WAUK
Encyclopedia
- See also WRRD
WAUK (540 AM
Amplitude modulation
Amplitude modulation is a technique used in electronic communication, most commonly for transmitting information via a radio carrier wave. AM works by varying the strength of the transmitted signal in relation to the information being sent...
ESPN) is a radio station licensed to Jackson, Wisconsin
Jackson, Wisconsin
Jackson is a village in Washington County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 4,938 at the 2000 census. The village is located partially within the Town of Jackson.-Geography:Jackson is located at ....
, serving the Milwaukee
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Milwaukee is the largest city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin, the 28th most populous city in the United States and 39th most populous region in the United States. It is the county seat of Milwaukee County and is located on the southwestern shore of Lake Michigan. According to 2010 census data, the...
area. It is known on-air as 540 ESPN. WAUK airs a blend of ESPN Radio
ESPN Radio
ESPN Radio is an American sports radio network. It was launched on January 1, 1992 under the original banner of "SportsRadio ESPN." ESPN Radio is located at ESPN headquarters in Bristol, Connecticut...
talk and sports play-by play, along with local sports talk and play-by-play programming.
The station is owned by Beaver Dam
Beaver Dam, Wisconsin
Beaver Dam is a city in Dodge County, Wisconsin, United States, along Beaver Dam Lake and the Beaver Dam River. The population was 16,243 at the 2010 census, making it the second largest city in Dodge County, and the largest city fully located within the county. It is the principal city of the...
-based Good Karma Broadcasting, LLC
Good Karma Broadcasting
Good Karma Broadcasting LLC is a broadcasting company in the United States. Good Karma operates eleven radio stations in the states of Wisconsin, Ohio, and Florida...
, and owned by Craig Karmazin, son of legendary radio executive and current Sirius XM Radio CEO Mel Karmazin
Mel Karmazin
Melvin Alan "Mel" Karmazin is an American executive. He co-founded and was the president of Infinity Broadcasting and eventually became the president and chief executive officer of CBS. As of 2008, he is the CEO of Sirius XM Radio....
. It is the local rival of Entercom's all-sports station WSSP
WSSP
WSSP is a Milwaukee-based sports talk station owned by Entercom.The station is the secondary home station for any play-by-play sports coverage on WTMJ-AM which conflicts with another event; for instance the Milwaukee Bucks air on WSSP if a Milwaukee Brewers game airs. If a Green Bay Packers game...
(1250).
History
The station signed on in 1964 with the call sign WYLO, which stood for "Way Low" (the station's position on the AM dial). WYLO ran a country format for many years before switching to ChristianChristian radio
Christian radio is a category of radio formats that focus on transmitting programming with a Christian message. In the United States, where it is more established, many such broadcasters play popular music of Christian influence, though many programs have talk or news programming covering...
programming. From 1995 to 2001, the WZER call sign
Call sign
In broadcasting and radio communications, a call sign is a unique designation for a transmitting station. In North America they are used as names for broadcasting stations...
was used, prior to briefly returning to WYLO and finally, WRRD.
Prior to the sale to current owner Good Karma Broadcasting, Salem Communications
Salem Communications
Salem Communications is a U.S. radio broadcaster, Internet content provider, and magazine and book publisher specializing in evangelical Christian and conservative political talk radio. It owns 99 commercial radio stations, 65 of which are in the top 25 markets. Salem is the fifth largest U.S....
owned the property and programmed a Christian-oriented religious format. The station's now-former WRRD calls come from Salem's branding of the station, "The Word".
Good Karma Broadcasting took over operation of the signal on February 7, 2008, moving the format of the former WAUK (1510) from that daytime-limited signal to the full-time 24/7 signal of WRRD. Formerly, ESPN Radio was heard on WAUK during the day, and WMCS
WMCS
This article is about the radio station, for the school, see West Memphis Christian SchoolWMCS is an African-American-oriented talk and music radio station in Milwaukee, Wisconsin...
(1290) from 6pm-6am since January 1, 2005 under the branding Milwaukee's ESPN Radio - 1510 Days/1290 Nights. On February 12, 2008, WAUK's call letters were switched to the 540 frequency, with the WRRD calls moving to 1510.
