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| Broadcast area | Metro Detroit |
| Frequency | 760kHz |
| Branding | News Talk 760 WJR |
| Programming | |
| Language | English |
| Format | News/talk |
| Affiliations | |
| Ownership | |
| Owner |
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| WDVD | |
| History | |
First air date | May 4, 1922 (1922-05-04) |
Former call signs |
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Former frequencies |
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Call sign meaning | Former owner Jewett Radio & Phonograph Co. |
| Technical information[1] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 8626 |
| Class | A |
| Power |
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Transmitter coordinates | |
| Repeater | 96.3 WDVD-HD2 (Detroit) |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
| Webcast |
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| Website | www |
WJR (760kHz) is a commercial AM radio station inDetroit, Michigan. It is owned byCumulus Media, with anews/talk format. Most of WJR's broadcast studios, along with its newsroom and offices, are in theFisher Building in Detroit'sNew Center area. A tower atop the Fisher Building relays WJR's audio to the transmitter site, and at one time WJR-FM (currentlyWDVD) also used this tower.
WJR is aClass Aclear channel station, operating with 50,000 watts, the maximum power for AM stations in the United States, around the clock. WJR's 1934 transmitter building — which has been called "one of the bestArt Deco transmitter buildings ever"[2] — andtransmittertower are located near (and visible from) the intersection of Sibley and Grange Roads inRiverview, Michigan.[3]
Due to WJR's low transmitting frequency and high power, omnidirectional signal, plus the region's mostly flat land and goodground conductivity,[4] the station has unusually large daytime coverage, equivalent to that of a full-power FM station. Its daytime signal provides at least secondary coverage to most of the southernLower Peninsula, as well as almost half ofOhio (withCleveland andToledo getting city-grade coverage) and slivers ofIndiana andPennsylvania. At night it can be heard throughout much of eastern North America with a good radio.
WJR programming is streamed via the web, and is simulcast onWDVD's 96.3 FM HD2 subchannel.[5] WJR is also licensed to broadcast a digital hybrid (HD) signal.[6]
WJR is Michigan's primary entry point station for theEmergency Alert System.
WJR airs a mix of local andnationally syndicated talk shows and local sports.[7] Weekdays feature a local lineup beginning with an hour of news at dawn, followed byJR Mornings with Lloyd Jackson and Jamie Edwards. Middays are hosted by Kevin Dietz andPaul W. Smith followed by afternoon personalities Chris Renwick andMitch Albom.Sports talk shows are heard in the early evening with an hour ofbrokered programming. At night, syndicatedconservative talk programs includeThe Mark Levin Show,The Guy Benson Show andRed Eye Radio.
Weekends feature specialty shows on money, health, gardening, education, travel, religion, golf and home repair, some of which are paidbrokered programming. Repeats of some weekday shows are also heard, as well asSunday Night with Bill Cunningham. Late nights and weekends, most hours begin with an update fromFox News Radio. The WJR news department provides newscasts on weekdays.
WJR is theflagship station ofMichigan State Spartansfootball andmen's basketball.[8] In the mid-1980s, it had been the flagship for theMichigan PanthersUSFL pro football team.
WJR traces its history to May 4, 1922. Effective December 1, 1921, the U.S. government for the first time adopted regulations formally defining "broadcasting stations". The wavelength of 360 meters (833 kHz) was designated for entertainment broadcasts, while 485 meters (619 kHz) was reserved for broadcasting official weather and other government reports.[9] On May 4, 1922, theDetroit Free Press newspaper was issued a license, with the randomly assigned callsign WCX, for operation on both broadcasting wavelengths.[10]
WCX made its debut, broadcasting from theFree Press Building, on the same day it was licensed. The inaugural broadcast included an address by Michigan governorAlex J. Groesbeck.[11] 1922 saw a rapid expansion in the number of broadcasting stations, most sharing the single entertainment wavelength of 360 meters, which required progressively more complicated time sharing schedules among stations in the same region. TheDetroit News, which operated stationWWJ, bristled at having to suffer the "handicap" of being required to give up some airtime to WCX, which had, in the words of theNews, decided to "break in".[12]
In late September 1922 a second entertainment wavelength, 400 meters (750 kHz), was made available for "Class B" stations, which had higher powers and better quality equipment and programming. Both WCX and WWJ qualified to use this new wavelength on a timesharing basis, and WCX ended use of the 485 meter "market and weather" wavelength.[13] In early 1923, the United States further expanded the broadcast station frequencies into a band running from 550 to 1350 kHz. The Class B frequency of 580 kHz was designated for use by qualified stations in the "Detroit/Dearborn" area,[14] and both WCX and WWJ were assigned to this frequency.[15]
On December 8, 1924, WCX opened studios atop the newBook-Cadillac Hotel in downtown Detroit, with transmitter facilities on the roof. Hometown poetEdgar A. Guest and theJean Goldkette orchestra participated in the program. In January 1925, WWJ's reassignment to 850 kHz[16] left WCX as the sole station remaining on 580 kHz.
