WKRK-FM
Encyclopedia
WKRK-FM — branded Sports Radio 92.3 The Fan — is a commercial radio station licensed to Cleveland Heights, Ohio
. Serving Greater Cleveland
and much of surrounding Northeast Ohio
, WKRK-FM is owned by CBS Radio
and broadcasts a sports
format
. The station's studios are located in Downtown Cleveland
, while the station's transmitter resides in the Cleveland suburb of Warrensville Heights
.
Currently using its tenth unique set of call letters
, WKRK-FM has had more callsign changes than any other radio station in Cleveland. The WKRK-FM callsign was assigned in October 2007 when the station was branding itself as "K-RocK
Cleveland."
The station's local personalities include Kevin Kiley
and former Ohio State
safety Dustin Fox
. Non-local programming, generally overnights and weekends, is syndicated via Fox Sports Radio
, Westwood One
and Compass Media Networks
.
On February 1, 1959, Friendly Broadcasting of Columbus
assumed control of WSRS 1490 AM and 95.3 FM from Sam R. Sague, switching call letters, licenses, studios and facilities. The AM and FM stations took on separate identities: WJMO took over the former WSRS offices at 2156 Lee Road in Cleveland Heights, and WSRS-FM became WJMO-FM, later WCUY. The 1540 and 106.5 frequencies were sold off to Tuschman Broadcasting Company; with the AM station becoming WABQ
(whose format and call letters currently reside at 1460 kHz, the 1540 kHz frequency is currently WWGK) while the FM station instead signed on as WABQ-FM before becoming WXEN
.
WCUY maintained an eclectic mix of beautiful music
, jazz and ethnic fare independent of the AM station - a rarity at the time. WJMO
adopted a rhythm-and-blues format, focusing primarily on the African-American community, which it still does to this day. WCUY vacated 95.3 and moved to 92.3 MHz in the early 1960s, while WDGO
in Cleveland signed on the 95.5 frequency and WLKR-FM
in Norwalk on the 95.3 frequency.
The station's music format turned to all jazz in the mid-1960s. Voices at WCUY's microphones in the mid-60s until the station dropped jazz in 1971 included Chris Columbi, who also wrote about jazz for The Cleveland Plain Dealer, Ray Allen, Dave Smith, Gary Stark, Len Anthony, Phil Fink, David Mark, and Joanie Layne.
In 1971, WCUY changed calls to WLYT, standing for "We Love You Truly," and chosen through a station contest. WLYT first held a gold-based oldies
format, but then bounced about between AOR
(as "92 Rock"), automated Top 40, and then disco
(as "Disco 92") until the early 1980s. WLYT was beset by a poor signal, a limited budget, constant staff turnover, and low ratings during this period.
as 92 RQCK, using consultant Rick Carroll
of Los Angeles' KROQ-FM
. At the time, its deejays included "Dancin' Danny Wright doing morning drive, as well as Jim Shea, and Scott Howitt (Program Director) doing afternoon drive. Partly due to a fallout with Carroll, WRQC gradually migrated to contemporary hits
as 92Q, a format it kept throughout the remainder of the decade.
to WJMO-FM on January 22, 1990, matching the calls of WJMO
, marking the second time around with these call letters. The station was re-branded Jammin 92, and in 1995, Jammin 92.3 and kept the contemporary hits
format, except this time around they shifted towards a Dance-leaning direction, a move that would pay off ratings-wise for the station.
Slogans over the years included "Cleveland's Dance Music Station", "The Party Pig", "Big Fun-Giant Jams", and "Cleveland's #1 Hit Music Station."
Starting in 1993, Jammin 92's evening hours were modeled after MTV, featuring equal doses of alternative rock, hip-hop, and pop music. The show was called "92 Channel X."
In 1992, as Federal Communications Commission
(FCC) ownership rules were relaxed, United Broadcasting sold WJMO and WJMO-FM to Zebra Communications, owned by three key figures from local urban contemporary
station WZAK
: Owner Xenophon Zapis, program director Lynn Tolliver, and on-air personality Bobby (Otis) Rush. Although Tolliver and Rush were both African Americans, Zapis, a Greek
, was a key party in the new ownership. The Southern Christian Leadership Conference
(SCLC) contested the sale.
The sale was approved by the FCC in 1993, and WJMO became the first radio station with significant African American ownership in the Cleveland area. On February 25, 1994, as a result of the legal battles, the SCLC gained significant control of WJMO, which was seen as the less desirable station.
The SCLC kept the WJMO call letters for their AM station, and WJMO-FM became WZJM, a combination of WZAK
and WJMO
. WZJM's format evolved into Rhythmic CHR
and it became one of the highest rated stations in Cleveland during the late 1990s, even though the station was listed as a Top 40/CHR reporter in music reporting trades like Billboard Radio Monitor
(now defunct), because of WZJM's inclusion of mainstream pop/rock product into its playlist, and at the same time keep from overlapping WZAK when it came to playing R&B/Hip-Hop product and targeting the African American audience.
and WZAK
were purchased by Chancellor Media in January 1999, along with WDOK
, WQAL
, and WRMR in a $275 million deal. It was, at the time, the largest radio deal in Cleveland broadcasting history. On July 13, 1999, Chancellor Media merged with Capstar Broadcasting, owners of WKNR
(then at 1220 AM), becoming AMFM Inc., becoming, at that time, the nation's largest radio station owner with 465 stations. When AMFM merged with Clear Channel Communications
in August 2000, Clear Channel was forced to sell off WZJM along with the other Cleveland AMFM properties to comply with market ownership restrictions. WZJM, WDOK
and WQAL
were sold to Infinity Broadcasting, now CBS Radio
.
