WJBR-FM (99.5

MHz 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 one he ...

) – branded ''Mix 99.5 WJBR'' – 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 ...

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 ...

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 radi ...

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 ...

to Wilmington, Delaware. Owned by

Beasley Broadcast Group Beasley Broadcast Group, Inc., based in Naples, Florida, is an owner/operator of radio stations in the United States. , the company owned 63 stations under the Beasley Media Group name. History The company was founded in 1961 by George G. Beasl ...

, the station serves

New Castle County New Castle County is the northernmost of the three counties of the U.S. state of Delaware (New Castle, Kent, and Sussex). As of the 2020 census, the population was 570,719, making it the most populous county in Delaware, with nearly 60% of the ...

, in addition to

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

, and much of the

Delaware Valley The Delaware Valley is a metropolitan region on the East Coast of the United States that comprises and surrounds Philadelphia, the sixth most populous city in the nation and 68th largest city in the world as of 2020. The toponym Delaware Val ...

. The WJBR-FM transmitter is located north of downtown Wilmington on Bellows Drive, near the Pennsylvania state line. Besides a standard

analog transmission Analog transmission is a transmission method of conveying information using a continuous signal which varies in amplitude, phase, or some other property in proportion to that information. It could be the transfer of an analog signal, using an ana ...

, WJBR-FM broadcasts over

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 ...

, and is available online. WJBR-HD3 broadcasts a

Gospel Gospel originally meant the Christian message ("the gospel"), but in the 2nd century it came to be used also for the books in which the message was set out. In this sense a gospel can be defined as a loose-knit, episodic narrative of the words an ...

format branded as ''Philly's Favor 100.7'', which is simulcast on low-power

Mount Holly, New Jersey Mount Holly is a township that is the county seat of Burlington County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is an eastern suburb of Philadelphia, the nation's sixth largest city as of 2020, As of the 2020 U.S. census, the township's population w ...

translator Translation is the communication of the Meaning (linguistic), meaning of a #Source and target languages, source-language text by means of an Dynamic and formal equivalence, equivalent #Source and target languages, target-language text. The ...

W264BH (100.7 FM) and broadcasts to the

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

radio market.

History

On January 31, 1957, the station signed on as a stand-alone FM station, with no AM counterpart. It was founded by a father and son team, John B. Reynolds, Sr. and John B. Reynolds, Jr. The

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 ...

was based on the founders' initials. John Sr. began the radio station because his son was "a strong believer in the future of FM." The station originally broadcast a classical and light music format. WJBR-FM's format eventually evolved into

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 ...

and the station was branded as ''JBR 100''. It used the slogan "Just Beautiful Radio." In 1976, the Reynolds Family acquired another Wilmington radio station, WTUX, to combine with WJBR-FM. WTUX was a 1,000 watt

daytimer A clear-channel station is an AM radio station in North America that has the highest protection from interference from other stations, particularly concerning night-time skywave propagation. The system exists to ensure the viability of cross-coun ...

, carrying a middle of the road music format. In 1978, WTUX's

was switched to WJBR, and the format flipped to beautiful music, to give WJBR listeners the choice of hearing the station on AM or FM. Over time, the station's power was increased to 2,500 watts in the daytime and nighttime service was added at 32 watts. In the early 1980s, WJBR-AM-FM added more soft vocals to attract a younger audience. John B Reynolds, Jr. sold WJBR-AM-FM in 1985 to CRB Broadcasting, which completed the transition from easy listening to an all-vocal

soft 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, quiet sto ...

sound. CRB changed its name to Commodore Media and was eventually purchased by Capstar Broadcasting. In March 2000, Capstar sold WJBR-FM to the

NextMedia Group NextMedia Group was an out-of-home media company headquartered in Greenwood Village, Colorado. NextMedia owns and operates 33 AM and FM stations, 5,700 outdoor advertising display across several regions and markets, as well as an interactive divi ...

for $32.4 million. Capstar retained WJBR, and later merged into Clear Channel Communications, which was renamed

iHeartMedia iHeartMedia, Inc., formerly CC Media Holdings, Inc., is an American mass media corporation headquartered in San Antonio, Texas. It is the holding company of iHeartCommunications, Inc. (formerly Clear Channel Communications, Inc.), a company fou ...

. The AM station is now a

Fox Sports Radio Fox Sports Radio is an American sports radio network. Based in Los Angeles, California, the network is operated and managed by Premiere Networks in a content partnership with Fox Corporation's Fox Sports division and iHeartMedia, parent company ...

station,

WWTX WWTX (1290 AM) is a sports talk formatted radio station in Wilmington, Delaware. The station has local programming, along with coverage from Fox Sports Radio. WWTX is the flagship station for University of Delaware Women's Basketball and also br ...

, and remains owned by iHeartMedia. In February 2007,

acquired WJBR-FM from NextMedia for a reported $42 million.

Translators

WJBR-HD3 programming is simulcast on the following

, owned by Spectrum Development Group and operated by JAM Media Group:

References

External links

*
A Gospel Favor Debuts In PhiladelphiaPhilly's Favor (99.5 HD3)
* * * * * {{Beasley Broadcast Group JBR-FM Mainstream adult contemporary radio stations in the United States Radio stations established in 1957 1957 establishments in Delaware JBR-FM