| Simulcast ofWKSU,Kent, OH | |
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| Broadcast area | |
| Frequency | 104.9MHz (HD Radio) |
| Branding | WKSU Ideastream Public Media |
| Programming | |
| Language | English |
| Format | Public radio/talk |
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| Affiliations | |
| Ownership | |
| Owner |
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| History | |
First air date | July 25, 1975 (49 years ago) (1975-07-25)[1] |
Former call signs |
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Call sign meaning | "Cleveland Public Network" |
| Technical information[2] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 70109 |
| Class | A |
| ERP | 6,000 watts |
| HAAT | 97.41 meters (320 ft) |
Transmitter coordinates | 41°28′32.2″N81°59′23.5″W / 41.475611°N 81.989861°W /41.475611; -81.989861 (WCPN) |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
| Webcast |
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| Website | www |
WCPN (104.9FM) is anon-commercial educationalradio station licensed toLorain, Ohio, featuring apublic radio format as arepeater ofKent–licensedWKSU. Owned byIdeastream Public Media, the station serves the western portion ofGreater Cleveland and parts of surroundingNortheast Ohio. By virtue of WKSU, studios are located at Playhouse Square inDowntown Cleveland,[3] while WCPN's transmitter resides in theCleveland suburb ofAvon. In addition to a standardanalog transmission, WCPN broadcasts over fourHD Radio channels and streams online.
Signing on in 1975 under the WZLE call sign, the station originally focused onLorain County with afull-service format of local news andeasy listening music dubbed "mellow gold". A 1983 sale of WZLE to a local non-profit Christian group saw the station switch toChristian radio programming, eventually focusing oncontemporary Christian music by the early 1990s.Jacor's purchase of WZLE in 1998 resulted in a format change tocontemporary hit radio as the first home ofWAKS the following year. A complex seven-station asset swap involving Jacor's successor companyClear Channel,Salem Communications andWCLV (95.5FM) owner Radio Seaway on July 3, 2001, resulted in104.9FM becoming the second home of WCLV and itsclassical music format. Converted to non-commercial status and donated to Ideastream in 2013, WCLV's programming and call letters moved to90.3FM on March 28, 2022; in turn, this station became a full-power satellite of co-managed WKSU, bearing the WCPN calls.
The current104.9FM license was borne out of a contested bidding process that lasted five years. Lake Erie Broadcasting, a group headed by Harold E. "Gene" Sens[4] (vice president/general manager forSandusky'sWLEC and a staffer for that station since 1960)[5] filed paperwork with theFederal Communications Commission (FCC) on December 6, 1969.[6] Lorain Community Broadcasting, owners ofWLRO (1380AM), filed a competing application at the same time,[7] prompting an FCCcomparative hearing on April 14, 1971.[6] The FCC ruled in favor of Sens's group, and after losing on appeal to an FCC review board, Lorain Community withdrew their bid on November 6, 1974.[7] Taking the WZLE calls and committing to studios at the Sheffield Shopping Center and a 280-foot (85 m) tower on an adjacent road, both inSheffield Township, Sens promised the station would feature afull-service format with music "geared for 'adults and young adults".[5] Sens relinquished his WLEC duties several weeks prior to WZLE's launch.[8]
WZLE took to the air at 1 p.m. on July 25, 1975, with a broadcast schedule running from 5:25 a.m. to midnight.[1] EventualMorning Journal columnist Richard J. Osborne was WZLE's news director and retrospectively described the format asbig band-oriented and meant for older audience; he mused, "back then, being news director meant being the news department."[9] Sports director Bruce Johnson called the station "mellow gold" with an emphasis oneasy listening.[10] Even though the station signed off at midnight daily, WZLE officials promised the station would remain on-air in the event of any community emergency.[11]High school sports coverage became a regular feature, with WZLE broadcastingLorain Catholic High School's 1976 state basketball championship.[12] Veteran broadcaster Jeff Baxter was the station's initial program director,[13] while future Cleveland broadcaster Bob Tayek briefly worked as a newscaster.[14][15] FormerWJKW-TV news anchor Jim Hale joined WZLE as an announcer and newscaster on November 23, 1977.[16][17] By 1978, WZLE broadcast around-the-clock.[13]