On the air, WZJM abruptly dropped its contemporary hits
format at 5:00 p.m. on April 19, 1999. In its place was the AMFM-branded "Jammin' Oldies"
format as 92.3 The Beat. While "Jammin' Oldies" was popular in the short term in other markets across the country, WZJM's attempt was not successful in comparison. As WZJM was sold to Infinity, speculation grew about a potential format change, particularly when all but two of the station's disk jockeys were let go early in 2001.
as 92.3 Xtreme Radio with the call letters WXTM (adopted on June 7, 2001). While the rock format helped fill the gap after WENZ
flipped from modern rock
to urban music in 1999, WXTM's "Xtreme" format and on-air presentation were originally quite different from the old WENZ, and was, in fact, a nationally-programmed format developed by Infinity Broadcasting. WXTM was the Cleveland affiliate for WNEW-FM New York
-based shock jocks Opie and Anthony
from July 2001 until their firing by CBS Radio in August 2002.
Rover's Morning Glory
, hosted by Shane "Rover" French, debuted on WXTM on March 24, 2003 (and received its title just days beforehand). It would become the first radio show in modern history to have even been syndicated out of Cleveland, when WMAD
in Madison, Wisconsin
and WAZU (now WNKK) in Columbus, Ohio
both picked up the show.
In 2005, the "Xtreme" label was shed in favor of "923X", and former WENZ disk jockeys re-emerged on WXTM during several "Smells Like the End" reunion weekends. The playlist was slowly expanded as the station became a full-fledged alternative rock
station. Rover made national headlines when he was selected by CBS Radio to be one of four shows to replace Howard Stern
(the other three being now-canceled Adam Carolla
, The Junkies
and now-canceled David Lee Roth
) with CBS Radio's "Free FM
" experiment. Rover had his show's flagship relocated to Chicago
on sister station WCKG in order to accommodate this switch.
, New York
changed its callsign to WFNY-FM to reflect its new format
. Owner CBS Radio
moved the WXRK call letters to Radio 92.3 (then still WXTM). The new WXRK of Cleveland was suddenly set on "random play," essentially a wide-sweeping commercial modern rock
playlist without any dee-jays. On-air promos hinted of "92.3: It just Rocks," before the station officially became 92.3 K-Rock that January 17. K-Rock
has been a brand utilized by CBS Radio on several of their rock stations, most notably KROQ
in Los Angeles, California
. Incidentally, KROQ was also the station that what was then WRQC tried to emulate back in the 1980s.
Opie and Anthony
rejoined the station's lineup on April 26, 2006, when they were hired back to replace David Lee Roth
on CBS Radio stations in select markets in morning drive. However, WXRK - and not local Roth affiliate WNCX - picked up the FreeFM
-based (now WXRK) portion of the show, on tape delay from 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. WCKG would cancel Rover, due to extremely low ratings, on July 31, 2006, and Rover's show returned to WXRK's studios as its flagship. K-Rock launched its HD2 station "K2", on July 31, 2006, on the station's secondary HD signal. "K2" featured bands like Godsmack, Slipknot, Static-X, Disturbed and other harder-edged acts. On November 14, 2006, K-Rock began an online stream, accessible at its official site, www.krockcleveland.com.
Meanwhile, the former WXRK in New York changed formats on May 25, 2007 from hot talk back over to alternative rock
under the "92.3 K-Rock" name, and as a result would reacquire the WXRK call letters. The Cleveland station retained the format and name but on May 31 took a new callsign of WKRI. The station gained its tenth set of call letters that October 3 when they obtained the WKRK-FM calls from the Detroit
station now known as WXYT-FM.
Rover's Morning Glory would be abruptly canceled from WKRK-FM on February 15, 2008 after a new contract between Rover and CBS Radio could not be reached. Rover ended up signing a deal with WMMS; as a result, WKRK-FM moved Opie and Anthony to morning drive and started to lean the active rock
route by adding artists such as Mötley Crüe
, Ozzy Osbourne
, and Guns 'N Roses onto the rotation to better compete with WMMS
. WKRK-FM ultimately suffered a significant decline in ratings.
format. All of the deejays were dropped or reassigned to off-air roles, and Opie and Anthony were canceled.
As Radio 92.3, WKRK-FM continued to serve as the home of Inner Sanctum, a weekly showcase featuring Cleveland's local music talent. Inner Sanctum aired its final show on WKRK-FM on Sunday night, August 28, 2011, and then moved to Sunday nights on WNWV
(107.3 "V107.3 Cleveland").
format over the primary feed as Sports Radio 92.3 The Fan.
afternoon-drive
team Kevin Kiley
and Chuck Booms have reunited to host the station's morning show. Kiley & Booms also features producer/sidekicks Tony Mazur and J.G. Spooner, and update anchor Jeff Thomas. WEWS-TV
sports director Andy Baskin and Fox Sports Ohio personality Jeff Phelps host Baskin & Phelps middays. Adam "The Bull" Gerstenhaber, formerly heard on WFAN
in New York
, and former Ohio State
safety Dustin Fox
host Bull & Fox afternoons. Ken Carman, former afternoon host at WARF
in Akron
, hosts evenings. Overnight programming is syndicated via Fox Sports Radio
(FSR), primarily the program hosted by J.T. The Brick
(which fills nearly the entire overnight slot).
and Compass Media Networks
.
