WDKN
Encyclopedia
WDKN is a radio station
operating in Dickson, Tennessee
, on a frequency of 1260 kHz. It was formerly owned by Edmisson Communications, a local Dickson company. It is currently owned and operated by R & F Communications, also a local Dickson company.
WDKN broadcasts primarily country music
and community-oriented programming for son area such as death notices, a community calendar of events, local high school
football
and basketball
games, and "Swap and Shop", an on-air garage sale whose announcements are free to private, non-commercial vendors.
WDKN broadcasts a 5,000-watt signal during daylight hours but is restricted by the Federal Communications Commission
to low-power (under 25 watts) operation after dark so as not to interfere with the rights of out-of-market clear channel
AM stations. Nighttime operations are generally limited to broadcasts of sporting events.
The station is an affiliate of the Tennessee Titans
radio network.
The station left the air as of March 19, 2009. On July 27, 2009, the station came back on the air with fanfare and new owners, but a very similar format and programming.
WDKN's origins date back to the Summer of 1954, when John Bailey of Clarksville found an available frequency and thought of Dickson. Bailey started looking for someone to take on the task of co-owning and running a radio station in Dickson at AM frequency 1260. It turns out he didn't find anyone, but Bill Potts found him. Potts became majority owner in the now three-way partnership, which also included Mitchell Hayes.
WDKN's first studio location was on Main Street above the current downtown Bank of Dickson location. When Mr. Potts, who died in 2004, was asked about the station's philosophy in the early days, he replied "If it happened, we covered it." He also said the station staff worked by a few basic principles, among them "the first thing we do is serve the public, money wouldn't enter into it." Mr. Potts went on to own and work with the station for twenty-five years.
In late 1960, the studios moved to a building at the corner of College and Poplar Streets, near the present-day locations of Dickson Funeral Home and Dickson Florist. In 1984 Edmisson and Eubanks Communication, Inc., (Tommy Edmisson and Oscar Eubanks and Leroy Kennell) ownership group took control of WDKN. The studios have been at their current location, 106 East College Street, since the mid 1980s.
Since day one WDKN has been the community's radio station. Among the programs you might have heard during the early days of the station were Lost & Found, Saturday Sidelights, Old Timers Program (which continues to run to this day), Ida's News and Views with the late Ida Nicks, and Gospel Echoes, just to name a few.
Many of Dickson County's most notable citizens have regularly hosted shows on our airwaves, among them Bill Potts, Warren Medley (who continues to host Old Timers & Know Your County each and every Saturday Morning), Henry Ragan (host of Life In The Tennessee Valley, which is now hosted by his grandson, Alan Ragan), Vernon Hamilton, Dr. Jimmy Jackson and Dr. Walter Bell, Joe Webster (the staff announcer during most of the 1960s and 1970s), Ralph Easley, L.D. Filson (the station's engineer who also did many live local sports broadcasts over the years), Chris Norman, and many, many more.
WDKN's studio and transmission equipment was maintained by the station's engineer, L.D. Filson, from the station's beginnings until the early 1990s.
Several of the station's early personalities were crucial in making the Annual Old Timer's Day Festival a reality, an event the station continues to cover wall-to-wall each spring. WDKN has traditionally been the home of the long-running Dickson County Cancer Crusade Radio Auction each and every April. From its earliest days, WDKN has been the voice for area-wide sports, covering Dickson Lady Dragon & Dragon Sports, and since the early 70s, Dickson County Lady Cougar and Cougar sports.
WDKN became one of the first stations to join the Tennessee Titans Radio Network and was saluted as 2004 Titan Partner of the year.
On March 19, 2009, WDKN signed off the air after 55 years of serving the community. However, the station would not stay off the air for long. In May, 2009, R & F Communications, Inc., led by Lori Reddon Forte (a native of Dickson) and Kenneth Forte, purchased WDKN AM-1260 from Edmisson and Eubanks Communication, Inc., and returned to the airwaves in July 2009 as the “New WDKN 1260 AM”.
Today, WDKN is a vibrant appendage to the community. As Dickson’s only local radio station, WDKN mixes in a combination of news, traffic, sports, along with your favorite adult contemporary country and gospel hits by artists such as Rascal Flatts, Carrie Underwood, Diamond Rio, Reba McIntire and Daruis Rucker. Gospel artist Michael W. Smith, Nichol Mullens, Curtis Chapman and Point of Grace.
Radio station
Radio broadcasting is a one-way wireless transmission over radio waves intended to reach a wide audience. Stations can be linked in radio networks to broadcast a common radio format, either in broadcast syndication or simulcast or both...
operating in Dickson, Tennessee
Dickson, Tennessee
Dickson is a city in Dickson County, Tennessee, United States. It is part of the Nashville Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 12,244 at the 2000 census.-Demographics:...
, on a frequency of 1260 kHz. It was formerly owned by Edmisson Communications, a local Dickson company. It is currently owned and operated by R & F Communications, also a local Dickson company.
