WIL-FM
| Broadcast area | Greater St. Louis |
|---|---|
| Frequency | 92.3 MHz (HD Radio) |
| Branding | 92.3 WIL |
| Programming | |
| Format | Country |
| Subchannels | |
| Ownership | |
| Owner |
|
| KPNT, KSHE, WARH, WXOS | |
| History | |
First air date | July 15, 1962 |
Former call signs | KFMS (March 30, 1973-September 1, 1974) |
Call sign meaning | carried over from the former WIL (1430 AM) |
| Technical information[1] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 72390 |
| Class | C0 |
| ERP |
|
| HAAT | 300 meters (980 ft) |
| Translator(s) | HD3: 94.3 W232CR (Alton, Illinois) |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
| Webcast | Listen Live |
| Website | 923wil |
WIL-FM (92.3 MHz) is a commercial radio station in St. Louis, Missouri. It airs a country music format and is owned by Hubbard Broadcasting.[2] The studios are on Olive Boulevard, near Interstate 270 in Creve Coeur (with a St. Louis address).
WIL-FM is a Class C station. It has an effective radiated power (ERP) of 100,000 watts, the maximum for most stations.[3] The transmitter is on Butler Hill Road near Keller Road in St. Louis, amid the towers for other local FM and TV stations.[4] WIL-FM uses HD Radio technology. Its HD2 subchannel plays Americana music, known as "Second Fiddle." The HD3 subchannel plays oldies and feeds FM translator W232CR at 94.3 MHz.
Format
WIL-FM plays a variety of country music, concentrating on the hits from the current charts and the last 25 years.[5] WIL-FM personalities include Remy & Kasey and Marty Brooks. WIL-FM is programmed by Tommy Mattern and the music director is Marty Brooks. WIL-FM primarily competes with iHeartMedia's KSD-FM for country listeners in St. Louis.
History
WIL-FM signed on the air on July 15, 1962, as the FM sister station to WIL (1430 AM).[6] In its first decade, it mostly simulcast the AM station, which aired a Top 40 format, and were owned by WIL, Inc., a subsidiary of Balaban Stations. At the time, their studios were in Broadcasting House in St. Louis. WIL-FM was only powered at 30,000 watts, a fraction of its current output.
WIL-FM took the call sign KFMS on March 30, 1973. After a year, it returned to WIL-FM, effective September 1, 1974.[7] In the 1970s, WIL had switched to a personality country format, while the FM aired a more music-intensive country format, with less chatter and fewer commercials.[8]
Over time, as more people tuned to the FM band for music listening, WIL-FM became the dominant station. Eventually, the AM station changed its call letters to KZQZ and is now dark. WIL-FM was later acquired by Salt Lake City-based Bonneville International.
Bonneville announced its sale of WIL-FM (and 16 other stations) to Hubbard Broadcasting on January 19, 2011.[9] The sale was completed on April 29, 2011.[10]
On January 30, 2017, WIL-FM re-branded as "New Country 92.3".[11] On October 6, 2020, the station dropped the "New Country 92.3" branding and returned to using its call letters in its branding as "92.3 WIL".[12]
HD Radio
Starting in 2012, WIL-FM's HD2 digital subchannel began airing Americana music, calling itself "Second Fiddle". Previously, WIL-FM-HD2 was branded as "Kerosene Country", and largely had the same playlist as WIL-FM.
On February 18, 2020, WIL-FM signed on a third subchannel, and began airing an oldies format, branded as "My Mix 94.3." The subchannel feeds FM translator W232CR at 94.3 MHz in Alton, Illinois.[13]
References
- ^ "Facility Technical Data for WIL-FM". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
- ^ "WIL-FM Facility Record". United States Federal Communications Commission, audio division. Retrieved 2009-12-22.
- ^ FCC.gov/WIL-FM
- ^ Radio-Locator.com/WIL-FM
- ^ "Station Information Profile". Arbitron. Summer 2009. Archived from the original on September 23, 2009. Retrieved 2009-12-22.
- ^ Broadcasting Yearbook 1965 page B-91. Retrieved June 2, 2024.
- ^ FCC’s history cards for WIL-FM; retrieved April 28, 2021.
- ^ Broadcasting Yearbook 1977 page C-124. Retrieved June 2, 2024.
- ^ "$505M sale: Bonneville sells Chicago, D.C., St. Louis and Cincinnati to Hubbard". Radio-Info.com. January 19, 2011. Archived from the original on January 22, 2011. Retrieved January 19, 2011.
- ^ "Hubbard deal to purchase Bonneville stations closes". Radio Ink. May 2, 2011. Archived from the original on March 12, 2012. Retrieved May 2, 2011.
- ^ WIL Rebrands as New Country 92.3 Radioinsight - January 30, 2017
- ^ WIL Rebrands Back To Its Call Letters Radioinsight - October 6, 2020
- ^ "WBGZ Moves to 107.1; Launches Oldies My Mix 94.3".
External links
- Official website
- WIL Radio Collection finding aid at the St. Louis Public Library
- Facility details for Facility ID 72390 (WIL-FM) in the FCC Licensing and Management System
- WIL-FM in Nielsen Audio's FM station database
- STLRadio.com - Historic information about St. Louis radio broadcasting
- Facility details for Facility ID 144705 (W232CR) in the FCC Licensing and Management System
- W232CR at FCCdata.org