Since the format change, the overall Arbitron
PPM
rating for WKRK-FM has fallen by more than seventy percent.
Cleveland Heights, Ohio
Cleveland Heights is a city in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States, a suburb of Cleveland. The city's population was 46,121 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Cleveland Heights is located at ....
. Serving Greater Cleveland
Greater Cleveland
Greater Cleveland is a nickname for the metropolitan area surrounding Cleveland, Ohio and is part of what used to be the Connecticut Western Reserve.Northeast Ohio refers to a similar but substantially larger area as described below...
and much of surrounding Northeast Ohio
Greater Cleveland
Greater Cleveland is a nickname for the metropolitan area surrounding Cleveland, Ohio and is part of what used to be the Connecticut Western Reserve.Northeast Ohio refers to a similar but substantially larger area as described below...
, WKRK-FM is owned by CBS Radio
CBS Radio
CBS Radio, Inc., formerly known as Infinity Broadcasting Corporation, is one of the largest owners and operators of radio stations in the United States, third behind main rival Clear Channel Communications and Cumulus Media. CBS Radio owns around 130 radio stations across the country...
and broadcasts a sports
Sports radio
Sports radio is a radio format devoted entirely to discussion and broadcasting of sporting events. A popular format with an almost exclusively male demographic in most areas, sports radio is characterized by an often-boisterous on-air style and extensive debate and analysis by both hosts and...
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...
. The station's studios are located in Downtown Cleveland
Downtown Cleveland
Downtown Cleveland is the central business district of the City of Cleveland and Northeast Ohio. Reinvestment in the area in the mid-1990s spurred a rebirth that continues to this day, with over $2 billion in residential and commercial developments slated for the area over the next few years...
, while the station's transmitter resides in the Cleveland suburb of Warrensville Heights
Warrensville Heights, Ohio
Warrensville Heights is a city in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States. The population was 13,542 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Warrensville Heights is located at ....
.
Currently using its tenth unique set of call letters
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...
, WKRK-FM has had more callsign changes than any other radio station in Cleveland. The WKRK-FM callsign was assigned in October 2007 when the station was branding itself as "K-RocK
K-Rock
K-Rock is a common radio brand, generally carried by radio stations airing a modern rock format. CBS Radio has owned the K-Rock brand in the United States since 1986. Then known as Infinity Broadcasting, CBS acquired the K-Rock brand after purchasing noted Los Angeles rock station KROQ-FM , its...
Cleveland."
The station's local personalities include Kevin Kiley
Kevin Kiley (sportscaster)
Kevin Kiley, Sr. is an American sportscaster and talk show host. He currently resides and works in Cleveland, Ohio as co-host of the morning-drive Kiley and Booms alongside comedian Chuck Booms on "Sports Radio 92.3 The Fan" WKRK-FM....
and former Ohio State
Ohio State Buckeyes
The Ohio State Buckeyes are the intercollegiate sports teams and players of The Ohio State University, named after the state tree, the Buckeye. The Buckeyes participate in the NCAA's Division I in all sports and the Big Ten Conference in most sports...
safety Dustin Fox
Dustin Fox
Dustin Erik Fox is an American football cornerback who is currently a free agent. He was drafted by the Minnesota Vikings in the third round of the 2005 NFL Draft...
. Non-local programming, generally overnights and weekends, is syndicated via Fox Sports Radio
Fox Sports Radio
Fox Sports Radio, abbreviated FSR, is an international radio network consisting of sports talk programming. The network is a service of Premiere Networks...
, 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...
and Compass Media Networks
Compass Media Networks
Compass Media Networks is an American radio network.The company launched in January 2009. It is owned by former Westwood One CEO and former COO of Connoisseur Media, Peter Kosann...
.
Early years
Founded by Sam R. Sague, the station debuted on December 19, 1947 on 95.3 MHz as WSRS-FM and simulcast sister station WSRS 1490 AM, also licensed to Cleveland Heights. WSRS AM/FM billed itself as the "Community Information Voice of Cleveland".On February 1, 1959, Friendly Broadcasting of Columbus
Columbus, Ohio
Columbus is the capital of and the largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio. The broader metropolitan area encompasses several counties and is the third largest in Ohio behind those of Cleveland and Cincinnati. Columbus is the third largest city in the American Midwest, and the fifteenth largest city...
assumed control of WSRS 1490 AM and 95.3 FM from Sam R. Sague, switching call letters, licenses, studios and facilities. The AM and FM stations took on separate identities: WJMO took over the former WSRS offices at 2156 Lee Road in Cleveland Heights, and WSRS-FM became WJMO-FM, later WCUY. The 1540 and 106.5 frequencies were sold off to Tuschman Broadcasting Company; with the AM station becoming WABQ
WABQ
WABQ — branded Talk 1460 — is a commercial progressive talk radio station licensed to Painesville, Ohio. Part of the Cleveland radio market, WABQ primarily serves the eastern half of Cuyahoga County, and the bulk of Lake County, as the reach of the station's transmitter is relatively...
(whose format and call letters currently reside at 1460 kHz, the 1540 kHz frequency is currently WWGK) while the FM station instead signed on as WABQ-FM before becoming WXEN
WHLK
WJQM is a radio station serving Madison, Wisconsin and surrounding areas. The station is owned by Mid-West Family Broadcasting and launched a Rhythmic Contemporary format as "106.7 Jamz" in January 2007 before the move to 93.1 FM in October 2008....
.
WCUY maintained an eclectic mix of beautiful music
Beautiful music
Beautiful music is a mostly instrumental music format that was prominent in American radio from the 1960s through the 1980s...
