| |
|---|---|
| Broadcast area | Greater Orlando |
| Frequency | 990kHz |
| Branding | AM 990 and FM 101.5 The Word |
| Programming | |
| Language | English |
| Format | Christian talk and teaching |
| Affiliations | Salem Radio Network |
| Ownership | |
| Owner |
|
| WORL | |
| History | |
First air date | December 5, 1947; 77 years ago (1947-12-05) |
Former call signs |
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| Technical information[1] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 23442 |
| Class | B |
| Power |
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Transmitter coordinates | 28°34′27″N81°27′46″W / 28.57417°N 81.46278°W /28.57417; -81.46278 |
| Translator(s) | 101.5 W268CT (Orlando) |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
| Webcast | Listen live |
| Website | thewordorlando |
WTLN (990 kHz) is acommercialAM radio station located inOrlando, Florida. It is owned by theSalem Media Group and it airs aChristian talk and teachingradio format. The offices and studios are on Lake View Drive inAltamonte Springs. Some of the national religious leaders heard on WTLN includeDavid Jeremiah,Chuck Swindoll,Jim Daly,John MacArthur andCharles Stanley. Hosts pay for 30- to 60-minute segments on WTLN and can use the time to seek donations to their ministries. WTLN is known as "AM 990 and FM 101.5 The Word".
WTLN broadcasts by day with50,000 watts, the maximum power for AM stations in the United States, covering much ofCentral Florida. It uses adirectional antenna at all times, and must protectco-channelWMYM inMiami. At night, whenAM band signals travel further, power is reduced to14,000 watts, with its signal directional towards the east, to protect Canadianclear channel stationCBW inWinnipeg. Thetransmitter is off Park Hamilton Boulevard inPine Hills.[2] Programming is also heard on 225-wattFM translator 101.5 W268CT in Orlando.[3]
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On December 5, 1947, WHOO firstsigned on the air. It was theABC Radionetwork affiliate for Orlando and was co-owned with theSentinel Star newspaper. The studios were in the Fort Catelin Hotel.
An advertisement in the 1948Broadcasting Yearbook stated that WHOO celebrated its debut broadcast with 5,000 guests, a New York dance band and a full-time "girl singer". It boasted that it had Orlando's first city room to gather local and Florida news stories and the largest sports staff.[4] A short time later, it added FM station WHOO-FM (nowWOEX).
In the late 1950s, as network programming moved from radio to television, WHOO shifted to atop 40 music format and was a top-rated station in the market until slipping behind upstartWLOF "Channel 95" in the mid-1960s. WHOO then switched tocountry music in 1968, and continued with this format until 1987, when the station switched itscall sign to WMMA "Magic 99". airing a satellite-fedsoft adult contemporary format from theSatellite Music Network. A short time later, it changed tooldies.
A succession of formats followed over the next several years: the station was briefly WHTQ in 1988,simulcasting thealbum rock format ofWHTQ-FM. It returned to the WHOO call sign with anadult standards format known as "TheMusic of Your Life". Within a year, it changed toclassic country in 1989, and then returned to simulcasting WHTQ-FM's rock music (although still as WHOO) from 1990 to 1993.
On December 4, 1993, WHOO returned to adult standards, this time using thesyndicated "Stardust" format from ABC Radio.
In 2001, WHOO was acquired by theABC, Inc. subsidiary ofThe Walt Disney Company for $5 million.[5]Walt Disney World is located in Orlando, so the decision was made by the company to flip WHOO to thechildren's/contemporary hit radio format as the unofficial flagship station. The station became WDYZ as aRadio Disneyowned and operated station, beginning the format on February 2, and provides the service throughout the Disney World area (The DYZ stood for "Disney"). The station was also simulcast on channel 14 in Disney resort TVs. The standards format and WHOO call sign were shifted onto AM 1080 inKissimmee.
On August 13, 2014, Disney put WDYZ and 22 other Radio Disney stations up for sale, to focus on digital distribution of the Radio Disney network.[6][7] On December 15,Radio Disney Group filed to sell WDYZ to the Pennsylvania Media Associates, Inc.[8] Pennsylvania Media is asubsidiary of theSalem Media Group.[9] The FCC granted the sale on February 10, 2015.[10]
On March 10, Salem Media CEO Ed Atsinger revealed that WDYZ would be the eighth company-owned station to carry Salem's "Radio Luz"SpanishChristian radio format.[11] On March 18, WDYZ dropped the Radio Disney programming and wentsilent.[12] The sale was consummated on March 27.[13] On April 13, WDYZ returned to the air with a Spanish Christian format, branded as "La Nueva 990".
On August 5, 2019, WDYZ flipped to English-languageChristian talk and teaching, branded as "The Word".[14] The flip was part of a Salem Media shuffle of its Orlando stations;WORL (660 AM), the home of Salem's conservative talk format, was sold toJVC Broadcasting, while Salem shifted WORL's programming and call sign to950 AM, and the WTLN callsigns and Christian talk and teaching format moved up the dial to 990 AM.
