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|---|---|
| Broadcast area | Baltimore metropolitan area |
| Frequency | 106.5MHz (HD Radio) |
| Branding | MIX 106-5 |
| Programming | |
| Language | English |
| Format | Hot adult contemporary |
| Subchannels | HD2:Channel Q |
| Affiliations | |
| Ownership | |
| Owner |
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| History | |
First air date | June 30, 1960 (1960-06-30)[1] |
Former call signs |
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Call sign meaning | "Mix" |
| Technical information[2] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 74196 |
| Class | B |
| ERP | 10,500 watts |
| HAAT | 296 meters (971 ft) |
Transmitter coordinates | 39°20′5″N76°39′2″W / 39.33472°N 76.65056°W /39.33472; -76.65056 |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
| Webcast |
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| Website | www |
WWMX (106.5MHz), known on-air asMix 106-5, is acommercial FM radio station inBaltimore, Maryland. It broadcasts ahot adult contemporary radio format and is owned byAudacy, Inc. The studios and offices are on Clarkview Road offJones Falls Expressway.
WWMX has aneffective radiated power (ERP) of 10,500 watts. The station'stransmitter is located onTelevision Hill in Baltimore.[3] WWMX broadcasts usingHD Radio technology; the HD2digital subchannel carries Audacy'sChannel Q, aimed at theLGBTQ community.
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The station signed on June 30, 1960,[1] as WCBM-FM, a sister station toWCBM (680 AM). In 1968,Metromedia, which had bought the WCBM stations in 1964, sold WCBM-FM toThe A.S. Abell Company, owner ofWMAR-TV and theSunpapers, for $200,000; the sale was necessary because Metromedia's purchase ofWASH in Washington put the company over theFederal Communications Commission (FCC)'s ownership limits of the time, which limited a company to owning seven FM radio stations.[4] Abell changed the call sign to WMAR-FM;[5] this was the second incarnation of WMAR-FM, as an earlier station with those call sign was operated by Abell on 97.9 FM (nowWIYY) from 1948 to 1950. The call sign were changed to WRLX in 1982.[6] For many years, the station had playedbeautiful music. By the early 1980s, the target demographic of the station had aged beyond what was termed "profitable" and the station decided to switch to a new format.
The WMAR-FM call sign returned on July 14, 1983;[7] at 10:30 p.m. on July 28, it became one of many "Hot Hits"CHR/Top 40 stations throughout the country, consulted by programmer Mike Joseph.[8] WMAR-FM, also known as "Hot Hits 106", was the main competitor to Baltimore's other CHR,B104. When the station was sold to S&F Broadcasting in 1985, it retained the Hot Hits format, but its call sign changed to WMKR-FM on March 15, 1985,[7] and its name became "Hot Hits K-106". The station was sold once again toCapitol Broadcasting in 1986. Capitol decided to change the format toadult contemporary and the name to "Mix 106.5" that October 24.[9] "K-106" signed off by playing "Broken Wings" byMr. Mister, and then the jingles for each of its DJs. "Mix" was then introduced, and the call sign was changed to WWMX.[10][7] Initially, WWMX played the "Best Mix of the '60s, '70s, and '80s."[11] For years, many (including the local press at times) mistakenly thought the calls were "WMIX", leading the station to insert quick "W-Mix", with the word "Mix" spoken, liners between commercials. These were not legalstation identifications, as 106.5 still identified itself as "WWMX Baltimore" at the top of the hour, but they allowed the station to claim listeners who mistakenly identified 106.5 as "WMIX" in their diaries. The "WMIX" callsign is actually used forAM andFM stations inMount Vernon, Illinois, whose broadcaster,Withers Broadcasting, registered the "WMIX" branding as aregistered trademark.[12] Shortly after the trademark was approved, WWMX dropped the "W-Mix" liners.
In 1990, the station's adult contemporary format evolved into ahot adult contemporary format, playing somehip hop and classichard rock. Manyurban contemporary songs that have charted high on theCHR/pop charts have been played on WWMX.
Capitol Broadcasting sold the station toAmerican Radio Systems in 1993, who later merged withInfinity Broadcasting in 1997. Infinity changed names in 2005 toCBS Radio.
In 2008, the station began shifting towards a mainstreamTop 40 (CHR) direction (similar to rivalWIHT in Washington, D.C.) as it began incorporating morerhythmic hits, but still incorporated 1990s hits played on hot AC stations, thus classified as anAdult Top 40 station. As of April2009, the station has dramatically shifted away from hot AC, primarily focusing on top 40 hits much like aCHR station, but still plays some music from the mid to late 2000s, and dropped the remaining '80s and '90s songs (most of those songs would move to the station's HD3 sub-channel, which was branded as "The Point"; the format would later be replaced by "Channel Q"). WWMX had not had much rivalry in the market untilCHR stationWZFT replacedalternative rock station WCHH in2009. In July 2015, Mediabase moved the station from the Hot AC panel to their Top 40 panel.[13] In September 2020, Mediabase moved WWMX back to their Hot AC panel.[14]
On February 2, 2017, CBS Radio announced it would merge withEntercom.[15] The merger was approved on November 9, 2017, and was consummated on November 17.[16][17] The company rebranded as Audacy in 2021.
In 2006, WWMX's HD2 subchannel was launched with a Top 40 "New CHR" format. It was replaced in January 2010 with arhythmic dance format billed as "MIX2", playing a mix of hit-driven rhythmic dance, hip-hop and pop tracks and remixes. On August 1, 2011, it was replaced with amodern rock format branded as "HFS @ 97-5" (simulcast on translator W248AO 97.5 FM). As per an agreement with the translator's owner, Hope Christian Church ofMarlton, the format was moved to another translator, W285EJ (104.9 FM) as "HFS @104.9", on April 2, 2014, at 6 pm; the church's "Hope FM" programming would move to W248AO, in return. The "HFS" programming would be dropped on August 1, 2021, as W285EJ began simulcasting sister stationWJZ. The subchannel switched to a new alternative rock releases format as "New Arrivals" channel, which was also heard on New York City sister stationWNYL-HD2, and subchannels of other alternative rock radio stations owned by Audacy.[18] In January 2024, WWMX-HD2 would switch toChannel Q, which is aimed forLGBT audiences, and was previously carried on the station's HD3 subchannel.