, jazz and ethnic fare independent of the AM station - a rarity at the time. WJMO
WJMO
WJMO — branded Praise 1300 WJMO — is a commercial radio station licensed to Cleveland, Ohio broadcasting a mix of gospel music and urban talk. The station is owned by Radio One, and has studios at 2510 St. Clair Avenue and a transmitter located along Ridge Road in Parma...
adopted a rhythm-and-blues format, focusing primarily on the African-American community, which it still does to this day. WCUY vacated 95.3 and moved to 92.3 MHz in the early 1960s, while WDGO
WCLV
WCLV — branded WCLV 104.9 — is the classical radio station licensed to Lorain, Ohio serving Greater Cleveland and western parts of surrounding Northeast Ohio; WCLV is one of the few remaining classical music stations in the United States....
in Cleveland signed on the 95.5 frequency and WLKR-FM
WLKR-FM
WLKR-FM is an FM radio station licensed to Norwalk, Ohio, operating on 95.3 MHz. Its transmitter is located just outside of Norwalk near the intersection of Huber Road and Lamereaux Road. However, its studios are in Milan, along with sister stations WLKR and WKFM...
in Norwalk on the 95.3 frequency.
The station's music format turned to all jazz in the mid-1960s. Voices at WCUY's microphones in the mid-60s until the station dropped jazz in 1971 included Chris Columbi, who also wrote about jazz for The Cleveland Plain Dealer, Ray Allen, Dave Smith, Gary Stark, Len Anthony, Phil Fink, David Mark, and Joanie Layne.
In 1971, WCUY changed calls to WLYT, standing for "We Love You Truly," and chosen through a station contest. WLYT first held a gold-based oldies
Oldies
Oldies is a term commonly used to describe a radio format that concentrates on music from a period of about 15 to 55 years before the present day....
format, but then bounced about between AOR
Album-oriented rock
Album-oriented rock is an American FM radio format focusing on album tracks by rock artists.-Music played:Most radio formats are based on a select, tight rotation of hit singles...
(as "92 Rock"), automated Top 40, and then disco
Disco
Disco is a genre of dance music. Disco acts charted high during the mid-1970s, and the genre's popularity peaked during the late 1970s. It had its roots in clubs that catered to African American, gay, psychedelic, and other communities in New York City and Philadelphia during the late 1960s and...
(as "Disco 92") until the early 1980s. WLYT was beset by a poor signal, a limited budget, constant staff turnover, and low ratings during this period.
92 RQCK
WLYT changed its call letters to WRQC in 1986 and switched to pop/new wave musicNew Wave music
New Wave is a subgenre of :rock music that emerged in the mid to late 1970s alongside punk rock. The term at first generally was synonymous with punk rock before being considered a genre in its own right that incorporated aspects of electronic and experimental music, mod subculture, disco and 1960s...
as 92 RQCK, using consultant Rick Carroll
Rick Carroll
Rickey Floyd "Rick" Carroll was a program director for influential radio station KROQ-FM in Los Angeles, California, United States, where he introduced the "Rock of the Eighties" format. The format was synonymous with KROQ-FM and eventually developed into the Modern Rock format...
of Los Angeles' KROQ-FM
KROQ-FM
KROQ-FM — branded 106.7 KROQ — is a commercial modern rock radio station licensed to Pasadena, California serving the Greater Los Angeles. The call sign is pronounced "kay rock." It is the flagship station of Loveline hosted by Dr...
. At the time, its deejays included "Dancin' Danny Wright doing morning drive, as well as Jim Shea, and Scott Howitt (Program Director) doing afternoon drive. Partly due to a fallout with Carroll, WRQC gradually migrated to contemporary hits
Contemporary hit radio
Contemporary hit radio is a radio format that is common in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada and Australia that focuses on playing current and recurrent popular music as determined by the Top 40 music charts...
as 92Q, a format it kept throughout the remainder of the decade.
Jammin 92.3
United Broadcasting changed WRQC's call signCall 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...
to WJMO-FM on January 22, 1990, matching the calls of WJMO
WJMO
WJMO — branded Praise 1300 WJMO — is a commercial radio station licensed to Cleveland, Ohio broadcasting a mix of gospel music and urban talk. The station is owned by Radio One, and has studios at 2510 St. Clair Avenue and a transmitter located along Ridge Road in Parma...
, marking the second time around with these call letters. The station was re-branded Jammin 92, and in 1995, Jammin 92.3 and kept the contemporary hits
Contemporary hit radio
Contemporary hit radio is a radio format that is common in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada and Australia that focuses on playing current and recurrent popular music as determined by the Top 40 music charts...
format, except this time around they shifted towards a Dance-leaning direction, a move that would pay off ratings-wise for the station.
Slogans over the years included "Cleveland's Dance Music Station", "The Party Pig", "Big Fun-Giant Jams", and "Cleveland's #1 Hit Music Station."
Starting in 1993, Jammin 92's evening hours were modeled after MTV, featuring equal doses of alternative rock, hip-hop, and pop music. The show was called "92 Channel X."
In 1992, as 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...
(FCC) ownership rules were relaxed, United Broadcasting sold WJMO and WJMO-FM to Zebra Communications, owned by three key figures from local urban contemporary
Urban contemporary
Urban contemporary is a music radio format. The term was coined by the late New York DJ Frankie Crocker in the mid 1970s. Urban contemporary radio stations feature a playlist made up entirely of hip hop/rap, contemporary R&B, pop, electronica such as dubstep and drum and bass and Caribbean music...
station WZAK
WZAK
WZAK is a commercial FM radio station in Cleveland, Ohio, USA, broadcasting at 93.1 MHz with an Urban Adult Contemporary format. WZAK is Cleveland FM affiliate for Tom Joyner's syndicated morning show and Michael Baisden's Love Lust and Lies afternoon show.WZAK began as an ethnic radio station,...
