WKBF (AM)
Encyclopedia
WKBF is a radio station
licensed to Rock Island, Illinois
, and carries a Spanish Regional Music format. The station's frequency is 1270 kHz, and broadcasts at a power of 5 kW. Its transmitter is located on 22nd Avenue (Old Colona Road) in Moline
, alongside the Moline–East Moline
border just off of 53rd Street and Avenue of the Cities.
WKBF is currently owned by Quad Cities Media.
. He took the equipment and set it up at the rear of his store in Rock Island.
Beardsley went on the air in February 1925, using the callsign WHBF and broadcasting at 100 watts. The letters were said to stand for "Where Historic Blackhawk Fought."
The station moved to the Harms Hotel in Rock Island in 1932. In November of that year, Beardsley sold interest in his station to the John Potter family, which operated the Rock Island Argus. Later during the 1930s, the station moved to its current home at 1270 kHz, and had its power boosted to 5 kW.
WHBF was joined by a sister FM
radio station - WHBF-FM
, the first in the Quad Cities
- in October 1947, and a television
station went on the air in July 1950. By now, all three facilities were located in the Telco Building in downtown Rock Island.
WHBF underwent many format changes since the end of the Golden Age of Radio. For instance, listeners tuning into the station during the 1960s and early 1970s found a middle-of-the-road, adult standards
format.
. WHBF was known as "Country Sunshine Radio" and brought current and classic country music to listeners 24 hours a day.
WHBF first adopted the country format in 1974, and for years was among the top-rated stations in the Quad Cities
market, alongside powerhouses KSTT
and KIIK 104
.
But by the mid-1980s and the explosive growth of FM radio, WHBF's listenership began to wane. WLLR-FM, which began broadcasting its country format at the Quad-Cities market's 101.3 MHz in 1983, began to erode WHBF's listenership and by the end of the 1980s, WLLR was the overall top-rated overall station in the market. Meanwhile, 1270 kHz - which changed to WKBF in 1987 - would never regain its former popularity.
WKBF's country format struggled through the early 1990s, getting most of its programming from the ABC Radio Networks' "Real Country
" satellite service. In 1994, management was in negotiations with Steve Bridges of 99.7 KFMH to move its progressive music format and its staff to 1270 after that station was sold. By 1995, with WKBF at the bottom of the ratings for several years, station managers finally decided to lay the country station to rest.
's Top 40 format. By September 1996, the station premiered an adult standards
/MOR format at the frequency, although virtually all of its programming was from ABC Radio Networks. However, this format's listenership remained minimal.
In February 2004, programmers with the Quad-City Radio Group - which by now was operating the station - decided to use the frequency for a country recurrents format. WKBF played country favorites from the 1970s through 1990s, but the station's format failed to entice listeners.
WKBF's next format - a liberal talk
format - premiered on the frequency in March 2005. The station's primary programming came from Air America Radio
, with hosts including Al Franken
, Stephanie Miller
and Mark Riley. Despite all the format changes, one carryover program remained: "Croonerville", a Sunday morning program of adult standards
hosted by local personality Charlie Honold; the program premiered on WKBF in 1996 and ran for 10 years. While the switch to progressive talk provided a modest boost to WKBF's ratings (reaching a 2.6 share in the fall 2005 Arbitron
) the station was sold and promptly became an outlet for Christian talk.
) were owned by Mercury Broadcasting, and was operated by a joint sales agreement with Clear Channel Communications
.
In October 2006, it was announced the station would be acquired by Quad Cities Media and would go Christian
talk by the end of the yearhttp://www.qctimes.com/articles/2006/10/20/news/business/doc4538500780568379920871.txt. On December 5, the station switched to an all-Christmas format, the prelude to a Christian-oriented lineup. Known as "Truth 1270," the primary focus was on Christian preaching and teaching; sacred music was provided by AbidingRadio at night and early morning.
The format lasted until June 21, signing off at 11:59 p.m. with a 100-year-old recording of Ira Sankey sigining "God Be With You Till We Meet Again."