On August 20, 1925, the Jewett Radio & Phonograph Company received a license for a new station, WJR. The company also took over WCX, consolidating operations inPontiac, Michigan, as WJR-WCX on 580 kHz.[17][18]
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On January 1, 1927, the station was taken over byGeorge A. Richards,[20] a localOakland-Pontiac automobile dealer. Richards would later also assume control ofWGAR inCleveland andKMPC in Los Angeles.[21] WJR adopted the slogan "The Goodwill Station" and on May 9, 1927, began carrying programs from the recently formedNBC Blue Network.[19]
In mid-1927, the joint stations moved to 680 kHz.[22] On November 11, 1928, theFederal Radio Commission implemented a major AM band reorganization, under the provisions of itsGeneral Order 40. This reallocation divided stations into three classes, which became known as "Clear", "Regional" and "Local". WJR-WCX was assigned as the sole North American occupant of the clear channel frequency of 750 kHz.[23]
On December 16, 1928, the station moved from the newspaper's offices to its current location in the Fisher Building in uptown Detroit, and began identifying as "WJR Detroit, from the Golden Tower of the Fisher Building". In 1929, the license was transferred to "WJR, Goodwill Station, Inc.", and on April 22, 1929, "WCX" was formally dropped from the dual call sign, with the station becoming just WJR.[24] In 1931, WJR raised its power to 10,000 watts. The station switchednetwork affiliation from NBC Blue toCBS on September 29, 1935, and at the same time station officials formally dedicated WJR's new 50,000-watt transmitter.[25] On March 29, 1941, the station moved from 750 to 760 kHz, in accordance with theNorth American Regional Broadcasting Agreement frequency reallocations.[26]
Although station owner George A. Richards purchased theDetroit Lions professional football team in 1934, WJR did not begin to broadcast their games until the 1938 season.[27]
WJR signed on anFM outlet in 1948, on 96.3 MHz. This station was known as WJR-FM until 1982, when it became WHYT. The station is nowWDVD.
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Richards died in May 1951, and in 1964, Goodwill Stations was sold toCapital Cities Communications, which later merged withABC and still later with theWalt Disney Company. Upon the sale, WJR's slogan became "The Great Voice of the Great Lakes". Also in 1964, WJR acquired full rights toDetroit Tigersbaseball games, with announcersErnie Harwell andGeorge Kell, who had begun broadcasting Tiger games in 1960. Previously, WJR had carried only night games with day games onWKMH andWJBK. The station became the flagship of the Tiger Baseball Network.In the late 1960s, WJR also became the flagship station forDetroit Red Wingshockey andDetroit Pistonsbasketball.
The station's advertising campaigns and jingles included "W-J-R ... Radio 76 ... Cares About Detroit"[29] and "This is America's finest - AM stereo 76".J. P. McCarthy regularly stated, in a nonchalant way, "This is the world's greatest radio station, WJR Detroit", with a manner that made it seem like the most obvious of facts.
WJR broadcast inC-QUAMAM stereo, from 1982 to 2006, and was received in stereo at great distances at night. WJR's Detroit Tigers home games were broadcast in stereo, as were the Thanksgiving Day Parades.
For much of its history, WJR served as a powerhouse in Michigan sports radio. However, in 2001, the station lost its longtimeflagship rights to the Detroit Tigers andDetroit Red Wings, both of which moved toCBS-ownedWXYT andWXYT-FM. Then, in 2005, the station dropped its status as the flagship station forMichigan Wolverines football and basketball in favor of a flagship rights deal with theMichigan State Spartans. WJR had served as flagship for Michigan State prior to 1976.[8]
WJR was sold with other ABC Radio stations toCitadel Broadcasting on June 12, 2007. Citadel merged withCumulus Media on September 16, 2011.[30]
WJR broadcast anHD Radio signal for about a two-year period (2006–2008) (also onWDRQ's HD2digital subchannel), eventually eliminating night time HD radio use, then dropping it completely on both WJR and WDRQ-HD2, returning to only its analog signal.