: Owner Xenophon Zapis, program director Lynn Tolliver, and on-air personality Bobby (Otis) Rush. Although Tolliver and Rush were both African Americans, Zapis, a Greek
Greeks
The Greeks, also known as the Hellenes , are a nation and ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and neighboring regions. They also form a significant diaspora, with Greek communities established around the world....
, was a key party in the new ownership. The Southern Christian Leadership Conference
Southern Christian Leadership Conference
The Southern Christian Leadership Conference is an African-American civil rights organization. SCLC was closely associated with its first president, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr...
(SCLC) contested the sale.
The sale was approved by the FCC in 1993, and WJMO became the first radio station with significant African American ownership in the Cleveland area. On February 25, 1994, as a result of the legal battles, the SCLC gained significant control of WJMO, which was seen as the less desirable station.
The SCLC kept the WJMO call letters for their AM station, and WJMO-FM became WZJM, a combination of WZAK
WZAK
WZAK is a commercial FM radio station in Cleveland, Ohio, USA, broadcasting at 93.1 MHz with an Urban Adult Contemporary format. WZAK is Cleveland FM affiliate for Tom Joyner's syndicated morning show and Michael Baisden's Love Lust and Lies afternoon show.WZAK began as an ethnic radio station,...
and WJMO
WJMO
WJMO — branded Praise 1300 WJMO — is a commercial radio station licensed to Cleveland, Ohio broadcasting a mix of gospel music and urban talk. The station is owned by Radio One, and has studios at 2510 St. Clair Avenue and a transmitter located along Ridge Road in Parma...
. WZJM's format evolved into Rhythmic CHR
Rhythmic Contemporary
Rhythmic contemporary, also known as rhythmic top 40, rhythmic contemporary hit radio or rhythmic crossover, is a music radio format that includes a mix of EDM, upbeat rhythmic pop, hip-hop and R&B hits. Rhythmic contemporary rarely uses rock music or country music in its airplay, but it may...
and it became one of the highest rated stations in Cleveland during the late 1990s, even though the station was listed as a Top 40/CHR reporter in music reporting trades like Billboard Radio Monitor
Billboard Radio Monitor
Billboard Radio Monitor was a weekly music trade publication that followed the radio industry and tracked the monitoring of current songs by format, station and audience cumes. The magazine was a spinoff of Billboard magazine and was mostly available through subscription to people who work in the...
(now defunct), because of WZJM's inclusion of mainstream pop/rock product into its playlist, and at the same time keep from overlapping WZAK when it came to playing R&B/Hip-Hop product and targeting the African American audience.
92.3 The Beat
From 1998 to 2001, WZJM suffered through multiple ownership changes and different formats. This started when WZJM, WJMOWJMO
WJMO — branded Praise 1300 WJMO — is a commercial radio station licensed to Cleveland, Ohio broadcasting a mix of gospel music and urban talk. The station is owned by Radio One, and has studios at 2510 St. Clair Avenue and a transmitter located along Ridge Road in Parma...
and WZAK
WZAK
WZAK is a commercial FM radio station in Cleveland, Ohio, USA, broadcasting at 93.1 MHz with an Urban Adult Contemporary format. WZAK is Cleveland FM affiliate for Tom Joyner's syndicated morning show and Michael Baisden's Love Lust and Lies afternoon show.WZAK began as an ethnic radio station,...
were purchased by Chancellor Media in January 1999, along with WDOK
WDOK
WDOK — branded Soft Rock 102.1 WDOK — is a commercial adult contemporary radio station licensed to Cleveland, Ohio. Studios are located at One Radio Lane along with CBS Radio sister station WQAL, and its transmitter is located in Parma on a tower that it shares with WQHS-TV channel 61...
, WQAL
WQAL
WQAL — branded Q104 — is a commercial Adult Top 40 radio station licensed to Cleveland, Ohio. Studios are located at One Radio Lane along with CBS Radio sister station WDOK.-History:...
, and WRMR in a $275 million deal. It was, at the time, the largest radio deal in Cleveland broadcasting history. On July 13, 1999, Chancellor Media merged with Capstar Broadcasting, owners of WKNR
WKNR
WKNR — branded ESPN 850 WKNR — is a commercial sports radio station licensed to Cleveland, Ohio. Owned by Good Karma Broadcasting, WKNR is the primary Cleveland affiliate for ESPN Radio; together with sister station WWGK, WKNR is often referred to as ESPN Cleveland.WKNR is the Cleveland affiliate...
(then at 1220 AM), becoming AMFM Inc., becoming, at that time, the nation's largest radio station owner with 465 stations. When AMFM merged 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 August 2000, Clear Channel was forced to sell off WZJM along with the other Cleveland AMFM properties to comply with market ownership restrictions. WZJM, WDOK
WDOK
WDOK — branded Soft Rock 102.1 WDOK — is a commercial adult contemporary radio station licensed to Cleveland, Ohio. Studios are located at One Radio Lane along with CBS Radio sister station WQAL, and its transmitter is located in Parma on a tower that it shares with WQHS-TV channel 61...
and WQAL
WQAL
WQAL — branded Q104 — is a commercial Adult Top 40 radio station licensed to Cleveland, Ohio. Studios are located at One Radio Lane along with CBS Radio sister station WDOK.-History:...
were sold to Infinity Broadcasting, now CBS Radio
CBS Radio
CBS Radio, Inc., formerly known as Infinity Broadcasting Corporation, is one of the largest owners and operators of radio stations in the United States, third behind main rival Clear Channel Communications and Cumulus Media. CBS Radio owns around 130 radio stations across the country...