During the "Truth 1270" era, WKBF became the Quad City market's first radio station to go digital, with the CAM-D
technology.
During 2007, WKBF broadcasted high school
and Iowa State University
sports broadcasts, and Quad Cities River Bandits baseball games in the English language, alongside its Spanish-language programming; the sports programming has since moved to other stations in the market, and the station is now exclusively Spanish language. The station currently calls itself "La Jefa" (Spanish for "The Boss Lady")
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...
licensed to Rock Island, Illinois
Rock Island, Illinois
Rock Island is the county seat of Rock Island County, Illinois, United States. The population was 40,884 at the 2010 census. Located on the Mississippi River, it is one of the Quad Cities, along with neighboring Moline, East Moline, and the Iowa cities of Davenport and Bettendorf. The Quad Cities...
, and carries a Spanish Regional Music format. The station's frequency is 1270 kHz, and broadcasts at a power of 5 kW. Its transmitter is located on 22nd Avenue (Old Colona Road) in Moline
Moline, Illinois
Moline is a city located in Rock Island County, Illinois, United States, with a population of 45,792 in 2010. Moline is one of the Quad Cities, along with neighboring East Moline and Rock Island in Illinois and the cities of Davenport and Bettendorf in Iowa. The Quad Cities has a population of...
, alongside the Moline–East Moline
East Moline, Illinois
East Moline is a city in Rock Island County, Illinois, United States. The population was 20,333 at the 2000 census. East Moline is one of the five Quad Cities,, along with the cities of Rock Island, Moline, and the Iowa cities of Davenport and Bettendorf. The Quad Cities has a population of 379,690...
border just off of 53rd Street and Avenue of the Cities.
WKBF is currently owned by Quad Cities Media.
Early history
The history of the Rock Island allocation for WKBF dates to 1925, when businessman Calvin Beardsley purchased an experimental radio transmitter that operated in Cambridge, IllinoisCambridge, Illinois
Cambridge is a village in Henry County, Illinois, United States. The population was 2,160 at the 2010 census, down from 2,180 at the 2000 census...
. He took the equipment and set it up at the rear of his store in Rock Island.
Beardsley went on the air in February 1925, using the callsign WHBF and broadcasting at 100 watts. The letters were said to stand for "Where Historic Blackhawk Fought."
The station moved to the Harms Hotel in Rock Island in 1932. In November of that year, Beardsley sold interest in his station to the John Potter family, which operated the Rock Island Argus. Later during the 1930s, the station moved to its current home at 1270 kHz, and had its power boosted to 5 kW.
WHBF was joined by a sister FM
FM broadcasting
FM broadcasting is a broadcasting technology pioneered by Edwin Howard Armstrong which uses frequency modulation to provide high-fidelity sound over broadcast radio. The term "FM band" describes the "frequency band in which FM is used for broadcasting"...
radio station - WHBF-FM
WLKU
WLKU is a radio station licensed to Rock Island, Illinois, with a Christian contemporary format. The station's frequency is 98.9 MHz, and broadcasts at a power of 39 kW.WLKU is owned by the Educational Media Foundation.-Early history:...
, the first in the Quad Cities
Quad Cities
The Quad Cities is a group of five cities straddling the Mississippi River on the Iowa–Illinois boundary. These cities, Davenport and Bettendorf and Rock Island, Moline, and East Moline , are the center of the Quad Cities Metropolitan Area, which, as of 2010, had an estimated population of...
- in October 1947, and a television
WHBF-TV
WHBF-TV, channel 4, is a television station licensed to Rock Island, Illinois, which serves as the CBS affiliate for the Quad Cities television market...
station went on the air in July 1950. By now, all three facilities were located in the Telco Building in downtown Rock Island.
WHBF underwent many format changes since the end of the Golden Age of Radio. For instance, listeners tuning into the station during the 1960s and early 1970s found a middle-of-the-road, adult standards
Adult standards
Adult standards is a North American radio format heard primarily on AM or class A FM stations.Adult standards is aimed at "mature" adults, meaning mainly those persons over 50 years of age, but it is mostly targeted for senior citizens...
format.
