WIBC (FM)

WIBC
City Indianapolis, Indiana
Broadcast area Indianapolis, Indiana
Branding 93 WIBC
Slogan Indy's News Center (on logo)
Live. Local. First. (on website)
Frequency 93.1 (MHz) (also on HD Radio)
Translator(s) 107.5 W298BB (Indianapolis, relays HD2)
First air date 1961
Format News/Talk
HD2: Sports (WFNI simulcast)
ERP 13,500 watts
HAAT 302 meters
Class B
Facility ID 19524
Callsign meaning Indianapolis Broadcasting Center
Former callsigns WIBC-FM (1961–1968)
WNAP (1968–1986)
WEAG (1986–1987)
WKLR (1987–1994)
WNAP (1994–2000)
WNOU (2000–2007)
WEXM (10/2007-12/2007)
Owner Emmis Communications
(Emmis Radio License, LLC)
Sister stations WFNI
Webcast Listen Live
Website wibc.com

WIBC (93.1 FM) is a radio station owned by Emmis Communications in Indianapolis, Indiana. The studios are located at 40 Monument Circle in downtown Indianapolis. The transmitter and antenna are located, according to the FCC, near Post Road and Burk Road on the far east side of Indianapolis. The station currently airs a news/talk format.

For over 69 years, WIBC broadcast on the AM radio frequency of 1070 kHz. On December 26, 2007, WIBC's call letters and news/talk programming moved to 93.1 FM, a station which has had various call letters and formats since its sign-on in 1961. Also on that date, the 1070 AM frequency assumed the call letters WFNI and the nickname "1070 The Fan".[1]

WIBC history

1070 AM WIBC went on the air on October 30, 1938 as a 1-kilowatt daytimer station.[2] The other heritage stations in Indianapolis were WFBM (now WNDE), WIRE (now WXNT), and WISH/WIFE (now WTLC). In its early days, it was the Indianapolis home of the Mutual Broadcasting System. WIBC would be considered one of the greatest MOR (middle of the road) format stations placing a huge emphasis on personalities both on the air and in the producing of the station promos: During the 1970s and into the early 1980s there was: Gary Todd (mornings 6am-9am) brought in from KOL Seattle, Jerry Baker (9am-11am) who was also the voice of Indiana Hoosier basketball), Paul Page who served as an award-winning newsman at WIBC in the early 1970s then flew the first Indy traffic helicopter until a serious crash nearly killed him in 1977 (He became the Voice of the Indianapolis 500 an moved to network television). Orly Knutson (middays-Noon-2pm) brought in from Minneapolis), Chuck Riley (from WKYC Cleveland) afternoons 2pm-6pm before becoming a very successful v/o talent in L.A. Others personalities who were on the air at WIBC were Big John Gillis (traffic from the Helicopter 1070), Pete Sullivan (from WHAS Louisville), Bob Simpson (WSNY Columbus) and Jeff Pigeon (KSTP Minneapolis) who went on to do Mornings after Gary Todd retired. There were 3 major production voices responsible for most of the station's promos at one time or another during the 1970s & 1980s: Billy Moore (deceased) from WHAS Louisville, Kentucky; John E. Douglas (brought in from WNOX Knoxville); and Reb Porter, long time Indy personality from WIFE.

A longtime fixture was former News Director Fred Heckman, who began with WIBC in 1957, abruptly resigning in 1993 under a dispute with its then-owners. WIBC became a talk radio station in 1993.[2] He returned in 1994 after the station was purchased by Emmis, and remained until his 2000 retirement. His daily "My Town Indy" radio essays, which ran for thirty years, were among the station's most enduring favorites.

93.1 FM history

Early years

Offices of WIBC

The Indianapolis station at 93.1 FM began life, coincidentally enough, as WIBC-FM in 1961 under a classical music format. On July 1, 1968, WIBC-FM was re-launched as WNAP. It was the first FM station in the Indianapolis market to broadcast as a Album Oriented Rock/Top 40, better known as "Rock 40", and was in direct competition with WIFE. Later, in the 1970s and early 1980s, the station was nicknamed as "Stereo 93 FM WNAP The Buzzard".

On March 4, 1986, the format changed to a more rock-driven adult contemporary sound, and the call letters became WEAG using the name "Eagle 93." The format changed to classic hits with the call letters WKLR on August 14, 1987. On April 1, 1988 (April Fools' Day), WKLR changed from classic hits to oldies. Among WKLR's disc jockeys was current WIBC newsman Steve Simpson.

WNAP returned at 5 p.m. on September 9, 1994, when WKLR changed back to a classic hits station with a strong focus on the "greatest hits of the 70s."[3] WNAP later moved in a more classic rock direction playing "classic rock that really rocks" with Howard Stern in the morning. Despite on-air boasts that WNAP was going to "kick Q-95's ass," the classic rock format was a failure.

