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|---|---|
| Broadcast area | Chicago metropolitan area |
| Frequency | 1590kHz |
| Branding | Chicago's Smart Talk |
| Programming | |
| Format | Brokered programming (English,Korean,Russian,Assyrian) |
| Affiliations | |
| Ownership | |
| Owner |
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| History | |
First air date | September 29, 1947; 77 years ago (1947-09-29)[1] |
Former call signs | |
Call sign meaning | Chicago |
| Technical information[4] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 35447 |
| Class | B |
| Power |
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Transmitter coordinates | 42°1′18.11″N87°42′41.21″W / 42.0216972°N 87.7114472°W /42.0216972; -87.7114472 |
| Translator(s) | 95.9 W240EH (Evanston) |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
| Webcast | Listen live |
| Website | www |
WCGO (1590AM) is acommercialradio stationlicensed toEvanston, Illinois, and serving theChicago metropolitan area's northern suburbs. The station is owned by Jorge Rodriquez through licensee Ambiente Clasico LLC.[5][6] WCGO has abrokered programmingradio format where hosts buy time on the station and may use their shows to advertise their services or seek donations. On weekday mornings, the station airsKorean-languageChristian radio programming.Russian language shows are heard in the afternoon. Evenings and weekends, WCGO airs brokered talk and ethnic shows. Overnight, it carries thenationally syndicatedCoast to Coast AM withGeorge Noory fromPremiere Networks.
By day, WCGO is powered at 10,000wattsnon-directional. To protect other stations on1590 AM from interference, at night it reduces power to 2,500 watts and uses adirectional antenna with a four-tower array. Thetransmitter is on North McCormick Boulevard near West Howard Street inSkokie.[7] Programming is also heard on 250-wattFM translatorW240EH at 95.9MHz in Evanston.[8]
The station began broadcasting on September 29, 1947, and held thecall sign WNMP.[1][2] WNMP operated during daytime hours only, with a power of 1,000 watts.[2]Block programming was aired in its early years.[9] In 1959, the station adopted aclassical music/light music format.[10] In 1960, the station was sold toHarry H. Semrow and his brother Otto Semrow for $325,000.[11][12][2] The station aired aneasy listening format in the 1960s and carriedNorthwestern Wildcats football.[13][14][15] In December 1969, the station was sold to Alan H. Cummings and Buddy Black for $875,000.[16][2]
The station's call sign was changed to WLTD on November 2, 1970.[2] WLTD aired easy listening music,old-time radio shows, and specialty talk shows.[17] On May 2, 1970,Chuck Schaden's firstThose Were The Days program aired on WNMP.[18][19] It continued on WLTD until 1975, when the station changed format.[19]
In 1975, the station was sold to Kovas Communications for $400,000, and adopted abeautiful music format.[20][2][21][22]
On April 9, 1979, the station's call sign was changed to WONX.[2] The station switched to aSpanish language format.[23][24] Programming in other languages were also aired over the years.[25][26][27][28] In 1982, the station added nighttime operations, running 2,500 watts.[2][29] It used a four-towerdirectional array at night.[6] In 1997, the station's daytime power was increased to 3,500 watts.[30]
On April 10, 2009, the previousWCGO on 1600, also owned by Kovas, was taken off the air.[31] On April 13, 2009, WONX's call sign was changed to WCGO.[3] With 1600 now vacant, the new WCGO was able to increase its daytime power to 7,000 watts.[32] In 2014, the station's daytime power was increased to 10,000 watts.[33][34]
WCGO began airing talk programs in September 2014, with local shows hosted by Franklin Raff and Geoff Pinkus, as well asDana Loesch's syndicated program.[35] On April 6, 2015,Milt Rosenberg began hosting a program on the station.[36] As of 2023, its programming is multilingual: Weekend programming includesLegal Eagles with William Pelarenos,The Dave Ramsey Show,The Assyrian Cultural Foundation: The Guiding Voice with Ninos Nirari, The Chicago Wine Report with Chip Dudley, Tom Hall, and Lainie Petersen, Domingo Felices with Frank Camacho, and Dialogo Politico with Robert Ameneiro. Weekdays features Korean Christian programming weekday mornings, Russian language programing via Radio NVC weekday afternoons, and Multiformat Network show highlights in the evenings. Overnight programming isCoast to Coast AM withGeorge Noory.[37]
In 2017, the station was sold to William Pollack for $3 million.[5][38] In 2019, WCGO became the flagship station of the national SmartTalk Radio Network.
Pollack sold WCGO to Jorge Rodriguez's Ambiente Clasico LLC for $675,000 in 2023; Ambiente Clasico had been leasing the station's overnight programming. WCGO's real estate was separately sold to Rodriguez in a $150,000 deal.[39]
| Call sign | Frequency | City of license | FID | ERP (W) | Class | Transmitter coordinates | FCC info |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W240EH | 95.9 FM | Evanston, Illinois | 202249 | 250 | D | 42°1′19.1″N87°42′40.2″W / 42.021972°N 87.711167°W /42.021972; -87.711167 (W240EH) | LMS |