1974-1995: 'Country Sunshine' Era
The station's signature format for many years was country musicCountry 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...
. WHBF was known as "Country Sunshine Radio" and brought current and classic country music to listeners 24 hours a day.
WHBF first adopted the country format in 1974, and for years was among the top-rated stations in the Quad Cities
Quad Cities
The Quad Cities is a group of five cities straddling the Mississippi River on the Iowa–Illinois boundary. These cities, Davenport and Bettendorf and Rock Island, Moline, and East Moline , are the center of the Quad Cities Metropolitan Area, which, as of 2010, had an estimated population of...
market, alongside powerhouses KSTT
KJOC
KJOC is a radio station licensed to Davenport, Iowa, and has an oldies format. The station's frequency is 1170 kHz, and broadcasts at a power of 1 kW...
and KIIK 104
WLLR-FM
WLLR-FM is a radio station licensed to Davenport, Iowa, whose format is modern country music. The station's frequency is 103.7 MHz, and broadcasts at a power of 100 kW....
.
But by the mid-1980s and the explosive growth of FM radio, WHBF's listenership began to wane. WLLR-FM, which began broadcasting its country format at the Quad-Cities market's 101.3 MHz in 1983, began to erode WHBF's listenership and by the end of the 1980s, WLLR was the overall top-rated overall station in the market. Meanwhile, 1270 kHz - which changed to WKBF in 1987 - would never regain its former popularity.
WKBF's country format struggled through the early 1990s, getting most of its programming from the ABC Radio Networks' "Real Country
Real country
Real Country is a 24-hour radio format produced by Cumulus Media Networks. Real Country, originally one of the Satellite Music Network stations, is marketed at the 18 to 54 demographic in rural areas of the United States...
" satellite service. In 1994, management was in negotiations with Steve Bridges of 99.7 KFMH to move its progressive music format and its staff to 1270 after that station was sold. By 1995, with WKBF at the bottom of the ratings for several years, station managers finally decided to lay the country station to rest.
Format shuffle
For more than a year, WKBF simulcasted WHTS-FMWLKU
WLKU is a radio station licensed to Rock Island, Illinois, with a Christian contemporary format. The station's frequency is 98.9 MHz, and broadcasts at a power of 39 kW.WLKU is owned by the Educational Media Foundation.-Early history:...
's Top 40 format. By September 1996, the station premiered an adult standards
Adult standards
Adult standards is a North American radio format heard primarily on AM or class A FM stations.Adult standards is aimed at "mature" adults, meaning mainly those persons over 50 years of age, but it is mostly targeted for senior citizens...
/MOR format at the frequency, although virtually all of its programming was from ABC Radio Networks. However, this format's listenership remained minimal.
In February 2004, programmers with the Quad-City Radio Group - which by now was operating the station - decided to use the frequency for a country recurrents format. WKBF played country favorites from the 1970s through 1990s, but the station's format failed to entice listeners.
WKBF's next format - a liberal talk
Talk radio
Talk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues. Most shows are regularly hosted by a single individual, and often feature interviews with a number of different guests. Talk radio typically includes an element of listener participation, usually by broadcasting live...
format - premiered on the frequency in March 2005. The station's primary programming came from Air America Radio
Air America Radio
Air America was an American radio network specializing in progressive talk programming...
, with hosts including Al Franken
Al Franken
Alan Stuart "Al" Franken is the junior United States Senator from Minnesota. He is a member of the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party, which affiliates with the national Democratic Party....