The new "540 ESPN" simulcast
Simulcast
Simulcast, shorthand for "simultaneous broadcast", refers to programs or events broadcast across more than one medium, or more than one service on the same medium, at the same time. For example, Absolute Radio is simulcast on both AM and on satellite radio, and the BBC's Prom concerts are often...
s continued with 1510 AM until May 5, 2008, when Good Karma converted the new WRRD to ESPN Deportes Radio
ESPN Deportes Radio
ESPN Deportes Radio is a Spanish language sports radio network created and produced by Disney-owned ESPN. Programming includes call-in talk shows and commentary from hosts about a full range of sporting events, including soccer, American football, baseball and boxing.The network has stations in 13...
, a Spanish language
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
sports talk format . WMCS's time brokering arrangement with WAUK ended on June 30, 2008, when the station reclaimed their nighttime hours for the music and community talk format the station airs the rest of the day .
Programming
Programming includes syndicated content from ESPN RadioESPN Radio
ESPN Radio is an American sports radio network. It was launched on January 1, 1992 under the original banner of "SportsRadio ESPN." ESPN Radio is located at ESPN headquarters in Bristol, Connecticut...
, including Mike and Mike in the Morning
Mike and Mike in the Morning
Mike and Mike in the Morning is an American sports-talk radio show hosted by Mike Golic and Mike Greenberg on ESPN Radio and simulcast on television, normally on ESPN2. If ESPN is broadcasting a live sporting event during the show's timeslot, Sportscenter will air on ESPN2, and the show's...
,
The Herd with Colin Cowherd
The Herd with Colin Cowherd
The Herd with Colin Cowherd is a sports talk radio show hosted by Colin Cowherd and broadcast on ESPN Radio from Bristol, Connecticut. The show is heard Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. ET until 1 p.m. ET on most ESPN Radio stations and is simulcasted on ESPNews...
with Colin Cowherd
Colin Cowherd
Colin Murray Cowherd is an American sports radio personality. He is currently the host of The Herd with Colin Cowherd on ESPN Radio and ESPNews. He is also the co-host of the television show SportsNation on ESPN2.-Career:...
and Doug Gottlieb
Doug Gottlieb
Douglas Michael Gottlieb is a former NCAA collegiate basketball player for the University of Notre Dame and Oklahoma State University, and the Russian Basketball Super League...
. WAUK also airs a good deal of locally-oriented programming from hosts Steve "The Homer" True
Steve True
Steve True , better known as Steve "The Homer" True, is an American sportscaster from South Bend, Indiana. He attended the University of Wisconsin–Madison, University of Arizona, and Indiana University South Bend. His father was a professor at the University of Notre Dame before becoming a...
, Jason Wilde
Jason Wilde
Jason Wilde is an American sportswriter from Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He graduated from Martin Luther High School in Greendale, Wisconsin in 1990. He attended the University of Wisconsin in Madison, Wisconsin and graduated in 1994 with a B.A. in Journalism.-Career:Wilde is the Green Bay Packers beat...
, Bill Johnson, Drew Olson
Drew Olson (sportswriter)
Drew Olson is an American sportscaster from Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin. He attended the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee in Milwaukee, Wisconsin....
and Dan Needles.
WAUK is the flagship of Marquette Golden Eagles
Marquette Golden Eagles
The Marquette Golden Eagles are the intercollegiate athletic teams of Marquette University....
college basketball and carries Wisconsin Badgers
Wisconsin Badgers
The Wisconsin Badgers are the collegiate athletic teams from the University of Wisconsin–Madison. This NCAA Division I athletic program has teams in football, basketball, ice hockey, volleyball, soccer, cross country, tennis, swimming, wrestling, track and field, rowing, golf, and softball...
college hockey
College hockey
College hockey refers to ice hockey played between colleges with their teams composed of enrolled students. College hockey is played in Canada and the United States, though leagues outside of North America exist....
. The station also airs ESPN Radio play-by-play coverage of Major League Baseball
MLB on ESPN Radio
Major League Baseball on ESPN Radio is the brand name for exclusive play-by-play broadcast presentation of Major League Baseball on ESPN Radio...
, the NBA
NBA on ESPN Radio
The NBA on ESPN Radio is a broadcast of National Basketball Association games on the ESPN Radio network. Games on ESPN Radio are distributed on over 200 radio stations in the United States and Canada. The program began on January 21, 1996 and the current contract runs through the 2015-2016 season...
