WWL (870 kHz) is a U.S. AM

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 ...

New Orleans, Louisiana New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans

Audacy, Inc. The station has a

talk radio 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 ...

format with sports talk at night. Studios are at the

400 Poydras Tower 400 Poydras Tower, formerly known as the Texaco Center, located at 400 Poydras Street in the Central Business District of New Orleans, Louisiana, is a 32-story, -tall skyscraper. Built in 1983, this modern office tower features more than of offi ...

in the New Orleans Central Business District. WWL is a clear channel station, operating with 50,000 watts around the clock from a

transmitter In electronics and telecommunications, a radio transmitter or just transmitter is an electronic device which produces radio waves with an antenna. The transmitter itself generates a radio frequency alternating current, which is applied to ...

site in Estelle, Louisiana. The daytime signal provides at least secondary coverage to large parts of the

Gulf Coast The Gulf Coast of the United States, also known as the Gulf South, is the coastline along the Southern United States where they meet the Gulf of Mexico. The coastal states that have a shoreline on the Gulf of Mexico are Texas, Louisiana, Missis ...

, with city-grade coverage reaching as far east as

Pensacola, Florida Pensacola () is the westernmost city in the Florida Panhandle, and the county seat and only incorporated city of Escambia County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 54,312. Pensacola is the principa ...

, and as far west as

Lafayette, Louisiana Lafayette (, ) is a city in the U.S. state of Louisiana, and the most populous city and parish seat of Lafayette Parish, located along the Vermilion River. It is Louisiana's fourth largest incorporated municipality by population and the 234 ...

. At night it can be heard across much of the central and southern United States, and, with a good radio, as far north as

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with list of lakes in Minneapolis, thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. ...

. Since April 2006, WWL has been

simulcast Simulcast (a portmanteau of simultaneous broadcast) is the broadcasting of programmes/programs or events across more than one resolution, bitrate or medium, or more than one service on the same medium, at exactly the same time (that is, simult ...

on WWL-FM 105.3 MHz, and is also carried on that station's HD1 signal. WWL is the Louisiana Primary Entry Point for the

Emergency Alert System The Emergency Alert System (EAS) is a national warning system in the United States designed to allow authorized officials to broadcast emergency alerts and warning messages to the public via cable, satellite, or broadcast television, and both ...

(EAS), and with sister station WLMG is responsible for activations of the Southeast Louisiana EAS plan.

Programming

WWL is a long-time

affiliate Affiliation or affiliate may refer to: * Affiliate (commerce), a legal form of entity relationship used in Business Law * Affiliation (family law), a legal form of family relationship * Affiliate marketing * Affiliate network or affiliation pla ...

of the CBS Radio Network. The weekday schedule features news and talk programming mornings and early afternoons, shifting to sports talk and live play-by-play after 4 p.m. All weekday programming from 5 a.m. to midnight is hosted by local WWL personalities and reporters. The only nationally

syndicated Syndication may refer to: * Broadcast syndication, where individual stations buy programs outside the network system * Print syndication, where individual newspapers or magazines license news articles, columns, or comic strips * Web syndication, ...

programs are paranormal show ''Beyond Reality'' at 11 p.m., family finances expert Dave Ramsey at 1 a.m. and '' This Morning, America's First News with Gordon Deal'', an hour of early morning news, at 4 a.m. WWL continues to cover the post- Hurricane Katrina rebuilding of New Orleans and the Gulf Coast region with local news and talk programming. Weekend programming includes shows on money, law, gardening, home improvement, cars and dining before sports takes over the schedule. Most hours on weekdays begin with local newscasts branded as ''WWL First News'', while CBS News Radio begins most hours on nights and weekends.