.
On the air, WZJM abruptly dropped its contemporary hits
Contemporary hit radio
Contemporary hit radio is a radio format that is common in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada and Australia that focuses on playing current and recurrent popular music as determined by the Top 40 music charts...
format at 5:00 p.m. on April 19, 1999. In its place was the AMFM-branded "Jammin' Oldies"
Rhythmic oldies
Rhythmic Oldies is a radio format that concentrates on the rhythmic, disco or dance genres of music. Playlists may span from the 1970s through the early 1990s...
format as 92.3 The Beat. While "Jammin' Oldies" was popular in the short term in other markets across the country, WZJM's attempt was not successful in comparison. As WZJM was sold to Infinity, speculation grew about a potential format change, particularly when all but two of the station's disk jockeys were let go early in 2001.
92.3 Xtreme Radio
On May 25, 2001 (Memorial Day weekend), WZJM flipped to active rockActive rock
Active rock is a radio format used by many commercial radio stations across the United States and Canada. Active rock plays contemporary rock artists with a mix of songs common in the classic rock radio format.-Format background:...
as 92.3 Xtreme Radio with the call letters WXTM (adopted on June 7, 2001). While the rock format helped fill the gap after WENZ
WENZ
WENZ —branded Z 107.9—is a mainstream urban commercial radio station licensed to Cleveland, Ohio serving surrounding Northeast Ohio...
flipped from modern rock
Modern rock
Modern rock is a rock format commonly found on commercial radio; the format consists primarily of the alternative rock genre...
to urban music in 1999, WXTM's "Xtreme" format and on-air presentation were originally quite different from the old WENZ, and was, in fact, a nationally-programmed format developed by Infinity Broadcasting. WXTM was the Cleveland affiliate for WNEW-FM New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
-based shock jocks Opie and Anthony
Opie and Anthony
Opie and Anthony are the hosts of The Opie & Anthony Show, a talk radio program airing in the United States and Canada on XM Satellite Radio and Sirius Satellite Radio. Since the merger of the two satellite companies, this is now called Sirius/XM...
from July 2001 until their firing by CBS Radio in August 2002.
Rover's Morning Glory
Rover's Morning Glory
Rover’s Morning Glory is a syndicated hot-talk radio show airing weekday mornings Monday through Friday from 6:00 AM to 11:00 AM ET on 100.7 FM WMMS in Cleveland, Ohio. Hosted by Rover , the show is distributed by Clear Channel and features a blended discussion of current events and pop culture,...
, hosted by Shane "Rover" French, debuted on WXTM on March 24, 2003 (and received its title just days beforehand). It would become the first radio show in modern history to have even been syndicated out of Cleveland, when WMAD
WMAD
WMAD is a radio station serving the Madison, Wisconsin metropolitan area. The station is owned by Clear Channel Communications and has been running a country music format since December 23, 2005...
in Madison, Wisconsin
Madison, Wisconsin
Madison is the capital of the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Dane County. It is also home to the University of Wisconsin–Madison....
and WAZU (now WNKK) in Columbus, Ohio
Columbus, Ohio
Columbus is the capital of and the largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio. The broader metropolitan area encompasses several counties and is the third largest in Ohio behind those of Cleveland and Cincinnati. Columbus is the third largest city in the American Midwest, and the fifteenth largest city...
both picked up the show.
In 2005, the "Xtreme" label was shed in favor of "923X", and former WENZ disk jockeys re-emerged on WXTM during several "Smells Like the End" reunion weekends. The playlist was slowly expanded as the station became a full-fledged alternative rock
Alternative rock
Alternative rock is a genre of rock music and a term used to describe a diverse musical movement that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1980s and became widely popular by the 1990s...
station. Rover made national headlines when he was selected by CBS Radio to be one of four shows to replace Howard Stern
Howard Stern
Howard Allan Stern is an American radio personality, television host, author, and actor best known for his radio show, which was nationally syndicated from 1986 to 2005. He gained wide recognition in the 1990s where he was labeled a "shock jock" for his outspoken and sometimes controversial style...
(the other three being now-canceled Adam Carolla
Adam Carolla
Adam Carolla is an American radio personality, television host, comedian, and actor. He currently hosts The Adam Carolla Show, a talk show distributed as a podcast on the ACE Broadcasting Network...
, The Junkies
The Junkies
The Sports Junkies, also known as The Junkies, are the hosts of an eponymous morning drive time radio show aired in the Baltimore-Washington Metropolitan Area. The hosts are John Auville, Eric Bickel, Jason Bishop and John-Paul Flaim. Their show is heard on WJFK-FM, at 106.7 on the FM radio dial...
and now-canceled David Lee Roth
David Lee Roth
David Lee Roth is an American rock vocalist, songwriter, actor, author, and former radio personality. Roth was ranked nineteenth by Hit Parader on their list of the 100 Greatest Heavy Metal Singers of All Time....
) with CBS Radio's "Free FM
Free FM
Free FM was a short-lived, mostly-talk-radio format and brand name for eleven FM CBS Radio stations in the United States, and was created because of Howard Stern's departure to Sirius Satellite Radio in January 2006. Free FM was given its name to highlight that its stations broadcast free-to-air,...