Sens considered WZLE's community service commitments to be "of utmost importance in my mind... we're not just aLorain station, but our main obligation is to Lorain andElyria residents".[13] Public service fare even included a Sunday night discussion show devoted tosenior citizens, one of the first of its kind in the country.[18] The station hired formerWOBL personality Scott Miller for evenings on March 17, 1980, after a publicity stunt where he held himself "hostage" in the WOBL studio to relate withthe hostages at the U.S. embassy in Iran.[19][20] The stunt lasted for 50 days; WOBL owner Harry Wilbur fired Miller afterwards, while the FCC investigated him for possible improprieties with soliciting money on-air.[21] Miller's show broke format as he focused oncountry music and talk[19] causing WZLE to drop their ongoing high school basketball playoff coverage as it conflicted with his show.[22] By that July, area sportscaster Jim Allen Popiel moved his daily high school sports show from WLRO to WZLE.[23] Coinciding with the changes, WZLE rebranded as "Z-105" while retaining the "mellow gold" descriptor.[24] By the fall of 1982, WOBL ceased high school sports coverage due toan ongoing recession impacting WOBL's audience more than WZLE orWEOL.[25]
On April 15, 1983, WZLE was purchased by the Lorain Christian Broadcasting Company[26] for $850,000 (equivalent to $2.68 million in 2024).[27][28] Lorain Christian Broadcasting was headed by the Rev. Norfleet Jones, an area minister and syndicated radio host;[29] his group intended to build a station before learning Sens was interested in selling WZLE.[30] While Jones initially suggested little to no changes for the station,[26] after the sale closed, WZLE changed format toChristian radio as "Victory 105" on June 16, 1983,[30] only retaining the station'sbookkeeper.[29] WZLE's lineup featured a mixture of middle-of-the-road Christian music along with national preachers includingDr. James Dobson,Dr. Charles Swindoll andMarlin Maddoux.[31] Among the programs added wasThe Hour of Comfort with Rev. Daniel Buser, which had recently been dropped from WEOL's schedule.[32] Len Howser joined the station as operations manager and morning host and attracted attention when leading a campaign along with the station protesting the 1988 religious dramaThe Last Temptation of Christ due to its "morally and ethically wrong" content.[33]
WZLE was sold to Cincinnati-based Victory Radio in July 1988 for $820,000 (equivalent to $2.18 million in 2024); as part of the deal, Lorain Christian Broadcasting entered into anon-compete agreement and group head Johnny Wade Sloan, who took over for Jones,[31] became a consultant for Victory for five years.[34] Victory Radio purchased WRKG (the former WLRO) from a group headed byreal estate developer Jon R. Veard the following year.[35] When that purchase was approved, WZLE moved to WRKG's facilities at theAntlers Hotel in Lorain's downtown that Veard also owned,[36][37] though Victory Radio head Vernon Baldwin also considered building a new facility for both stations.[38] WRKG also changed format fromadult standards to a mixture ofsouthern gospel andHispanic programming to align themselves further with WZLE.[39] The station'ssatellite dish was heavily damaged by vandals twice during a nine-month span in 1991; Howser suggested the vandalism was possibly caused by people opposed to Maddoux's satellite-delivered programPoint of View and his outspoken support forSupreme Court nomineeClarence Thomas.[40]
Under Victory ownership, a new 450-foot (140 m) tower was activated in early 1991, 50 percent taller than the prior tower and extending the station's signal range by 8–10miles (13–16 km);[41] management claimed this tower was the tallest in the county, though it was in reality 49 feet shorter thanWNWV's 499-foot (152 m) mast.[42][43] While WZLE retained some locally-sourced church programming,[39] the format was adjusted tocontemporary Christian as the format was beginning to find mainstream appeal.[44] WZLE also carried several local specialty programs. Overnights featuredgospel-orientedhip hop first hosted byborn-again Christian "Brother Lou" Acosta[45] and later by communityvolunteer Jerome G. "J The Gospel Kid" Williams.[46] John Palmer hostedPlanet Palmer, a Saturday night program devoted to harder-edgedChristian rock.[47] High school sports coverage continued to be featured, particularly with theSouthwestern Conference.[39] A Friday night sports talk show hosted by formerCleveland Brown punterBryan Wagner was added in 1996.[48] Len Howser added Patty Sutter and Palmer as co-hosts for a full-service morning show, using it as a way to introduce the Christian contemporary format to listeners.[44] Howser referred to the station's overall success in Lorain County as a "killer phenomenon".[39]
Rumors emerged in 1997 thatSalem Communications, a Christian-based broadcast chain which had purchased bothWHK andWCCD in the region, showed interest in acquiring WZLE.[49] Ultimately, the station was sold toJacor (in the process of being acquired byClear Channel Communications) on December 22, 1998, joining aGreater Cleveland cluster of four FM stations and one AM station.[50] After the deal closed, Jacor management committed to keeping the Christian format in place.[51] Still, rumors persisted of a format change, possibly to country music, while Howser said, "... they (Jacor) gave me the reins to treat the station as my own and told me to use good judgement."[50]
When we would meet people in public, it was like we had spent the morning together in the same room talking the whole morning. As I talk with listeners since we went off the air, I sense a deep void. This was something people identified with. It brought something positive, hope-filled and faith-filled into their lives.