WDKN broadcasts primarily country music
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
and community-oriented programming for son area such as death notices, a community calendar of events, local high school
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
and basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
games, and "Swap and Shop", an on-air garage sale whose announcements are free to private, non-commercial vendors.
WDKN broadcasts a 5,000-watt signal during daylight hours but is restricted by the Federal Communications Commission
Federal Communications Commission
The Federal Communications Commission is an independent agency of the United States government, created, Congressional statute , and with the majority of its commissioners appointed by the current President. The FCC works towards six goals in the areas of broadband, competition, the spectrum, the...
to low-power (under 25 watts) operation after dark so as not to interfere with the rights of out-of-market clear channel
Clear channel
A clear-channel station is an AM band Radio station in North America that has the highest protection from interference from other stations, particularly concerning night-time skywave propagation. Usually known as class A stations since 1982, they are occasionally still referred to by their former...
AM stations. Nighttime operations are generally limited to broadcasts of sporting events.
The station is an affiliate of the Tennessee Titans
Tennessee Titans
The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. They are members of the South Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League . Previously known as the Houston Oilers, the team began play in 1960 as a charter...
radio network.
The station left the air as of March 19, 2009. On July 27, 2009, the station came back on the air with fanfare and new owners, but a very similar format and programming.
History
On New Years Day of 1955, at 1 o'clock in the afternoon, the first words ever to be spoken over the airwaves of WDKN were "This is Hal Smith beginning a history of broadcasting in Dickson, Tennessee....there was a baby born in Wisconsin this morning at 12:01 am, and in Dickson, Tennessee here at 1:00 pm, January 1st, 1955, a radio station was born."WDKN's origins date back to the Summer of 1954, when John Bailey of Clarksville found an available frequency and thought of Dickson. Bailey started looking for someone to take on the task of co-owning and running a radio station in Dickson at AM frequency 1260. It turns out he didn't find anyone, but Bill Potts found him. Potts became majority owner in the now three-way partnership, which also included Mitchell Hayes.
WDKN's first studio location was on Main Street above the current downtown Bank of Dickson location. When Mr. Potts, who died in 2004, was asked about the station's philosophy in the early days, he replied "If it happened, we covered it." He also said the station staff worked by a few basic principles, among them "the first thing we do is serve the public, money wouldn't enter into it." Mr. Potts went on to own and work with the station for twenty-five years.
In late 1960, the studios moved to a building at the corner of College and Poplar Streets, near the present-day locations of Dickson Funeral Home and Dickson Florist. In 1984 Edmisson and Eubanks Communication, Inc., (Tommy Edmisson and Oscar Eubanks and Leroy Kennell) ownership group took control of WDKN. The studios have been at their current location, 106 East College Street, since the mid 1980s.
Since day one WDKN has been the community's radio station. Among the programs you might have heard during the early days of the station were Lost & Found, Saturday Sidelights, Old Timers Program (which continues to run to this day), Ida's News and Views with the late Ida Nicks, and Gospel Echoes, just to name a few.
Many of Dickson County's most notable citizens have regularly hosted shows on our airwaves, among them Bill Potts, Warren Medley (who continues to host Old Timers & Know Your County each and every Saturday Morning), Henry Ragan (host of Life In The Tennessee Valley, which is now hosted by his grandson, Alan Ragan), Vernon Hamilton, Dr. Jimmy Jackson and Dr. Walter Bell, Joe Webster (the staff announcer during most of the 1960s and 1970s), Ralph Easley, L.D. Filson (the station's engineer who also did many live local sports broadcasts over the years), Chris Norman, and many, many more.
WDKN's studio and transmission equipment was maintained by the station's engineer, L.D. Filson, from the station's beginnings until the early 1990s.
Several of the station's early personalities were crucial in making the Annual Old Timer's Day Festival a reality, an event the station continues to cover wall-to-wall each spring. WDKN has traditionally been the home of the long-running Dickson County Cancer Crusade Radio Auction each and every April. From its earliest days, WDKN has been the voice for area-wide sports, covering Dickson Lady Dragon & Dragon Sports, and since the early 70s, Dickson County Lady Cougar and Cougar sports.
WDKN became one of the first stations to join the Tennessee Titans Radio Network and was saluted as 2004 Titan Partner of the year.
On March 19, 2009, WDKN signed off the air after 55 years of serving the community. However, the station would not stay off the air for long. In May, 2009, R & F Communications, Inc., led by Lori Reddon Forte (a native of Dickson) and Kenneth Forte, purchased WDKN AM-1260 from Edmisson and Eubanks Communication, Inc., and returned to the airwaves in July 2009 as the “New WDKN 1260 AM”.
Today, WDKN is a vibrant appendage to the community. As Dickson’s only local radio station, WDKN mixes in a combination of news, traffic, sports, along with your favorite adult contemporary country and gospel hits by artists such as Rascal Flatts, Carrie Underwood, Diamond Rio, Reba McIntire and Daruis Rucker. Gospel artist Michael W. Smith, Nichol Mullens, Curtis Chapman and Point of Grace.