" experiment. Rover had his show's flagship relocated to Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
on sister station WCKG in order to accommodate this switch.
K-Rock Cleveland
On January 1, 2006, Radio 92.3 sister station WXRK of New YorkNew York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
changed its callsign to WFNY-FM to reflect its new format
Free FM
Free FM was a short-lived, mostly-talk-radio format and brand name for eleven FM CBS Radio stations in the United States, and was created because of Howard Stern's departure to Sirius Satellite Radio in January 2006. Free FM was given its name to highlight that its stations broadcast free-to-air,...
. Owner CBS Radio
CBS Radio
CBS Radio, Inc., formerly known as Infinity Broadcasting Corporation, is one of the largest owners and operators of radio stations in the United States, third behind main rival Clear Channel Communications and Cumulus Media. CBS Radio owns around 130 radio stations across the country...
moved the WXRK call letters to Radio 92.3 (then still WXTM). The new WXRK of Cleveland was suddenly set on "random play," essentially a wide-sweeping commercial modern rock
Modern rock
Modern rock is a rock format commonly found on commercial radio; the format consists primarily of the alternative rock genre...
playlist without any dee-jays. On-air promos hinted of "92.3: It just Rocks," before the station officially became 92.3 K-Rock that January 17. K-Rock
K-Rock
K-Rock is a common radio brand, generally carried by radio stations airing a modern rock format. CBS Radio has owned the K-Rock brand in the United States since 1986. Then known as Infinity Broadcasting, CBS acquired the K-Rock brand after purchasing noted Los Angeles rock station KROQ-FM , its...
has been a brand utilized by CBS Radio on several of their rock stations, most notably KROQ
KROQ-FM
KROQ-FM — branded 106.7 KROQ — is a commercial modern rock radio station licensed to Pasadena, California serving the Greater Los Angeles. The call sign is pronounced "kay rock." It is the flagship station of Loveline hosted by Dr...
in Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
. Incidentally, KROQ was also the station that what was then WRQC tried to emulate back in the 1980s.
Opie and Anthony
Opie and Anthony
Opie and Anthony are the hosts of The Opie & Anthony Show, a talk radio program airing in the United States and Canada on XM Satellite Radio and Sirius Satellite Radio. Since the merger of the two satellite companies, this is now called Sirius/XM...
rejoined the station's lineup on April 26, 2006, when they were hired back to replace David Lee Roth
David Lee Roth
David Lee Roth is an American rock vocalist, songwriter, actor, author, and former radio personality. Roth was ranked nineteenth by Hit Parader on their list of the 100 Greatest Heavy Metal Singers of All Time....
on CBS Radio stations in select markets in morning drive. However, WXRK - and not local Roth affiliate WNCX - picked up the FreeFM
WFNY-FM
WXRK , known on-air as "92.3 Now", is a radio station in New York City. Owned by CBS Radio, WXRK broadcasts a Contemporary Hit Radio format with a rhythmic lean...
-based (now WXRK) portion of the show, on tape delay from 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. WCKG would cancel Rover, due to extremely low ratings, on July 31, 2006, and Rover's show returned to WXRK's studios as its flagship. K-Rock launched its HD2 station "K2", on July 31, 2006, on the station's secondary HD signal. "K2" featured bands like Godsmack, Slipknot, Static-X, Disturbed and other harder-edged acts. On November 14, 2006, K-Rock began an online stream, accessible at its official site, www.krockcleveland.com.
Meanwhile, the former WXRK in New York changed formats on May 25, 2007 from hot talk back over to alternative rock
Modern rock
Modern rock is a rock format commonly found on commercial radio; the format consists primarily of the alternative rock genre...
under the "92.3 K-Rock" name, and as a result would reacquire the WXRK call letters. The Cleveland station retained the format and name but on May 31 took a new callsign of WKRI. The station gained its tenth set of call letters that October 3 when they obtained the WKRK-FM calls from the Detroit
Detroit, Michigan
Detroit is the major city among the primary cultural, financial, and transportation centers in the Metro Detroit area, a region of 5.2 million people. As the seat of Wayne County, the city of Detroit is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan and serves as a major port on the Detroit River...
station now known as WXYT-FM.
Rover's Morning Glory would be abruptly canceled from WKRK-FM on February 15, 2008 after a new contract between Rover and CBS Radio could not be reached. Rover ended up signing a deal with WMMS; as a result, WKRK-FM moved Opie and Anthony to morning drive and started to lean the active rock
Active rock
Active rock is a radio format used by many commercial radio stations across the United States and Canada. Active rock plays contemporary rock artists with a mix of songs common in the classic rock radio format.-Format background:...
route by adding artists such as Mötley Crüe
Mötley Crüe
Mötley Crüe is an American heavy metal band formed in Los Angeles, California in 1981. The group was founded by bass guitarist Nikki Sixx and drummer Tommy Lee, who were later joined by lead guitarist Mick Mars and lead singer Vince Neil...
, Ozzy Osbourne
Ozzy Osbourne
John Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne is an English vocalist, whose musical career has spanned over 40 years. Osbourne rose to prominence as lead singer of the pioneering English heavy metal band Black Sabbath, whose radically different, intentionally dark, harder sound helped spawn the heavy metal...
, and Guns 'N Roses onto the rotation to better compete with WMMS
WMMS
WMMS — branded 100.7 WMMS: The Buzzard — is a commercial radio station licensed to Cleveland, Ohio, widely recognized as one of the most influential rock stations in America throughout much of the history of FM broadcasting...