Precipitated byWZJM (92.3FM)'s format change earlier in the month fromcontemporary hit radio (CHR) torhythmic oldies under the "Jammin' Oldies" banner,[52] WZLE switched formats on May 21, 1999, to CHR as "KISS 104.9".[53] WZLE's airstaff was notified of the switch the day beforehand, with automated Christian music playing until the overnight hours.[44] Greg Ausham, who assumed operation manager duties for WZLE, cited WZJM's format change and WZLE's small—albeit loyal—listener base as the impetus for the change.[54] One displaced listener recounted shock tuning hercar radio to WZLE along with her children and hearingPrince's "Erotic City", telling theMorning Journal, "I feel cheated, ripped off and heartbroken... I'm just devastated."[53] Former WZLE personality John Palmer fielded 200 phone calls from affected listeners on the day of the format switch.[54] One employee answering the station's office phone commented to theJournal, "it's big city radio now".[53] A contest conducted shortly after the switch went awry when 200Cedar Point tickets promised to winners went missing; as multiple office keys at the Antlers facilities were unaccounted for, sabotage among former employees was implied.[55] WZLE's studios were ultimately moved toDowntown Cleveland in theTower City Center's Skylight Office Tower, already housing co-ownedWMMS andWMVX,[52] and the playlist was assisted in part fromWNCI inColumbus.[56]
WZLE's format change took place several days afterWENZ relaunched as "KISS 107.9" with amainstream urban format,[52] but Clear Channel filed acease and desist letter against WENZ ownerRadio One as Clear Channel claimed ownership of the "KISS-FM" brand as atrademark in Ohio,[57] a charge Radio One's chief operating officer disputed.[58] By September 1999, WENZ re-branded as "Z-107.9" by its own volition, allowing Clear Channel to have full ownership of the brand.[57] WZLE's call sign accordingly changed to WAKS on September 17, 1999, taking calls recently abandoned inTampa, Florida, by the currentWMTX.[59] While "KISS 104.9" was originally fully automated (and, along with WENZ, was described byPlain Dealer critic Tom Feran as "little more than cyberstations programmed from out of town"),[58] an airstaff was gradually assembled. Dan Mason, Jr. was hired as program director and afternoon host in early November 1999;[60] Mason was the son of eventualCBS Radio executive Dan Mason.[61] Mike Kasper[62] was added in March 2000 as music director and evening host.[63] Mornings were hosted byKIIS-FM afternoon host Sean Valentine viavoice-tracking with the majority of segments recorded from his KIIS show; this practice was used at other Clear Channel-owned "KISS-FM" stations.[64]
Despite WAKS's limited signal, the station showed immediate promise: the Summer 1999Arbitron Arbitrends showed the station's ratings tripled from the previous fall,[65] and the full Arbitron report showed WAKS placing in the Top 10 with the 18–34 demographic.[66] Clear Channel management expressed hopes of increasing the station's coverage area, including possible increases in power and a transmitter move, but acknowledged that first-adjacent stationWKKY inGeneva would present a limitation.[52] Paperwork was filed in March 2000 to move WAKS to a 350-foot (110 m) tower inAvon, along with a power increase to6,000 watts.[67] The FCC granted aconstruction permit for the move on July 3, 2000.[68]
We could have sold (WCLV (95.5FM)) for millions and millions and millions and millions of dollars... (but) we feel that the radio station is very important to the community. It contributes to the quality of life. It's a major conduit for the arts organizations to their constituencies.
