_Hits_97.3_logo.png){kind=logo} | |
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| Broadcast area | South Florida |
| Frequency | 97.3MHz (HD Radio) |
| Branding | Hits 97.3 |
| Programming | |
| Language | English |
| Format | Rhythmic hot AC |
| Subchannels | HD2: 97.3 The Coast (1980's hits) |
| Ownership | |
| Owner |
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| History | |
First air date | September 1, 1946 (78 years ago) (1946-09-01) |
Former call signs |
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Call sign meaning | Florida's Coast (former branding) |
| Technical information[1] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 72984 |
| Class | C |
| ERP | 100,000 watts |
| HAAT | 307 meters (1,007 ft) |
Transmitter coordinates | 25°58′02″N80°12′34″W / 25.96722°N 80.20944°W /25.96722; -80.20944 |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
| Webcast |
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| Website | www |
WFLC (97.3FM, "Hits 97.3") is a radio station inMiami, Florida. Owned byCox Media Group, It broadcasts arhythmic hot AC format. WFLC's studios and offices are located on North 29th Avenue inHollywood.[2] Thetransmitter site is off NW 210 Street inMiami Gardens.[3]
WFLC broadcasts in theHD Radio format.[4] The HD-2 channel carries all-1980's hits. The HD-3 channel formerly carriescountry music. The HD-3 channel has since been turned off.
On September 1, 1946, the stationsigned on as WIOD-FM.[5] It was the FM counterpart toWIOD and mostlysimulcast its programs. The owner was the Isle of Dreams Broadcasting Corporation, reflected in itscall sign. The studios were located on Collins Island inBiscayne Bay, giving the company its "Isle of Dreams" name. WIOD-FM was one of two FM stations going on the air in 1946 in Miami; the other, WQAM-FM,signed off in the 1950s, making WFLC Miami's oldest, continuously operating FM station.
In 1956, the Biscayne Television Corporation, a partnership ofCox Publishing, owner ofThe Miami News, andKnight Publishing, owner ofTheMiami Herald, launched WCKT-TV (nowWSVN). The callsign represented Cox, Knight and Television. Biscayne Broadcasting also bought WIOD-AM-FM, changing their call signs to WCKR and WCKR-FM. Just as WIOD-AM-FM were network affiliates ofNBC Radio, WCKT-TV was anNBC television affiliate.
In 1962, theFederal Communications Commission stripped the Cox-Knight partnership of its broadcast licenses due to violations of ethics and licensing rules when Cox-Knight sought to build the TV station. On January 1, 1963, the Miami Valley Broadcasting Corporation, which was asubsidiary of Cox, took over control of the two radio stations and returned the call signs to WIOD and WIOD-FM. An advertisement inBroadcasting Magazine said the stations provided "expertly programmed adult information and entertainment."[6] The stations aired a mix ofmiddle of the road music, news and talk shows, along with news and features from NBC Radio.
In 1966, the simulcast with the AM ended; WIOD-FM adopted abeautiful music format, playing instrumental versions of pop music andBroadway andHollywood tunes. In 1971, the station switched its callsign to WAIA, representing the coastal highway known asFlorida State Road A1A. The station moved from instrumental beautiful music to all vocals, mixing middle of the road music withsoft adult contemporary hits.
In the early 1980s, the station began making the presentation more upbeat and it stepped up the tempo of the music, moving to anadult contemporary format as "97 A1A".[7]
On Independence Day, 1986, at midnight, the station switched toalbum rock as WGTR. While WINZ-FM (nowWZTU) had changed from Top 40 to a Classic rock format to bring back the "Zeta" brand after about 5 1/2 years, WSHE was the key Album Rock station in a rapidly changing marketplace driven by Latino growth and "Miami Vice." When Cox Radio launched WGTR, it stole WSHE's "Herman and McBean" morning show. The result? The station calling itself "97 GTR" with the call sign standing for Guitar and a log with a monkey would sink WSHE, dropping it toward the bottom of the ratings after being near the top in 1985.
As the 1990s began, and more socioeconomic changes had come to Northeast Miami-Dade County and much of Hialeah and Miami's southern suburbs, Rock formats all began to fight for a smaller audience. Cox abandoned the fight to start an Adult Contemporary war that would last for nearly 25 years.
On May 11, 1990, Cox flipped the station tohot adult contemporary as WFLC, "Coast 97.3". The station positioned itself betweencontemporary hit radio (CHR) leaderWHYI and soft music outletWLYF. WFLC's hot AC format stayed in place for nearly 24 years, becoming famous for their "Totally 80s Weekends" under Director of Programming, Gary Williams.
On January 16, 2014, despite top 5 ratings ranking, the airstaff and social media of WFLC began teasing an announcement to come the following day, the 17th, at 10 am, at that time, after playing "That's All" byGenesis, WFLC shifted to CHR asHits 97.3, putting it in direct competition with WHYI. The first song as "Hits" was "Timber" by Miami nativePitbull, featuringKesha.[8][9]
On March 27, 2020, the station temporarily rebranded as97.3 Quarantine Radio, in reference to thestay-at-home order issued by Florida due to theCOVID-19 pandemic, adding commercial-free dance mixes twice-daily. On June 3, after branding itself as being "under construction" the week immediately prior, WFLC relaunched theHits format with a new on-air lineup and morning show, while maintaining the existing CHR format.[10][11] Despite the relaunch, the station failed to make any more traction than before, holding a 2.6 share in the Nielsen Audio Ratings for August 2021, significantly behind that of WHYI, but slightly ahead of WPOW.[12]
On September 23, director of operations Jill Strada left WFLC as part of a series of layoffs by Cox Media. The following morning at 6 am, the station beganstunting for six hours with a loop of songs containing the word "rhythm" in their titles; at noon, the station flipped to arhythmic hot AC format under theHits branding, now positioned as "The Rhythm of Miami".[12] Mediabase still reported WFLC as a Top 40 station until around June 2022, when it officially moved to the hot AC panel.
