WVOK-FM (97.9MHz, "97.9 VOK") is acommercialradio station broadcasting ahot adult contemporaryformat.Licensed toOhatchee, Alabama, it serves theAnniston-Oxford Metropolitan Area.^[1] It is owned and operated by Woodard Broadcasting Company, Inc., with studios on Church Street inOxford.

WVOK-FM is aClass A FM station. It has aneffective radiated power (ERP) of 510watts. Thetransmitter is off Coldwater Mountain Road inAnniston.^[2]

In 1977,WVOK-FM was launched inBirmingham, Alabama, as analbum-oriented rock (AOR) radio station called "K-99." The station broadcast on the 99.5 MHz frequency, originally thesister station to WVOK 690 AM (nowWJOX). WVOK 690 was a popularTop 40 stations. WVOK-FM changed its call letters to WRKK in 1979. It kept its Rock format until 1983, when it becamecountry music station "K Country." Several format changes later, the station is now known in Birmingham asWZRR "Talk 99.5."

The WVOKcall sign would not be heard on the FM dial again until the creation of a new radio station inOxford, Alabama. Jimmy and Geraldine Woodard, owners of WEYY-FM inTalladega, Alabama, were granted aconstruction permit from theFCC for the first commercial FM station licensed to Oxford. The stationsigned on the air on February 19, 1990; 35 years ago (February 19, 1990). At first, it was WKFN "K98" on the 97.9 MHz frequency. In 1992, WKFN acquired the WVOK call letters but its "K98" nickname remained the same.

On February 19, 1990, the station made a change.^[3] K98 switched to anAdult Contemporary format, playing music from the 1950s through the 1990s. At that time, WVOK was one of few local stations to compete against the 100,000-wattCountry music station WHMA of in Anniston, known by listeners as "Alabama 100."

On November 6, 1996, theSusquehanna Radio Corporation purchased Alabama 100 and moved it to theAtlantaradio market in early 2001. As a result, WVOK saw an increase in the station's localArbitron ratings.

Since K98 began broadcast in 1990, it has employed a number of popularDJs, including Rick Burgess from the syndicated "Rick and Bubba" radio program. K98'sradio format, however, has seen little change.Clear Channel Communications stationWQEN ("103-7 the Q") relocated its transmitter fromSpringville, Alabama, toBirmingham in early 2005. That prompted WVOK to briefly changed its music format toContemporary Hit Radio (Top 40 - CHR). But that was short-lived. WVOK has since returned to a more adult-appealHot AC format.

In early 2006, WVOK-FM began using itsfrequency andcall letters often (instead of the "K98" nickname) as its station identifier. Its slogan became "The Best of the 80's, 90's and Today". In early 2008, it added a new morning program,The Steve and Carl Show.

• WVOK-FM is recognized as one of the only radio stations in Alabama to remain on the air during the "Storm of the Century" in 1993. WVOK received honors from the city ofOxford, former Alabama GovernorGuy Hunt, and others for keeping the station on the air through the duration of the storm.
• WVOK-FM is one of two stations in the Anniston/Gadsden market whose call letters were previously assigned toTop 40 stations in Birmingham. The other isWKXX.
• There has been much speculation about the WVOKcall sign meaning over the years. Although DJs from the original WVOK-AM radio station sometimes referred to it as theVoiceOfKindness, the call letters were randomly chosen.

• WVOK-FM official website
• Facility details for Facility ID 73609 (WVOK-FM) in theFCC Licensing and Management System
• WVOK-FM inNielsen Audio's FM station database

33°37′19″N85°52′19″W / 33.622°N 85.872°W /33.622; -85.872

• Radio stations in Alabama
• Hot adult contemporary radio stations in the United States
• Oxford, Alabama
• Radio stations established in 1990
• 1990 establishments in Alabama

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