WHMA-FM is a radio station

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...

 broadcasting a 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...

 format. Licensed to Hobson City, Alabama

Hobson City, Alabama

Hobson City is a town in Calhoun County, Alabama, United States. At the 2000 census the population was 878. It is included in the Anniston-Oxford Metropolitan Statistical Area....

, USA, it serves the Anniston-Oxford metropolitan area

Anniston-Oxford Metropolitan Area

The Anniston-Oxford Metropolitan Statistical Area is the most populated metropolitan area in Northeast Alabama next to Huntsville. At the 2000 census, it had a population of 112,249...

. The station is currently owned by Williams Communications, Inc.

History

The station was originally applied-for by Perry Communications in 1979, with Ashland, Alabama

Ashland, Alabama

Ashland is a town in Clay County, Alabama, United States. The population was 1,965 at the 2000 census, at which time it was a city; according to 2005 Census Bureau estimates, the population was 1,885. The town is the county seat of Clay County.-History:...

 as its city of license

City of license

A city of license or community of license, in American and Canadian broadcasting, is the community that a radio station or television station is officially licensed to serve by that country's broadcast regulator....

. After being approved in 1980, it was granted two extensions to the original 18 months before its construction permit

Construction permit

A construction permit or building permit is a permit required in most jurisdictions for new construction, or adding on to pre-existing structures, and in some cases for major renovations. Generally, the new construction must be inspected during construction and after completion to ensure compliance...

 expired in 1981. After later being granted a new CP in 1983, it finally went on the air and was given a license to cover in 1984. During this process, the city of license was changed from Ashland-Lineville, Alabama

Lineville, Alabama

Lineville is a city in Clay County, Alabama, United States. At the 2000 census the population was 2,401.-History:Native Americans were the first to inhabit the area now known as Lineville. The Creek Indian War of 1813, however, resulted in their removal. The first white settlers in the area were...

 to its current Hobson City. The station was WASZ until mid-December 2004.

WHMA-FM has filed an application with 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 change its frequency down by one channel, from 95.5 to 95.3 FM. The station will change its city of license again to Alexandria, Alabama

Alexandria, Alabama

Alexandria is an unincorporated census-designated place in Calhoun County, Alabama, United States. At the 2010 census the population was 3,917. It is included in the Anniston-Oxford, Alabama Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:...

 in conjunction with this change. The station will have the same transmitter location and height, but will drop its power in the maximum direction from 530 watts to 400. A different directional antenna

Directional antenna

A directional antenna or beam antenna is an antenna which radiates greater power in one or more directions allowing for increased performance on transmit and receive and reduced interference from unwanted sources....

 will also be used, shifting the southern end of its coverage area further west. oldnew

The WHMA-FM callsign and radio format

Radio format

A radio format or programming format not to be confused with broadcast programming describes the overall content broadcast on a radio station. Radio formats are frequently employed as a marketing tool, and constantly evolve...

 were previously on 100.5, which moved all the way to metro Atlanta

Metro Atlanta

The Atlanta metropolitan area or metro Atlanta, officially designated by the US Census Bureau as the Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta Metropolitan Statistical Area, is the most populous metro area in the U.S. state of Georgia and the ninth-largest metropolitan statistical area in the United States...

 to become WWWQ (now WNNX

WNNX (FM)

WWWQ FM 99.7, known as "Q100", is an Atlanta radio station airing a top-40 contemporary hit radio format. It is owned and operated by Cumulus Media from the same building as its other co-owned sister stations WNNX FM "Rock 100.5", W258BU FM 99.1 "99X", and W250BC FM 97.9 "Journey 97-9"...

) FM in January 2001. WHMA-FM began broadcasting
in 1947 and owned by Consolidated Publishing which printed The Anniston Star newspaper. Licensed to Anniston, Alabama WHMA was a class C 100,000 watt FM. The present WHMA-FM signed on the air January 2005 as a class A 6000 watt previously licensed to Ashland, Alabama as "Real Country" WASZ 95.5. WHMA-FM sister
station WHMA-AM signed on the air in 1938. WHMA-AM
broadcasts on 1390 as "Mighty Power 1390" with a power of
5000 watts daytime and 1000 watts directional night
programming a black gospel format. WHMA-FM played a
country music format from March 1985-January 2001 and the current WHMA-FM also plays a country format.