, NFL football from Westwood One
Westwood One
Westwood One was an American radio network and was based in New York City. At one time, it was managed by CBS Radio, the radio arm of CBS Corporation, and Viacom and was later purchased by the private equity firm The Gores Group...
, college basketball
College basketball
College basketball most often refers to the USA basketball competitive governance structure established by the National Collegiate Athletic Association . Basketball in the NCAA is divided into three divisions: Division I, Division II and Division III....
, and the Bowl Championship Series
Bowl Championship Series
The Bowl Championship Series is a selection system that creates five bowl match-ups involving ten of the top ranked teams in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision , including an opportunity for the top two to compete in the BCS National Championship Game.The BCS relies on a combination of...
, while locally The station is also the Milwaukee home of NASCAR
NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing is a family-owned and -operated business venture that sanctions and governs multiple auto racing sports events. It was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1947–48. As of 2009, the CEO for the company is Brian France, grandson of the late Bill France Sr...
radio coverage from all three NASCAR radio networks.
The station also airs Wisconsin Badgers
Wisconsin Badgers
The Wisconsin Badgers are the collegiate athletic teams from the University of Wisconsin–Madison. This NCAA Division I athletic program has teams in football, basketball, ice hockey, volleyball, soccer, cross country, tennis, swimming, wrestling, track and field, rowing, golf, and softball...
football and basketball games pre-empted by WTMJ
WTMJ (AM)
WTMJ is a radio station in Milwaukee, Wisconsin broadcasting at 620 AM. It is a 50,000-watt station airing a format of news, talk and sports. WTMJ is owned by Journal Broadcast Group, which also owns the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and sister station WLWK-FM....
(620) due to rights conflicts.
The station also has had a branding alliance since September 2008 with WISN-TV
WISN-TV
WISN-TV, virtual channel 12.1 , is a television station located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin serving as an affiliate of the ABC television network. Its signal covers most of southeastern Wisconsin and parts of northeastern Illinois, including Racine, Kenosha, Sheboygan and Waukesha...
(Channel 12), including a co-marketed spotlight high school sports "game of the week" (in men's basketball or football, depending on season) under Hearst's "Operation Football" high school sports branding, which airs live Friday evenings on WAUK. As part of this, a Saturday evening program called The Big 12 Sports Show with 540 ESPN hosted by Olson and Needles airs on WISN-TV before ABC primetime on that evening, which analyzes the next day's Packer game and acts as a post-game or pre-game for that day's Badger football game, along with coverage of other sports.
Other local programming airs throughout the weekend, including an independent Wisconsin Badgers
Wisconsin Badgers
The Wisconsin Badgers are the collegiate athletic teams from the University of Wisconsin–Madison. This NCAA Division I athletic program has teams in football, basketball, ice hockey, volleyball, soccer, cross country, tennis, swimming, wrestling, track and field, rowing, golf, and softball...
college football
College football
College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...
pregame show and a Packers-focused Sunday morning show hosted by Karmazin and former Green Bay Packers
Green Bay Packers
The Green Bay Packers are an American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Packers are the current NFL champions...
player Mark Chmura
Mark Chmura
Mark William Chmura , is a former American football tight end, who played his entire career with the Green Bay Packers .-Biography:Chmura was born in Deerfield, Massachusetts, United States.-College:...
.
WAUK only operates at 400 watts, largely to protect the signal of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly known as CBC and officially as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian crown corporation that serves as the national public radio and television broadcaster...
's Saskatchewan
CBK (AM)
CBK is a Canadian clear-channel station, broadcasting the CBC Radio One network at 540 AM to most of southern Saskatchewan. The AM transmitter is located in Watrous, the city of licence, but the studios are in the CBC Regina Broadcast Centre, 2440 Broad Street in Regina. This facility also houses...
station for CBC Radio One
CBC Radio One
CBC Radio One is the English language news and information radio network of the publicly-owned Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. It is commercial free and offers both local and national programming...
, and their French station in Windsor, Ontario, both also carried on 540, though the signal does cover a relatively substantial area due to its low dial position.
External links
- 540 ESPN (official site)
- Milwaukee radio: a retrospective