Sports

As a part-time

CBS Sports Radio CBS Sports Radio is a sports radio network that debuted with hourly sports news updates on September 4, 2012, and with 24/7 programming on January 2, 2013. CBS Sports Radio is owned by Paramount Global and distributed by Westwood One. Programmin ...

affiliate, programming from that network is heard Friday and Saturday nights, and in several blocks during the day and evening on Sunday. When two live sporting events occur at the same time, WWL moves one of the games to its sister station, WWWL, which switched to a mostly sports format in November 2006. WWL has for many years been the

flagship A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships, characteristically a flag officer entitled by custom to fly a distinguishing flag. Used more loosely, it is the lead ship in a fleet of vessels, typically the f ...

station for broadcasts of

New Orleans Saints The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. Since 1975, the te ...

football games, continuously since the 1995 season. Jim Henderson and ex-Saint Hokie Gajan were the broadcast team from 2000 until Gajan's death from cancer on April 11, 2016. Prior to the 1998 NFL Draft, when son

Peyton Manning Peyton Williams Manning (born March 24, 1976) is an American former American football, football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 18 seasons. Nicknamed "the Sheriff", he spent 14 seasons with the Indianapolis Col ...

was drafted by the

Indianapolis Colts The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. The Colts compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) South division. Since the 20 ...

, Archie Manning provided commentary on WWL's Saints coverage from his retirement as a player in 1985 through 1997. Former Saint Deuce McAllister succeeded Gajan as Henderson's color commentator in 2016. Longtime Saints offensive tackle Stan Brock was Henderson's commentator in 1998 and 1999. WWL is also the New Orleans outlet of the LSU Tigers, simulcasting all football games on both the AM and FM signals while men's basketball and baseball games air on either station. It shares flagship status with

Baton Rouge Baton Rouge ( ; ) is a city in and the capital of the U.S. state of Louisiana. Located the eastern bank of the Mississippi River, it is the parish seat of East Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana's most populous parish—the equivalent of countie ...

's WDGL; the AM station can be heard at city-grade strength in the capital. It was previously the radio home of the Tulane Green Wave.

History

Advertisement for New Orleans, Louisiana radio station WWL (1947)

Effective December 1, 1921, the Commerce department, which regulated radio at this time, adopted regulations formally establishing a broadcasting station category, which set aside the wavelength of 360 meters (833 kHz) for entertainment broadcasts, and 485 meters (619 kHz) for farm market and weather reports. On March 31, 1922 Loyola University in New Orleans was issued a Limited Commercial license for a new station on the 360 meter "entertainment" wavelength."New stations"
''Radio Service Bulletin'', April 1, 1922, page 3. Limited Commercial license for station WWL, serial #592, issued March 31, 1922 for a three month period to Loyola University, for operation on 360 meters. The station call letters, WWL, were randomly assigned from a roster of available call signs. WWL was the second broadcasting station licensed in the state of Louisiana, following WGV, also in New Orleans, licensed 10 days earlier. However, WWL was the first station in the state to begin broadcasting operations. Starting before World War One and continuing until June 1922, the university sponsored a radio training school, with both civilian and military students. WWL's initial equipment was installed at Marquette Hall on the Loyola campus, with construction performed by Edward T. Cassidy, a Jesuit seminarian and physicist serving as the current head of the Radio School, and L. J. N. "Joe" du Treil, a former school head who now worked at the Commerce Department's New Orleans district office of its Radio Service section. WWL received a telegraphed authorization on March 31, 1922, and began broadcasting on the shared 360 meter entertainment wavelength, as a 10-watt station, on the same day. The station's primary initial purpose was to promote a university fundraising project. Loyola president Father Edward Cummings opened the first half-hour broadcast with a three minute fundraising plea on behalf of the University's building drive, stating that "We are organizing the radio operators in the state to spread the story of Loyola's needs. Will you lend your support to our campaign, both by radio and individual effort which will aid us in making Loyola University one of the greatest institutions of learning in the Southland?" This was followed by Tulane's Guiseppe Ferrate playing an original piano composition. In mid-1923, the station was reassigned to 1070 kHz, which was changed to 1090 kHz in early 1925, and to 1220 kHz in late 1927. On November 11, 1928, under the provisions of the Federal Radio Commission's General Order 40, WWL was assigned to 850 kHz, on a sharetime basis with

KWKH KWKH (1130 AM) is a sports radio station serving Shreveport, Louisiana. The 50-kilowatt station broadcasts at 1130 kHz. Formerly owned by Clear Channel Communications and Gap Central Broadcasting, it is now owned by Townsquare Media. Its st ...

