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| Broadcast area | Augusta metropolitan area |
| Frequency | 580kHz |
| Branding | NewsTalk WGAC |
| Programming | |
| Format | News/talk |
| Affiliations | |
| Ownership | |
| Owner |
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| History | |
First air date | 1940 (1940) |
| Technical information[1] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 4435 |
| Class | B |
| Power |
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Transmitter coordinates | |
| Repeater | 95.1 WGAC-FM (Harlem) |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
| Webcast | Listen live |
| Website | www |
WGAC (580kHz) is acommercialAM radio station inAugusta, Georgia. The station carries anews/talkformatsimulcast with co-owned 95.1WGAC-FM inHarlem, Georgia. The stations are owned byBeasley Broadcast Group, Inc., through licensee Beasley Media Group Licenses, LLC. The radio studios and offices are on Jimmie Dyess Parkway in Augusta.[2]
WGAC is a rare radio station that usestransmitter sites in different states. In the daytime, WGAC is powered at 5,000 watts, using anon-directional antenna off King Street inMartinez, Georgia. At night, to avoid interfering with other stations on580 AM, WGAC reduces power to 840 watts, using adirectional antenna with a four-tower array, off Old Sudlow Lake Road inNorth Augusta, South Carolina.[3]
On weekdays, WGAC has local shows in AM and PMdrive time, withnationally syndicated shows heard the rest of the day. Weekdays begin with "Augusta's Morning News" with John Patrick, Mary Liz Nolan and Steve Smith. In late afternoons, Austin Rhodes hosts aconservative talk call-in show. Also on the schedule areGlenn Beck,Dave Ramsey,Mark Levin,Coast to Coast AM withGeorge Noory andAmerica in the Morning with John Trout.
Weekends feature shows on money, gardening, golfing, cars, technology, religion and law. Syndicated weekend shows includeKim Komando,The Motley Fool,Handel on the Law andSomewhere in Time with Art Bell as well as repeats of weekday shows. WGAC broadcasts games of theAugusta GreenJacketsminor league baseball team. Most hours begin with world and national news fromFox News Radio.
In 1940, WGACsigned on the air. It originally broadcast on 1210kHz at 250 watts, a fraction of its current power. It was owned by Twin States Broadcasting.[4] WGAC was anNBC Blue Networkaffiliate, carrying its schedule of dramas, comedies, news, sports, soap operas, game shows andbig band broadcasts during the "Golden Age of Radio".
In 1941, after the enactment of theNorth American Regional Broadcasting Agreement (NARBA), WGAC moved toAM 1240. A few years later, WGAC got approval from theFederal Communications Commission (FCC) to move to 580 kHz, with a big increase in power, 5,000 watts by day and 1,000 watts at night.[5] The Blue Network became theABC Radio Network.
In 1978, theBeasley Broadcast Group acquired WGAC and later, added an FM station (WGAC-FM 95.1) as a simulcast.[6]
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