. WKRK-FM ultimately suffered a significant decline in ratings.
Radio 92.3
On December 1, 2008, WKRK-FM dropped the K-Rock branding and switched to Radio 92.3, continuing in its modern rockModern rock
Modern rock is a rock format commonly found on commercial radio; the format consists primarily of the alternative rock genre...
format. All of the deejays were dropped or reassigned to off-air roles, and Opie and Anthony were canceled.
As Radio 92.3, WKRK-FM continued to serve as the home of Inner Sanctum, a weekly showcase featuring Cleveland's local music talent. Inner Sanctum aired its final show on WKRK-FM on Sunday night, August 28, 2011, and then moved to Sunday nights on WNWV
WNWV
WNWV — branded V107.3 Cleveland — is a commercial radio station licensed to Elyria, Ohio broadcasting an adult album alternative format. The station serves the Cleveland radio market and much of surrounding Northeast Ohio, and is one of the few remaining locally-owned stations in the entire...
(107.3 "V107.3 Cleveland").
Sports Radio 92.3 The Fan
WKRK-FM dropped both the Radio 92.3 brand and alternative rock format from its primary broadcast feed (analog/HD-1) on August 29, 2011; the station has since aired a sportsSports radio
Sports radio is a radio format devoted entirely to discussion and broadcasting of sporting events. A popular format with an almost exclusively male demographic in most areas, sports radio is characterized by an often-boisterous on-air style and extensive debate and analysis by both hosts and...
format over the primary feed as Sports Radio 92.3 The Fan.
Weekday Programming
Former Fox Sports RadioFox Sports Radio
Fox Sports Radio, abbreviated FSR, is an international radio network consisting of sports talk programming. The network is a service of Premiere Networks...
afternoon-drive
Drive time
Drive time is the daypart analog to prime time for radio broadcasting. It consists of the morning hours when listeners wake up, get ready, and/or head to work or school, and the afternoon hours when they are heading home and before their evening meal. These are the periods where the number of...
team Kevin Kiley
Kevin Kiley (sportscaster)
Kevin Kiley, Sr. is an American sportscaster and talk show host. He currently resides and works in Cleveland, Ohio as co-host of the morning-drive Kiley and Booms alongside comedian Chuck Booms on "Sports Radio 92.3 The Fan" WKRK-FM....
and Chuck Booms have reunited to host the station's morning show. Kiley & Booms also features producer/sidekicks Tony Mazur and J.G. Spooner, and update anchor Jeff Thomas. WEWS-TV
WEWS-TV
WEWS-TV, virtual channel 5 , is a television station in Cleveland, Ohio. WEWS has been owned by the E. W. Scripps Company since its inception, and is an affiliate of the ABC television network...
sports director Andy Baskin and Fox Sports Ohio personality Jeff Phelps host Baskin & Phelps middays. Adam "The Bull" Gerstenhaber, formerly heard on WFAN
WFAN
WFAN , also known as "Sports Radio 66" or "The FAN", is a radio station in New York City. The station broadcasts on a clear channel and is owned by CBS Radio...
in New York
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, and former Ohio State
Ohio State Buckeyes
The Ohio State Buckeyes are the intercollegiate sports teams and players of The Ohio State University, named after the state tree, the Buckeye. The Buckeyes participate in the NCAA's Division I in all sports and the Big Ten Conference in most sports...
safety Dustin Fox
Dustin Fox
Dustin Erik Fox is an American football cornerback who is currently a free agent. He was drafted by the Minnesota Vikings in the third round of the 2005 NFL Draft...
host Bull & Fox afternoons. Ken Carman, former afternoon host at WARF
Warf
Warf or WARF may refer to:* WARF, a radio station in Akron, Ohio, USA* Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation, technology transfer office of the University of Wisconsin–Madison, USA* Warf, an artificial dwelling hill...
in Akron
Akron, Ohio
Akron , is the fifth largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Summit County. It is located in the Great Lakes region approximately south of Lake Erie along the Little Cuyahoga River. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 199,110. The Akron Metropolitan...
, hosts evenings. Overnight programming is syndicated via Fox Sports Radio
Fox Sports Radio
Fox Sports Radio, abbreviated FSR, is an international radio network consisting of sports talk programming. The network is a service of Premiere Networks...
(FSR), primarily the program hosted by J.T. The Brick
J.T. the Brick
John Tournour better known as J.T. the Brick is a sports talk radio host based in Las Vegas, Nevada. His show airs weeknights from 10pm to 3am Pacific time on Fox Sports Radio...
(which fills nearly the entire overnight slot).
Weekends
On Saturdays and Sundays, WKRK airs local talk programs hosted by Ken Silverstien, Anthony Lima, Joe Lull, and Kendall Lewis during the day, and FSR programing in the evenings and overnights.Play by Play
WKRK-FM serves as the Cleveland affiliate for The NFL on Westwood One, and carries NCAA football from both Westwood OneWestwood 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...
and Compass Media Networks
Compass Media Networks
Compass Media Networks is an American radio network.The company launched in January 2009. It is owned by former Westwood One CEO and former COO of Connoisseur Media, Peter Kosann...
.
Since the format change, the overall 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...
PPM
Portable People Meter
The Portable People Meter is a system developed by Arbitron to measure how many people are listening to individual radio stations and television stations, including cable TV. The PPM is worn like a pager, and detects hidden audio tones within a station or network's audio stream, logging each...
rating for WKRK-FM has fallen by more than seventy percent.