 | |
| Broadcast area | Columbus, Georgia |
|---|---|
| Frequency | 1460kHz |
| Branding | Columbus' BIN 94.7/1460 AM |
| Programming | |
| Format | Black-oriented news |
| Affiliations | Black Information Network |
| Ownership | |
| Owner |
|
| WAGH,WDAK,WGSY,WSTH-FM,WVRK | |
| History | |
First air date | May1952 (as WGBA) |
Former call signs | WSAC (1947–1949) WGBA (1949–1953) WPNX (1953–1989) WIQN (1989–1991) WPNX (1991–2003) WHAL (2003–2018) WGSY (2018–2020)[1] |
Call sign meaning | W HoT Y (brandingcarried over from100.1 |
| Technical information[2] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 32383 |
| Class | B |
| Power | 4,000watts day 140 watts night |
Transmitter coordinates | 32°25′58″N84°57′02″W / 32.43278°N 84.95056°W /32.43278; -84.95056 |
| Translator | 94.7 W234BX (Highland Pines) |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
| Webcast | Listen Live |
| Website | columbus |
WHTY (1460AM) is aradio stationlicensed to servePhenix City, Alabama, United States. The station is owned byiHeartMedia, Inc. and licensed to iHM Licenses, LLC. WHTY operates as theBlack Information Network affiliate forColumbus, Georgia. Its studios are in Columbus east of downtown, and its transmitter is southeast of downtown.
Originally licensed as WSAC, this station signed on the air as WGBA in May 1952.[3] The station changed its call sign in 1953 to WPNX (forPhenix City). WPNX aired acountry & western music format throughout the 1960s and 1970s as "1460 Kickin' Country." In the late 1970s, the station flipped toSouthern Gospel music.[4] In the 1980s, WPNX tried a variety of formats as new FM stations gained popularity in the region.
In October 1984, Bi-State Broadcasting Company, Inc., reached an agreement to sell this station to JRM Broadcasting, Inc. The deal was approved by the FCC on December 7, 1984, and the transaction was consummated on March 6, 1985.[5]
In September 1987, J.T. Milligan acquired positive control of JRM Broadcasting from James R. Martin through the purchase of stock. The transfer of control was approved by the FCC on September 21, 1987, and the transfer was consummated on September 30, 1987.[6]
On February 1, 1989, the station changed callsigns to WIQN to match a shift totalk radio programing.[1] On March 4, 1991, the station returned to its heritage WPNX call letters and acountry music format.[1]
JRM Broadcasting was forced to relocate the WPNX studios and radio tower after the Phenix City city council terminated its ground lease in August 1994 as part of renovation plans for Idle Hour Park.[7] Before the move, WPNX was located in the former terminal building of the defunct Phenix City Airport.[8] That building at 1002 Airport Road in Phenix City now houses the Phenix City Art Center.[9] The transmitter site was moved to its current location at the intersection of North Lumpkin Road and US Highway 27 in Columbus, Georgia. Along with the move, the station reduced signal power to 4,000watts daytime and 140 watts at night but switched to anon-directional signal pattern.[10] Prior to the move, the station had a more powerful, but directional signal using two towers.[11]
Jim Martin and Tommy Milligan reached an agreement in January 1996 to sell JRM Broadcasting to a new company, M&M Partners, Inc., which they would continue to own jointly. The deal was approved by the FCC on February 21, 1996, and the transaction was consummated on February 29, 1996.[12] In 1997, station owner M&M Partners Inc. added three more radio stations to its existing WPNX/WVRK cluster.[13]
Cumulus Broadcasting entered the Columbus market in August 1997 by buying these five stations for $15 million from M&M Partners.[14] The deal was approved by the FCC on October 28, 1997, and the transaction was consummated on January 7, 1998.[15] The new owners flipped the station to asports talk format includingAtlanta Falcons football games and regular programming fromESPN Radio.[16]
In July 2000, Cumulus Media Inc. (Lewis W. Dickey Jr., president) reached an agreement to sell this station to Clear Channel Communications Inc. (L. Lowry Mays, chairman) as part of an 80-station deal for a reported $166 million.[14][17] After multiple formal objections to this deal, it was ultimately approved by the FCC on February 21, 2002, and the transaction was consummated on April 23, 2002.[18] At the time of the sale, the station aired aSouthern Gospel music format.[17]
The station was assigned the WHAL call letters by the FCC on May 2, 2003.[1] From Spring 2003 until Spring 2006, this station aired ablack gospel music format branded as "Hallelujah 1460".[19][20] In early Summer 2006, WHAL switched to Spanish-language programming as "Viva 1460".[21]
On May 15, 2009, the station flipped tosports talk as "Fox Sports 1460" airingFox Sports Radio network programming. Another change, to the24/7 Comedy network, occurred on October 29, 2012. After the end of the 24/7 Comedy network, WHAL flipped to classic country (branded as "Classic Country 1460") on August 4, 2014. On December 1, 2015, WHAL rebranded as "South 94.7 The Legend" to reflect the launch oftranslator station W234BX (94.7FM).[22]
On January 15, 2018, WHAL changed their format from classic country toadult contemporary, branded as "Sunny 94.7"; the format was moved from WGSY (100.1 FM), which moved to anurban contemporary format.[23] The station picked up the WGSY call sign on January 25, 2018. On November 2, 2018, Sunny 94.7 flipped from its regular format toChristmas music for the holiday season.
In 2019, WGSY shifted its format from adult contemporary tohot adult contemporary. On October 1, 2019, WGSY rebranded as "Mix 94.7".[24]
On June 29, 2020, fifteen iHeart stations in markets with large African American populations, including WGSY, beganstunting with African American speeches, interspersed with messages such as "Our Voices Will Be Heard" and "Our side of the story is about to be told," with a new format slated to launch on June 30.[25][26] That day, WGSY, along with the other fourteen stations, became the launch stations for theBlack Information Network, an African American-orientedall-news network.[27] Concurrently, the "Sunny" branding and adult contemporary format was restored to 100.1, by thenWHTY.[28] On August 3, 2020, WGSY changed callsigns to WHTY.[29]
Later, it became country station WPNX-AM. But before the building was a radio station, it was the airport terminal (though I wasn't here then).