On November 20, 2015, WJR announced it would take over as flagship station of the Detroit Lions in 2016, with the team moving over from WXYT-FM.[31][32] The live sporting events meant that regular programming might be pre-empted. (During parts of the season when Michigan football and Tiger baseball were both on, Tiger baseball took precedence, and if a Michigan football game was either just beginning or really good when Tiger baseball came on, an announcement would come on as the football game faded out, stating the need to switch due to contractual obligations. Otherwise, the announcement would just simply state the station is leaving the Michigan game for the Tigers. Either way, listeners were directed toCKLW in nearbyWindsor, Ontario, for the conclusion of the game).
On December 18, 2020, the Detroit Lions announced thatAudacy signed a deal for WXYT-FM to become the flagship station for the 2021 NFL season after a five-year partnership.[33]
For many years, WJR airedRush Limbaugh in early afternoons. Following Limbaugh's death in 2021,Dan Bongino took over the noon to 3 pm time slot on WJR and many other Cumulus stations. Bongino's show is distributed byWestwood One, which is the national syndication arm of Cumulus Media. Following disputes with Westwood One and Cumulus over aCOVID-19 vaccine mandate, Bongino announced plans to end his Cumulus radio show at the end of his contract 18 months in the future.[34] Cumulus began phasing his show out of its stations' lineups, including WJR in June 2023.[35] At that time, WJR announced a new lineup of local personalities weekdays from 5 am to 8 pm.[36] Morning show host Paul W. Smith would move to early afternoons in place of Bongino, with Guy Gordon who previously hosted afternoons moving to morning drive.[37] New shows hosted by Chris Renwick and Sean Baligian were also added to the schedule.[38]
Father Charles Coughlin was a local Roman Catholic priest, whose controversial weekly radio sermons largely originated at WJR. At the height of his popularity, Coughlin reported receiving thousands of letters daily.[39] He was also extremely polarizing, described by one biographer as "a man of kindness and beautiful understanding",[40] while another labeled him "the father of hate radio".[41]
Father Coughlin made his radio debut on October 17, 1926, speaking over WJR via a microphone installed by the station at the altar at the Shrine of the Little Flower.[42] His commentaries initially addressed perceived social ills, opposing prohibition, divorce and birth control as damaging to American society. During theGreat Depression he moved heavily into political issues. On October 5, 1930, he began a weekly broadcast carried over the CBS network that originated at that network's Detroit affiliate,WXYZ.[43] But a year later CBS dropped him for being too divisive, by implementing a ban on commercially sponsored religious programs. With the assistance of WJR station manager Leo Fitzpatrick, Father Coughlin responded by forming his own network, with WJR as the key station.[44] "The Golden Hour" broadcasts began on October 4, 1931, initially on about 20 stations. By October 16 of the next year this expanded to 26 stations, said at the time to be "the largest independent network ever arranged",[45] and by early 1938 the network had grown to 58 stations.[46]
Coughlin's fervent anti-communism led to the perception that he was in favor of the rise of fascism in Europe, and he was accused of being anti-Jewish.[47] Although initially supported by the local church hierarchy, his personal attacks on political figures eventually resulted in official restrictions and rebukes.[48][49] In 1939 theNational Association of Broadcasters (NAB) adopted a code of conduct that included restrictions on controversial commercial broadcasts,[50] which was seen as primarily directed toward Coughlin, and WJR vice president John F. Pratt argued that "the provision on controversial subjects seems to many of us the first shackle on freedom of speech on the radio".[51] The NAB code led to a loss of participating stations,[52] and this, combined with subject matter restrictions imposed by his church superiors, resulted in Coughlin ending his radio broadcasts.
Past WJR personalities included J.P. McCarthy, Jimmy Launce, Warren Pierce, Mike Whorf, Murray Gula, Joel Alexander, Jay Roberts,Charles Coughlin and many others. WJR Program Directors during the Capital Cities era included Joe Bacarella, Curt Hahn and AC radio consultant Gary Berkowitz.
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| National | |
| Other | |