in Shreveport. As part of the equal distribution standards mandated by the Davis Amendment, each of five regions had been allocated eight high-powered "clear channel" frequencies, which were granted dominant and widespread nighttime coverage. 850 kHz was one of the frequencies assigned to "Region 3", consisting of states in the southeastern United States. WWL's power was increased to 5,000 watts on March 31, 1929, following the installation of a new transmitter in Bobet Hall. In 1929 the decision was made for WWL to include commercial operations, with the station profits providing an endowment for the university. Loyola was affiliated with, and run by, Roman Catholic priests belonging to the

Society of Jesus , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...

, commonly known as "Jesuits". There was concern that commercial operation might violate both Catholic and Jesuit prohibitions on priests operating businesses. However, a decision was made that the station's non-religious programming and advertising had an existing analogy in church-run efforts, such as publications, which had content that included advertising. In addition, a separate holding company, WWL Development, was formed to run the station, with the provision its profits would be transferred to Loyola. In 1932, the station upgraded to 10,000 watts, with new studios in the Roosevelt Hotel. In 1934, WWL's contentious application to gain fulltime use of 850 kHz was granted, which resulted in its timeshare partner, KWKH, being moved to 1100 kHz. WWL's attainment of fulltime operations made the station attractive to the national radio networks, and it began an affiliation with the CBS Radio Network on November 1, 1935, which had been previously held by WDSU. This also greatly increased the profits being transferred to the university. On November 30, 1938, WWL formally dedicated a power increase to 50,000 watts. On March 29, 1941, with the implementation of the

North American Regional Broadcasting Agreement The North American Regional Broadcasting Agreement (NARBA, es, Convenio Regional Norteamericano de Radiodifusión) refers to a series of international treaties that defined technical standards for AM band ( mediumwave) radio stations. These agre ...

, stations on 850 kHz, including WWL, moved to 870 kHz. In the 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s, the station was famous for the live broadcasts of local

Dixieland Dixieland jazz, also referred to as traditional jazz, hot jazz, or simply Dixieland, is a style of jazz based on the music that developed in New Orleans at the start of the 20th century. The 1917 recordings by the Original Dixieland Jass Band ...

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a majo ...

bands, including such notables as Papa Celestin, Sharkey Bonano, Irving Fazola, Tony Almarico, and Lizzie Miles. An FM companion station, WWLH at 100.3 MHz, debuted on September 11, 1946, but ended operations on February 28, 1951, because "We have been unsuccessful in establishing in New Orleans a sufficient audience of FM listeners to justify continued operation." A television partner

WWL-TV WWL-TV (channel 4) is a television station in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States, affiliated with CBS. It is owned by Tegna Inc. alongside Slidell-licensed MyNetworkTV affiliate WUPL (channel 54). Both stations share studios on Rampart S ...

came on the air on September 7, 1957, which was also affiliated with CBS. A new FM companion station, WWL-FM at 101.9 MHz (now WLMG), debuted on March 15, 1970 with its own music format. WWL was mentioned in an opening scene of "The Swan Bed" (October 21, 1960) episode of the '' Route 66'' TV series, when Todd and Buzz turn on the car's radio as they are driving across the

Greater New Orleans Bridge The Crescent City Connection (CCC), formerly the Greater New Orleans Bridge (GNO), is a pair of cantilever bridges that carry U.S. Highway 90 Business (US 90 Bus.) over the Mississippi River in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States. ...

and hear the call letters announced. Starting on March 14, 1971, WWL was home to a long-running overnight

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, o ...

program aimed at truck drivers called The Road Gang. It used the slogan "Interstate 87", and offered strip weather in major cites along the east-west interstates I-10, I-20, I-30, etc. Advertising was focused on long-haul truckers. It was originally hosted by

Charlie Douglas Charles Edward Douglas (1 July 1840 – 23 May 1916) was a New Zealand surveyor and explorer, who came to be known as Mr. Explorer Douglas, owing to his extensive explorations of the West Coast of New Zealand and his work for the New Zealand Su ...