WAKS was one of sevenNortheast Ohio radio stations involved in a complex asset swap between Clear Channel and two other radio companies.WCLV (95.5FM) parent Radio Seaway reached an agreement to donate WCLV's assets to anonprofitfoundation on November 1, 2000;[a] to finance this deal, Radio Seaway sold the95.5FM license to Salem Communications and concurrently purchased the licenses for WAKS from Clear Channel and WHK (1420AM) from Salem, while Clear Channel also purchased the license forCanton'sWHK-FM (98.1) from Salem.[69] WCLV co-founder/president Robert Conrad and Radio Seaway partner Rich Marschner initiated the deal to preserve WCLV'sclassical format from being subsumed by mass consolidation in the industry;[69] they negotiated between both radio chains for nearly two years.[70] With the divestment of the104.9FM license, Clear Channel announced WAKS's CHR format and call letters would transfer to theAkron–licensed96.5FM facility, which wasadult contemporary-formattedWKDD; in turn, WKDD's format and calls would move to the98.1FM facility.[71]
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Radio Seaway's original plans were to use the1420AM facility as an outrightsimulcast of WCLV-FM, addressing the104.9FM license's technical limitations.[71] Said plans were changed, however, when Salem announced that WHK's format and call letters would move from1420AM to1220AM andWKNR'ssports format and call letters would move from1220AM to850AM, effectively forcingWRMR and its adult standards format off the air.[72] Following a substantial outcry from WRMR listeners, which as a station had a core demographic of 65 and older[72] and ranked near the bottom tier in the 25–54 demographic,[73] Radio Seaway agreed on May 31, 2001, to acquire WRMR'sintellectual property—reported on as "the WRMR format" but consisting of the station's music library and some equipment—for an undisclosed fee and placed the format on1420AM with the WCLV (AM) call sign.[74] WCLV subsequently arranged a partial simulcast for104.9FM withPainesville'sWBKC.[75] The asset deals behind this "frequency swap" were all consummated on July 3, 2001, with WAKS changing format from CHR to classical and call sign to WCLV-FM, bringing over the former WCLV (95.5FM)'s format intact and retaining all on- and off-air staff.[76][77] The "new" WCLV-FM also continued production of 27 programs nationally syndicated by Radio Seaway, includingCleveland Orchestra radio broadcasts.[78]
When theBrowns left town (in 1996), so what? But if WCLV had left, that would have been a great blow to me.
The non-profit organization established to operate WCLV-FM—the WCLV Foundation—was modeled in part on the foundation established afterPatsy Bullitt Collins divestedKING-FM to a consortium consisting of theSeattle Symphony,Seattle Opera and ArtsFund in 1994.[78] The structure of the WCLV Foundation allowed WCLV to continue operating with a classical format and use its "excess profits" to fund local arts organizations: theCleveland Orchestra, theCleveland Institute of Music, theCleveland Museum of Art, theCleveland Play House, andThe Cleveland Foundation.[70] Cleveland Foundation president Steven Minter praised the WCLV Foundation as "generous and farsighted" and pledged to use any annual proceeds for futuregrant distribution.[78] On November 1, 2001, Radio Seaway donated WCLV-FM's license to the Foundation but handled day-to-day operations, while retaining and operating WCLV (AM) outright.[78] Maintaining the adult standards format, the AM outlet was renamed WRMR on January 1, 2003, and then repurchased by Salem Communications on July 7, 2004, for $10 million.[79]
The move of WCLV's format and call letters to104.9FM came at the expense of listeners inSummit County, particularly inAkron andKent, that were unable to reliably pick up the new signal. One disappointed listener fromCuyahoga Falls told theAkron Beacon Journal, "I love WCLV, I just feel like the announcers are members of my family."[80] Conrad, who emceed a Cleveland Orchestra concert atBlossom Music Center shortly after the switch, ended up addressing the new signal's shortcomings and said, "we made some sacrifices for the perpetuation of the format".[81] WKSU, which continued to feature a combinedpublic radio and classical format, began advertising towards affected listeners particularly in areas where WCLV-FM's signal was the weakest, but otherwise considered WCLV a "kindred spirit".[80]
WCLV's ratings dropped by 20 percent the year following the switch, but advertising revenue remained stable even with challenges related to theSeptember 11 attacks.[82] APlain Dealer review of theTivoli Audio PAL elicited disagreement from readers disappointed in the radio as they were still unable to reliably tune in to WCLV's signal, even with the PAL's sensitive tuner.[83] WCLV beganHD Radio broadcasts on August 14, 2003, shortly beforea cascading failure of the electrical grid in the Midwest and Northeast marred the debut; at the time, WCLV was the second Cleveland-market radio station and only the third U.S. radio station with a classical format to adopt the standard.[84] The partial simulcast with WBKC ended on October 17, 2006, after owner D&E Communications converted WBKC into a gospel music format under the WABQ call sign,[85] assuming the prior identityof a prior WABQ divested several weeks earlier.[86]
