivalent radiated power, is an IEEE standardized definition of directional radio frequency (RF) power, such as that emitted by a radio transmitter. It is the total power in watts that would hav ...
on an assigned frequency of 95.3
megahertz
The hertz (symbol: Hz) is the unit of frequency in the International System of Units (SI), equivalent to one event (or Cycle per second, cycle) per second. The hertz is an SI derived unit whose expression in terms of SI base units is s−1, me ...
.
Owned by Hagler Broadcasting, the new station was assigned the WQIM
call sign
In broadcasting and radio communications, a call sign (also known as a call name or call letters—and historically as a call signal—or abbreviated as a call) is a unique identifier for a transmitter station. A call sign can be formally assigne ...
by the FCC.
In October 1981, license holder Hagler Broadcasting, Inc., reached an agreement to sell this station to Downs Broadcasting, Inc. The deal was approved by the FCC on January 28, 1982, and the transaction was consummated on February 1, 1982.
The new owners flipped the format to
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 ...
music and maintained it through the 1980s.
In November 1988, WQIM applied to the FCC for a
construction permit
Planning permission or developmental approval refers to the approval needed for construction or expansion (including significant renovation), and sometimes for demolition, in some jurisdictions. It is usually given in the form of a building perm ...
to change frequencies from 95.3 to 95.1 MHz, change the antenna's
height above average terrain
Height above average terrain (HAAT), or (less popularly) effective height above average terrain (EHAAT), is the vertical position of an antenna site is above the surrounding landscape. HAAT is used extensively in FM radio and television, as it is ...
to , and change class to C2. The FCC granted this permit on February 16, 1989, with a scheduled expiration date of August 16, 1990.
To accompany the change in frequencies, the station's call sign was changed to WXFX on September 12, 1989.
After completing and certifying the necessary engineering changes, the FCC granted the station a
license to cover those changes on May 15, 1990.
A format change also happened, once the upgraded signal signed on. The format was flipped to Classic Rock.
In April 1995, license holder Downs Broadcasting reached an agreement to sell this station to McDonald Investment Company, Inc., for $1.65 million.
The deal was approved by the FCC on July 3, 1995, and the transaction was consummated on August 30, 1995.
The new owners tweaked the station's music format to
Mainstream rock
Mainstream rock (also known as heritage rock) is a radio format used by many commercial radio stations in the United States and Canada.
Format background
Mainstream rock stations represent the middle ground between classic rock and active rock ...
.
In October 1996, license holder McDonald Investment Company, Inc., applied to the FCC to reorganize its Montgomery radio holdings into a new company called McDonald Media Group, Inc. The transfer was approved by the FCC on November 7, 1996, and the transaction was consummated on December 2, 1996.
In August 1998,
Cumulus Media
Cumulus Media, Inc. is an American broadcasting company and is the third largest owner and operator of AM and FM radio stations in the United States behind Audacy and iHeartMedia. As of June 2019, Cumulus lists ownership of 428 stations in 87 ...
signed a
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 ...
with McDonald Media Group to take over operations of its three Montgomery-area radio stations with an option to purchase the stations.
In November 1999, license holder McDonald Media Group, Inc., filed an application to sell WXFX and multiple
sister station
In broadcasting, sister stations or sister channels are radio or television stations operated by the same company, either by direct ownership or through a management agreement.
Radio sister stations will often have different formats, and somet ...
s to Citation Limited Partnership.
The deal was approved by the FCC on December 17, 1999, and the transaction was consummated on January 20, 2000.
In August 2000, license holder Citation Limited Partnership applied to transfer this station to Cumulus Licensing Corporation as part of an internal corporate reorganization. The deal was approved by the FCC on March 12, 2001, and the transaction was consummated on May 15, 2001.
References
External links
WXFX official website*
*
*
{{Cumulus Media
XFX
XFX Inc. is a Chinese electronics company that specializes in the manufacturing of video cards, power supplies and motherboards. XFX has its headquarters in Ontario, California, and is a division of Hong Kong-based Pine Technology Holdings Limite ...
Mainstream rock radio stations in the United States
Radio stations established in 1977
Prattville, Alabama
1977 establishments in Alabama
Cumulus Media radio stations