, Stephanie Miller
Stephanie Miller
Stephanie Catherine Miller is an American comedienne and host of The Stephanie Miller Show, a progressive talk radio program produced in Los Angeles and syndicated nationally by Dial Global. Talkers magazine ranked her as the 24th most important radio talk show host in America for 2010.-Early...
and Mark Riley. Despite all the format changes, one carryover program remained: "Croonerville", a Sunday morning program of adult standards
Adult standards
Adult standards is a North American radio format heard primarily on AM or class A FM stations.Adult standards is aimed at "mature" adults, meaning mainly those persons over 50 years of age, but it is mostly targeted for senior citizens...
hosted by local personality Charlie Honold; the program premiered on WKBF in 1996 and ran for 10 years. While the switch to progressive talk provided a modest boost to WKBF's ratings (reaching a 2.6 share in the fall 2005 Arbitron
Arbitron
Arbitron is a consumer research company in the United States that collects listener data on radio audiences. It was founded as American Research Bureau by Jim Seiler in 1949 and became national by merging with L.A. based Coffin, Cooper and Clay in the early 1950s...
) the station was sold and promptly became an outlet for Christian talk.
2006-2007: Christian Talk era
Prior to 2006, WKBF (and sister station WHTSWLKU
WLKU is a radio station licensed to Rock Island, Illinois, with a Christian contemporary format. The station's frequency is 98.9 MHz, and broadcasts at a power of 39 kW.WLKU is owned by the Educational Media Foundation.-Early history:...
) were owned by Mercury Broadcasting, and was operated by a joint sales agreement with Clear Channel Communications
Clear Channel Communications
Clear Channel Communications, Inc. is an American media conglomerate company headquartered in San Antonio, Texas. It was founded in 1972 by Lowry Mays and Red McCombs, and was taken private by Bain Capital LLC and Thomas H. Lee Partners LP in a leveraged buyout in 2008...
.
In October 2006, it was announced the station would be acquired by Quad Cities Media and would go Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
talk by the end of the yearhttp://www.qctimes.com/articles/2006/10/20/news/business/doc4538500780568379920871.txt. On December 5, the station switched to an all-Christmas format, the prelude to a Christian-oriented lineup. Known as "Truth 1270," the primary focus was on Christian preaching and teaching; sacred music was provided by AbidingRadio at night and early morning.
The format lasted until June 21, signing off at 11:59 p.m. with a 100-year-old recording of Ira Sankey sigining "God Be With You Till We Meet Again."
During the "Truth 1270" era, WKBF became the Quad City market's first radio station to go digital, with the CAM-D
CAM-D
Compatible Amplitude Modulation - Digital or CAM-D is a proposed hybrid digital radio format for AM broadcasting, put forth by well-known broadcast engineer Leonard R. Kahn....
technology.
2007-Present: Regional Mexican era
On June 22, 2007, WKBF debuted "La Pantera", a regional Mexican format, thus becoming the first full-time Spanish radio station in the Quad Cities. http://www.qctimes.com/articles/2007/06/22/news/business/doc467c9c5fef39e293114124.txtDuring 2007, WKBF broadcasted high school
Secondary education
Secondary education is the stage of education following primary education. Secondary education includes the final stage of compulsory education and in many countries it is entirely compulsory. The next stage of education is usually college or university...
and Iowa State University
Iowa State University
Iowa State University of Science and Technology, more commonly known as Iowa State University , is a public land-grant and space-grant research university located in Ames, Iowa, United States. Iowa State has produced astronauts, scientists, and Nobel and Pulitzer Prize winners, along with a host of...
sports broadcasts, and Quad Cities River Bandits baseball games in the English language, alongside its Spanish-language programming; the sports programming has since moved to other stations in the market, and the station is now exclusively Spanish language. The station currently calls itself "La Jefa" (Spanish for "The Boss Lady")
Sources
- Anderson, Frederick I, editor. "Joined By a River: Quad Cities." Lee Enterprises, 1982. ISBN 0-910847-00-2
- Radio stations make new country connection, The North Scott Press, Eldridge, IowaEldridge, IowaEldridge is a city in Scott County, Iowa, United States. The population was 5,651 at the 2010 census; Eldridge is a part of the Quad Cities metropolitan area and is considered a suburb.-History:...
, June 22, 2005 - Rock Island Argus editorial "We welcome the Pirate FM to Rock Island" March 4th, 1994.
- Arbitron, Inc. Ratings, Fall 2005