RadioNOW 93.1

After weeks of stunting, WNAP changed to contemporary hits on March 28, 2000, at 6 AM, with the call letters WNOU and the name "Radio Now."[4] Radio Now's first song was "The Rockafeller Skank" by Fatboy Slim. The station received some national notice in November 2004, when its morning show conducted the first interview with Indiana Pacers player Ron Artest following the Pacers–Pistons brawl.[5][6]

HD programming

In 2006, WNOU launched a HD2 subchannel, dubbed "Orbital 93.1," which offered a Dance music format with emphasis on current and classic Dance product 24/7, but in 2007 it was replaced for one day with WNOU's Top 40 format. Orbital was discontinued with the switch to WIBC.[7]

WIBC-FM

On October 8th, 2007, at Noon, after playing "When You're Gone" by Avril Lavigne, 93.1 began stunting with Christmas music under new temporary callsign WEXM, being promoted as "The 93 Days of Christmas", as part of a transition of the News/Talk format of sister station WIBC from 1070 AM to 93.1 FM. Initially planned to last 93 days, from October 8th to January 8th, the change was moved up to December 26th. The change came after Emmis acquired local radio rights to the Indianapolis Colts; to prevent frequent preemption of programming and tedious shufflings of games on its stations, it was decided to move WIBC to the FM frequency, and make 1070 AM a sports station as "AM 1070 The Fan".

Upon the demise of "Radio Now", Radio One purchased the intellectual property of the station from Emmis Communications. The "Radio Now" branding, format and logo were installed on the new WNOU (formerly WYJZ at 100.9 FM) two days later on October 10.[8] Local Radio One management claimed that they will offer the displaced staffers of WNOU the first chance of joining the station's lineup, and will use the same imaging as the former WNOU. Emmis also claimed that they would release displaced RadioNow staffers from their "non-compete" contracts.[9]

The WNAP calls are now used at a gospel-formatted AM station licensed in Norristown, PA serving the Philadelphia market area.

Programming

Local news and talk

As of 2013, WIBC broadcasts four daily local programs: The Morning News with Steve Simpson. The show features Simpson, Terri Stacey and former Indianapolis Colts player Joe Staysniak; Garrison, hosted by local lawyer Greg Garrison; "Chicks on the Right" in afternoons and "Abdul at Large" in the evenings.

Staysniak had moved to the morning show in October 2008. He replaced Jake Query, who in turn replaced longtime WIBC fixture Jeff Pigeon (referred to as "Pidge" by the staff and listeners), who left the station October 1, 2007. Pigeon had been WIBC's morning host since taking over for Gary Todd in 1988, and prior to that had hosted the 7:00 p.m.-midnight shift when WIBC was still a full-service/music station. (Pigeon later resurfaced at oldies station WKLU.)

Staysniak previously co-hosted in the afternoon with Dave "the King" Wilson, whose show launched in the mid-1990s but ended in March 2009 due to budgetary cutbacks. At that time, Simpson's show moved from 6–8 PM to 3–7 PM.

Local sports

WIBC was the AM flagship station of the NFL's Indianapolis Colts, simulcasting the games with sister station WLHK. In addition, WIBC was the flagship for the NBA's Indiana Pacers and the WNBA's Indiana Fever, and for the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Radio Network, carrying the Indianapolis 500 since the network's creation in 1952, and the NASCAR Brickyard 400 since that race's 1994 debut. WIBC also aired Indiana University football.

Most of WIBC-AM's sports properties remained at 1070 (WFNI) when WIBC moved to FM (with WLHK remaining the FM flagship for the Colts and for IndyCar); however, on June 22, 2010, the Pacers announced an extension of their broadcast agreement with Emmis Communications which included their games moving to FM and back to WIBC, beginning in the 2010–11 season.

Beginning with the 2011–12 basketball season, WIBC replaced WLHK as the Indianapolis broadcast home of Indiana University basketball; in case of a conflict, Pacers games move to WFNI for the night.

Additionally, WIBC still airs Butler University basketball, IndyCar races and high school championship events that are bumped from WFNI due to conflicts.

Syndicated talk

Upon the move to FM, Mike McConnell was added to the daily schedule (replacing the former WIBC Sports Talk program), while Paul Harvey, who had been heard on WIBC since 1995, was dropped.[10] McConnell was replaced in February 2008 with Clark Howard; as of 2011, the slot is held by John Batchelor. The Rush Limbaugh Show and Coast to Coast AM also air on WIBC.

On April 13, 2015, WIBC announced they were dropping Rush Limbaugh. Charlie Morgan, an executive for Emmis, indicated that the decision to drop Limbaugh was about the "long-term direction of the station," but also acknowledged that there was a "business element to the decision."[11]

References

  1. ↑ 93.1 WIBC FM – It's A New Day
  2. 1 2 "Timeline of key developments". Indianapolis Star. October 8, 2007. Retrieved June 2, 2013.
  3. ↑ http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-RandR/1990s/1994/RR-1994-09-16.pdf
  4. ↑ http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-RandR/2000s/2000/RR-2000-03-31.pdf
  5. ↑ Montieth, Mark (November 24, 2004). "Artest sidelined? No way". Indianapolis Star. Retrieved June 2, 2013.
  6. ↑ Associated Press (November 24, 2004). "Artest mixes regret with CD self-promotion". espn.com. Retrieved June 2, 2013.
  7. ↑ http://www.hdradio.com/station_guides/widget.php?id=41 HD Radio Guide for Indianapolis
  8. ↑ Smith, Erika D. (October 11, 2007). "WNOU revived; Radio One buys site". Indianapolis Star. Archived from the original on October 12, 2007.
  9. ↑ RadioNow Returns To Indianapolis : RadioInsight
  10. ↑ "WIBC will drop Harvey". Indianapolis Star. December 20, 2007.
  11. ↑ Emmis And Premiere Networks End Partnership In Indianapolis WMBF News 13 April 2015

Coordinates: 39°46′03″N 86°00′12″W / 39.7675°N 86.0033°W / 39.7675; -86.0033

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