. Later hosts included Dave Nemo and Big John Parker. The station helped popularize

southern gospel Southern gospel music is a genre of Christian music. Its name comes from its origins in the southeastern United States. Its lyrics are written to express either personal or a communal faith regarding biblical teachings and Christian life, a ...

by late-night broadcasts of the Mull Singing Convention. WWL's transmitter site was moved from

Kenner, Louisiana Kenner (historically french: Cannes-Brûlées) is a city in Louisiana, United States. It is the largest city in Jefferson Parish, and is the largest incorporated suburban city of New Orleans. The population was 66,448 at the 2020 census. Histor ...

, on the south shore of

Lake Pontchartrain Lake Pontchartrain ( ) is an estuary located in southeastern Louisiana in the United States. It covers an area of with an average depth of . Some shipping channels are kept deeper through dredging. It is roughly oval in shape, about from wes ...

, to Estelle, Louisiana, in 1975. Loyola sold WWL, WLMG-FM, and WWL-TV to separate companies in 1989 to build the university endowment. That same year, the university began operating carrier current station "WLDC". Using the electrical grid as a antenna, this station's power was low enough to be limited to campus reception, so it did not need an FCC license. It was subsequently replaced by Crescent City Radio, an internet radio station broadcasting from the Communications/Music Complex on the corner of Calhoun and Saint Charles Avenue. Keymarket Communications of Greenville, South Carolina, became the new owner of WWL and WLMG-FM. Baltimore, Maryland-based

Sinclair Broadcast Group Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc. (SBG) is a publicly traded American telecommunications conglomerate that is controlled by the descendants of company founder Julian Sinclair Smith. Headquartered in the Baltimore suburb of Cockeysville, Maryland, ...

assumed ownership of both stations in 1996; most of Sinclair's radio stations, including WWL, were acquired by Entercom Communications of

Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania Bala Cynwyd ( ) is a community in Lower Merion Township, Pennsylvania. It is located on the Philadelphia Main Line in Southeastern Pennsylvania, bordering the western edge of Philadelphia at U.S. Route 1 (City Avenue). It was originally two separa ...

in 1999. WWL has been "monogrammed" into the

Internal Revenue Code The Internal Revenue Code (IRC), formally the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, is the domestic portion of federal statutory tax law in the United States, published in various volumes of the United States Statutes at Large, and separately as Title 2 ...

. A section excluding certain types of income of nonprofit organizations from income tax mentions entities licensed by federal agencies (like the station's FCC license) and carried on by religious orders (like the Jesuits). The three subsections of this tax provision, 26 U.S.C. 512(b)(15), begin with W, W, and L, respectively. The exclusion was directed at WWL specifically, and the joke has been attributed to Senator Russell Long of Louisiana.Fishman, J. & Schwarz, S. ''Nonprofit Organizations''. New York: Foundation Press, 2006, page 684. In April 2006, WWL programming returned to the FM band, via simulcasting on WWL-FM 105.3. In 2021 WWL simulcast its Hurricane Ida coverage on all of its Audacy sister stations.

Hurricane Katrina (2005)

During the immediate effects and aftermath of Hurricane Katrina on New Orleans and the

in late August 2005, WWL was for a time one of the few if not only radio station(s) in the area remaining on the air. Announcer Garland Robinette for a time kept broadcasting from an improvised studio built in a closet after the studio's windows were blown out. After the hurricane, WWL's emergency coverage was

on the frequencies of numerous other radio stations. The broadcast was named "The United Radio Broadcasters of New Orleans"; mostly WWL staff appeared on-air. The United Radio Broadcasters were a partnership between Entercom (now Audacy, Inc.) and competitor

Clear Channel Communications 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 WWL website was completely rebuilt in only one day by the staff of other Entercom stations. The company also dispatched staffers from stations throughout the country to help WWL, and to provide their own stations coverage from the hurricane ravaged New Orleans area. For some time after Hurricane Katrina, WWL was simulcast on shortwave outlet WHRI, owned by World Harvest Radio International.

References

External links

* * * (covering 1922-1979)