WCFO

Infobox Radio Station
name = WCFO


airdate = 1987 as WMLD
frequency = 1160 kHz
city = East Point, Georgia
area = Atlanta, Georgia
format = News/Talk
owner = JW Broadcasting
power = 50,000 Watts daytime,
160 Watts nighttime
branding = "News/Talk 1160"
slogan = "The Talk of the Town!"
class = D
sister_stations = WMLB
coordinates = coord|33.826111|N|84.605556|W|type:landmark
website = [http://www.newstalk1160.com newstalk1160.com]
affiliations = CBS Radio Network
[http://www.businesstalkradio.net Business Talk Radio Network]
callsign_meaning = W
Chief
Financial
Officer (the person who most likely listened to their previous business talk format)

WCFO, known on air as "News/Talk 1160", is a news and talk radio station, licensed to East Point, Georgia, serving the Atlanta, Georgia radio market. Programming on the station includes both nationally syndicated and locally produced news, information, and talk programs. CBS Radio News is carried at the top of most hours and radio personality Matthew Erich Muller, known on-air as "Mancow", weekday morningscite news|title=3/20: 1160/WCFO-AM drops business talk for Mancow, Dr. Laura, Phil Hendrie, Lou Dobbs|author = Ho, Rodney|date=2008-03-20 |accessdate=2008-04-10|publisher = Atlanta Journal Constitution (Atlanta, Georgia)|url=http://www.accessatlanta.com/blogs/content/shared-blogs/accessatlanta/radiotalk/entries/2008/03/20/320_1160wcfoam.html] . WCFO broadcasts with a power of 50,000 Watts during the day with a directional antenna pattern using a four tower antenna array, and 160 Watts of power at night using one antenna tower in an omni directional antenna pattern.

The sister station to WCFO is WMLB, owned by JW Broadcasting. Prior to becoming WCFO in June 2006, the 1160 kHz facility was the home of WMLB. WWAA was sold to the owner of WMLB, JW Broadcasting, in 2006. The owner, JW Broadcasting, decided to move the WMLB call signs and format from 1160 kHz to the 1690 kHz frequency in order to increase WMLB's coverage area. The facility at 1160 kHz frequency was assigned the WCFO call sign and adopted the business talk radio format in June 2006cite news|title=Future uncertain for Air America's Atlanta affiliate|author = Abkowitz, Alyssa|date=2006-05-10 |accessdate=2007-12-11|publisher = Creative Loafing (Atlanta, Georgia)|url=http://atlanta.creativeloafing.com/gyrobase/Content?oid=72926] . On April 1, 2008, WCFO switched to a news/talk formatcite news|title=3/20: 1160/WCFO-AM drops business talk for Mancow, Dr. Laura, Phil Hendrie, Lou Dobbs|author = Ho, Rodney|date=2008-03-20 |accessdate=2008-04-10|publisher = Atlanta Journal Constitution (Atlanta, Georgia)|url=http://www.accessatlanta.com/blogs/content/shared-blogs/accessatlanta/radiotalk/entries/2008/03/20/320_1160wcfoam.html] .

History of the 1160 frequency

WERD was playing classic R&B when on July 4, 1995, new program director Mitch Faulkner started playing rap music at night and hired younger DJs ["Peach Buzz: Acting Up for a Good Cause," "The Atlanta Constitution", June 19, 1995.] .

In summer 1996, WERD ended its rhythm and blues format and joined the Prime Sports Network with a sports talk format. The station went off the air in 1997. Atlanta businessman Darrell Spann and Atlanta Area Broadcasting returned the station to the air in July 1998 as WKGE with a classic country format.

On April 2, 2001, Billy Corey bought WMLB (1170 AM) in Cumming, Georgia and changed its format, and that of WKGE, to oldies--specifically oldies that had not been heard on other stationshttp://users.ece.gatech.edu/~mleach/radio/am.html, Retrieved on 2008/09/25.] .

The change at WMLB did not make listeners happy. In 1995, WMLB changed from country music to Americana, and, although it did not reach all of Atlanta with its 5000-watt signal, it was the only station of its type in the area. The format included familiar names such as Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, Dolly Parton, Johnny Cash, Linda Ronstadt, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Bob Dylan and Tom Petty, as well as less mainstream artists such as John Prine, Guy Clark, Emmylou Harris, Rodney Crowell, Townes Van Zandt, Jerry Jeff Walker, Son Volt, Wilco, Steve Earle, Jerry Garcia, and the Atlanta band The Vidalias. WMLB program director Chris Marino won Americana program director of the year from The Gavin Report in 1997 [Russ DeVault, "'Americana' Format at Home in Cumming," "The Atlanta Constitution", June 12, 1995.] [Bob Townsend, "A Who's Who of Newer Groups," "The Atlanta Constitution", November 8, 1995.] [Author: Miriam Longino, "Atlanta Upstarts Capture Top National Awards," "The Atlanta Constitution", February 19, 1997.] .

WKGE and WMLB became "The Twins: Classic 1160 and Classic 1170." WKGE planned to increase its 10,000-watt to 50,000 watts. The playlist included "Palisades Park" by Freddy Cannon, "Galveston" by Glen Campbell, "Chantilly Lace" by The Big Bopper, "Hawaii Five-O" by The Ventures, "Suspicion" by Terry Stafford, "Little GTO" by Ronny & the Daytonas and "Yes I'm Ready" by Barbara Mason. The music collection included 9000 songs, including some by The Tams with their orignal lineup. General manager Ron McCarter, described as "a voracious record collector," said Americana was "not commercially viable" but also said it was "a great format." WMLB fans wished the pairing of the two stations had resulted in Americana covering the entire area [Miriam Longino, "Americana Fans Feeling So Blue: Radioactive: Surfing Soundwaves, Online and Off," "The Atlanta Constitution", April 8, 2001.]

The power boost by 1160 AM (which did not improve the limited nighttime signal), which became WMLB, included moving the tower from East Point to Austell. By 2003, when the change took effect, the stations' format was adult standards from local DJs in the morning and afternoon and the Music of Your Life network at other times, with such artists as Frank Sinatra, Nat King Cole, Tony Bennett, Ella Fitzgerald, Norah Jones and Diana Krall [Jamie Gubrecht, "Watts Up: Station Gets a Power Boost," "The Atlanta Journal-Constitution", June 14, 2003.] . The 1170 frequency left the air in 2003.

By 2005, WMLB had what was described as an "eclectic" format ["Scene: Radio Round-Up," "Atlanta Journal-Constitution", September 29, 2005.] .

References

External links

* [http://www.newstalk1160.com News/Talk 1160 Official Website]
*AMQ|WCFO
*AML|WCFO

* [http://www.alldigitalmedia.com News/Talk Webmaster]