Jacqueline Gerber joined WCLV as morning host in the spring of 2001, prior to the frequency move.[87] In an interview with theSpringfield State Journal-Register, Gerber described WCLV as a mixture of old and new technology, noting, "we still have turntables... we still havereel-to-reel tape, we still have single-edge razor blades lying around the control room."[88] Gerber's arrival accentuated an airstaff with significant continuity: music director John Simna had been with WCLV since 1973 and midday host Mark Satola since 1977.[89] Bill O'Connell was named as the second program director in station history in 1998, succeeding Conrad,[90] then became afternoon host in May 2001[87] following Tony Bianchi's retirement from WCLV after 37 years on air.[91] Hugh Danaceau, who was the station's news director since 1981,[92] continued in that capacity until his death on October 26, 2003.[93] Bill Rudman'smusical theater-themedFootlight Parade had been a WCLV program since May 1983; during Radio Seaway's ownership of1420AM, Rudman hosted a Saturday afternoon program on that station devoted to "classic American song".[94]The Black Arts, a weekly series on contributions to fine arts, classical music and jazz by African Americans hosted byA. Grace Lee Mims, launched on WCLV in 1976 and aired continuously until Mims's death in October 2019.[95][96]
Two of WCLV's signature evening programs—Symphony at Seven andHeinen's Concert Hall—also carried over to104.9FM. WhileConcert Hall was discontinued in 2003,[97]Symphony at Seven remains on the schedule to the present day, withKeyBank (through predecessors Society Bank and Cleveland Trust) serving as the program's sole sponsor throughout its entire history.[98]Adventures in Good Music, which WCLV syndicated internationally since March 22, 1970, remained on the schedule until June 29, 2007,[99] but ended production four years earlier;[100] the program continued to be among WCLV's highest-rated when hostKarl Haas died in 2005.[101]Essential Classics, another program of recorded music, replacedAdventures in Good Music on the WCLV schedule.Beau Coup keyboardist Dennis Lewin hostedTurning You onto Classical Music on WCLV from 2008 to 2018.[102]
WCLV's conversion into non-commercial status occurred over the span of two years. WCLV first announced on August 10, 2010, its move from their long-time "Radio Ranch" studios inWarrensville Heights to the Idea Center atPlayhouse Square in Downtown Cleveland, home to areaPBS memberWVIZ and areaNPR memberWCPN; the station's transmitter site would remain in Avon.[103] The move occurred in December 2010.[104] Radio Seaway announced it would donate WCLV to WVIZ and WCPN's parentIdeastream on May 4, 2011, with Cleveland Classical Radio (formerly the WCLV Foundation) continuing to operate the station until November 1, 2012, the 50th anniversary of the original WCLV (95.5FM)'s launch.[105] Ideastream was one of the initial backing partners behind the WCLV Foundation at its 2000 establishment.[69] Commercial operation continued until January 1, 2013, when the station joined WVIZ and WCPN in operating as a non-commercialpublic radio station, fully integrating it into the public media group.[106][107] From 2001 through 2012, WCLV was one of the few remaining commercially-operated classical music radio stations in the United States.[108]
Ideastream Public Media andKent State University's board of trustees entered into apublic service operating agreement with the university's WKSU on September 15, 2021.[109] This agreement had its genesis in a $100,000Corporation for Public Broadcasting grant[110] jointly awarded to WKSU and Ideastream on September 1, 2020, to help expand public media service in Northeast Ohio and encourage collaboration between both entities.[111] As part of the agreement, Ideastream took over the day-to-day operations of WKSU and all its respective translators and repeaters on October 1, 2021, retaining all of WKSU's employees.[112]
On March 28, 2022, WCLV changed calls to WCPN and became a WKSUrepeater forLorain County and the western portion of Greater Cleveland,[113] WCPN changed calls to WCLV and format to classical music,[114] and WKSU became Northeast Ohio's lead NPR station employing both WCPN and WKSU's off- and on-air staffs.[115] The addition of104.9FM to WKSU's repeater network—with a potential audience of 3.6 million people and 22-county coverage area—gave WKSU the largest collective footprint for an FM radio station in Ohio, while WCLV's potential audience at90.3FM was estimated to have increased by as many as one million people[116] restoring the classical format on a full-market FM signal since the 2001 asset swap.[114]
WCPN operates as a full-time simulcast ofWKSU. Additionally, WCPN rebroadcasts WKSU's fourdigital subchannels using the proprietaryHD Radio standard:
... The grocery chain continued to be a WCLV spot advertiser and sponsor ofConcert Hall through 2003.
Neither Ideastream Public Media or WKSU management were involved in the reporting or editing of this story, nor did they review it before publication. Ida Lieszkovszky is a freelance reporter working in Northeast Ohio. This story was reviewed by an editor outside both organizations.
Media related toWCPN at Wikimedia Commons| International | |
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